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_meeg's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, Grief, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Child death, Death, Cursing, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, Trafficking, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Murder, Gun violence, Abandonment, Sexual content, Violence, Addiction, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Hate crime, Police brutality, Classism, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Drug abuse, Racism, and Sexual violence
anna_in_the_spring's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
The writing is lyrical, which I only like sometimes. While I thought it was okay in this book, maybe that was because I had a much bigger problem with the language that is being used. In dialogue and sometimes also in internal speech African American dialect is being used. And I hated that. Let me explain. I am a non-native English speaker with dyslexia. Slangs and dialects in written English ( and any other written language I understand) irritate me greatly. I am at a level of reading comprehension with regular English where I can just read the text. Written dialects trigger my dyslexia and slow me down a great deal and make understanding difficult. They are like another foreign language. And I don't have the energy to deal with that. I just want to read a book, not struggle with a language that to me, who had such a hard time learning the original language, seems just wrong and like someone is playing a malicious prank on me.
I understand that this is not the intention and I don't have a problem with the existence of dialects. Just with having to read them. I try avoiding these kind of books.
I still struggled through the book , skimming over some parts, because it is a good book. And I understand why the language is as it is. It just wasn't for me. That's fine.
I didn't enjoy the plot, but I don't think you're supposed to. I'm not a big fan of tragedies, so again, not really for me. The subject matter is also thankfully very far removed from me. Still, if the dialect hadn't been there, I might have been able to enjoy the book, the way one enjoys a tragedy. Like this, I was never really able to get into it. But without the dialect it would have been a different book. So, again, this was just not for me. And that's fine.
Graphic: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Child death, Death, Trafficking, Drug use, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Suicide
emilinaballerina's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, Forced institutionalization, Rape, Sexual content, Trafficking, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Self harm, Classism, and Police brutality
Moderate: Alcohol, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Child death, and Pedophilia
sidekicksam's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
What a stunning debut novel. It is apparent that Mottley is a poet, as her writing style is lyrical and explores themes as racism, sex work, poverty and oppression without making it overly graphic or horrifying to read, which is quite a feat.
For me personally, the lyrical/poetic writing style also made it more challenging to get through, as I kept zoning out and took quite a bit of time to read each section, but the story grabbed me by the collar and made me keep reading.
If you liked this, watch The Florida Project or read On The Savage Side, and if you particularly liked the writing style I recommend Caleb Azumah Nelson or The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Death
annabella's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Adult/minor relationship
mimikac'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: Sexual content and Sexual assault
elle_e_d_light's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Police brutality, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, Drug use, Violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Trafficking
It's inspired by the 2015 Oakland Police Department sexual misconduct scandal.qqjj's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Child abuse, Excrement, Child death, Death, Gaslighting, Death of parent, Cancer, Grief, Police brutality, Rape, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Stalking, Violence, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
hilarylouise'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
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual harassment, Rape, and Police brutality
Moderate: Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Suicide, and Self harm
Minor: Transphobia
geneebee's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Trafficking