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crimsonlilies's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Death of parent, Violence, War, Suicide, Murder, Grief, Alcohol, and Alcoholism
mel_s_bookshelf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Grief, Hate crime, Death, Death of parent, War, Violence, and Abortion
Moderate: Child death, Suicide, Sexism, Alcohol, Pregnancy, and Mental illness
Minor: Sexual content
bouebooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Hate crime, Violence, and War
coffeaiene's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
this was mostly me taking a breather to talk about yusuf and yiorgos, my new favorite book couple. y'all book couples have got NOTHING on my tragic turkish-greek cypriot lovers.
also i realize how strange that i visited cyprus when i was younger, and that my uncle lived there for years.
Graphic: War, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Homophobia
mermaidstears's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and War
Moderate: Death of parent, War, Murder, Animal death, Grief, Animal cruelty, Colonisation, Pregnancy, Homophobia, Hate crime, Gun violence, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Child death, Torture, and Suicide
romyreads_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Alcohol, Abortion, Death of parent, Mental illness, War, Violence, Addiction, and Death
Minor: Mental illness, Infidelity, Suicide, Drug use, Animal death, Terminal illness, Dementia, Bullying, Animal cruelty, and Abandonment
sydneybedell's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Violence, War, Death of parent, Death, and Child death
Moderate: Homophobia, Police brutality, and Pregnancy
Minor: Alcoholism
gendavis's review against another edition
5.0
Minor: Homophobia, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Death of parent, Suicide, Grief, War, and Violence
littlewishling's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Death of parent, Violence, War, and Racism
archytas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
All of which makes it sound more like a book about ideas than it is: this is a book strongly anchored by strong characters. Especially the gentle, mournful Kostas, the indomitable Defne and their passionate, frustrated daughter Ada. Minor characters impress quickly - Meryam, the extraverted aunt whose loudness and physical affection belie her own vulnerability and unsureness; Yiorgas and Yusef are seen largely through the eyes of those they shelter. They are perhaps the most symbolic of entities, and it is notable that their generosity comes from their own decisions to live precariously in order to live well.
I knew nothing going into this book, except that a couple of friends I really trust loved both this book and Shafik's work in general. I know little of Cyprus or the Turkish invasion and massacres that this text centres around. The book was accessible for the ignorant and left me keen to know more. At the end, it is clear that Shafik has been influenced by many of the same natural science books I have been reading lately, which certainly partly explained why I loved so much the twinned themes of human/nature and human/human interactions. I've added pretty much everything else she's written to my tbr now.
Moderate: Violence, Genocide, War, and Suicide