Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Men Who Hate Women by Laura Bates

15 reviews

xwritingstoriesx's review

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Violence, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Rape, and Sexism

_caramel_'s review against another edition

challenging dark informative sad slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Fatphobia, Grief, Gun violence, Lesbophobia, Mass/school shootings, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Mental illness, Racism, Hate crime, Sexual violence, Rape, Body shaming, Toxic relationship, Homophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Sexism, Stalking, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Gaslighting, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Islamophobia, Abortion, Child death, and Child abuse

Minor: Racial slurs

papreasaurus's review

It was incredibly challenging to know the following things;
1. People that Laura talks about in this book exist in large, hidden numbers
2. They could be anyone

This book contains extremely important and helpful information. It is something I think everyone should take a gander at least once in their life - regardless of their gender, sex or orientation. Because this is a reality we all face and interact with, even if it is on very different levels from one person to the next. But it honestly gave me so much anxiety listening to the audio book, that I need to make sure everyone is aware that it is a very difficult read / listen, and it is okay to read it in small doses.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Violence, Murder, Sexual harassment, Trafficking, Sexual content, Slavery, Stalking, Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, Sexism, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Torture, Toxic friendship, Mass/school shootings, Misogyny, Rape, and Toxic relationship

devynreadsnovels's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Gaslighting, Homophobia, Racism, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Cursing, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Mass/school shootings, Stalking, Transphobia, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Gun violence, Hate crime, Incest, Infidelity, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Lesbophobia, Murder, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Xenophobia

Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic, Alcohol, Child abuse, Fatphobia, Grief, Acephobia/Arophobia, Ableism, Blood, Body shaming, Drug use, and Police brutality

Extreme, graphic depictions of rape, death threats, etc.

rewitr's review

challenging dark informative

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mass/school shootings, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Rape, Racial slurs, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Violence, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Hate crime, Lesbophobia, and Sexual assault

mindintheskies's review

challenging informative reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

There's so much detail in this book that I didn't expect. I was triggered by a lot of the statistics and real, lived stories that were shared of women suffering at the hands of incels and incel-sympathisers. I guess that's the reason why it's taken me 4 months to get through it all. The book doesn't only cover examples on women, but marginalised communities, Muslim men and women and others. In fact there's a respectable amount of focus on Islamophobia and the discrepancy in media reporting of crimes committed by incels, and crimes committed by people belonging to the Muslim community. The book is on extreme communities of misogynists and repeatedly states that the vast majority of men don't hate women, without denying the fact that a large group of men who do hate women exist and are spreading that hate through online grooming, interactions, in institutions, the media and police covering up crimes, and so many other platforms e.g. YouTube on a daily basis. It's so scary that people actually believe women are subjects of hatred, especially when it comes from young people. It's given me a lot of knowledge and understanding of how these incel communities are set up, run and how they survive. The book also covers a chapter on men who hate men who hate women which I found really interesting. As expected there are a lot of examples that I've either experienced myself or know someone who has gone through the extreme examples mentioned in the book, so it gives me a sense of validation and acceptance that it's a reality that women live in this world, and that there's the awareness of it through this book and other resources similar. I have also listened to parts of the audiobook and listened to the interview at the end, which was very insightful.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Sexual assault, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Xenophobia, Body shaming, Bullying, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Stalking, Violence, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Murder, Misogyny, Pandemic/Epidemic, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Racism, and Rape

notthatcosta's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

2.5

I tend to struggle with books that were written by journalists, because I find that their storytelling skills are lacking when it comes to creating a whole book. Even though Laura Bates is not a journalist, Men Who Hate Women falls foul of similar traps that I've seen previously in non fiction books of this type.

Most of the chapters feel unnecessarily padded out, often with repetition of previous points made that don't serve to create a cohesive narrative thread. Even in more successful chapters like 'Men Who Don't Know They Hate Women', half way through it veers off into a tangent about the 2016 election. 

I understand that the topic at hand is very broad, complex and wide reaching, but the lack of focus makes it frustrating to read beyond the frustrating subject matter. With better and tighter editing I think this could have been a great book, but it ends up feeling like an unfocussed and cluttered collection of ideas and case studies with some paraphrased 4Chan posts sprinkled in. 

I probably would have preferred it if the book just centred on what Laura Bates heard during her school visits and talks, rather than the need to try and summarise what she read on manosphere forums.

 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Antisemitism, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Bullying, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Transphobia, Body shaming, Sexism, Hate crime, Homophobia, Rape, Cursing, Death, Slavery, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Child death, Islamophobia, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Violence, and Xenophobia

titan_reads's review

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

5.0

Very informative, but dark. A great place to start reading about misogyny and sexism, though it does quickly introduce some of the worst of the worst which can be quite shocking. The author mentioned real violent and abusive acts that have been committed against women and also shared posts that contain unfiltered threats to commit these acts throughout the book. 

I felt it was a good mix of showing the daily struggles women face just existing but also being empathetic towards the real problems men face. The last few chapters made me want to encourage the people in my life to take a more active role in the lives of the vulnerable people around them. 

I did have trouble reading this book not because of the writing but because I recognized so much of what was depicted in my own personal experiences with people online and in-person. I read something more upbeat alongside it and took breaks when I needed them. If you're in the right headspace it is worth the read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Mass/school shootings, Violence, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual harassment, and Islamophobia

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Hate crime, Slavery, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, and Physical abuse

Minor: Torture and Trafficking

dollyshouse97's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

Reflecting all the interactions I’ve had with men on and offline 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Violence, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Racism, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Sexual harassment, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Mass/school shootings, Islamophobia, and Domestic abuse

th18's review

emotional hopeful informative inspiring medium-paced

5.0

Amazing book and incredibly eye opening. Hard to read sometimes because of the emotions I felt but I think this is a book that everyone should read atleast once, especially men. Highlighting these issues hat we as women and half of the population face is extremely difficult but I feel that Laura did an amazing job. I've definitely been motivated to spread this information to others and do my best to educate men around me in order to prevent as much as possible their becoming of incels. I cannot stress enough how educational this book has been. Will definitely reread.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual harassment, and Violence

Minor: Emotional abuse, Islamophobia, Suicide, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Hate crime, Bullying, Mental illness, Mass/school shootings, Pedophilia, Death, and Racism