Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

943 reviews

blakeisik's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

Very difficult to pinpoint how i feel about this book. Beautifully written, but full of trauma-porn.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Ableism, Classism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Car accident, Gore, Homophobia, Rape, Chronic illness, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, Death, Domestic abuse, and Sexual content

floord1's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

Too much. Not enjoyable. Why would you read this? Why would you write this?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Trafficking, Toxic friendship, Ableism, Terminal illness, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Chronic illness, Medical content, Blood, Suicide attempt, Body shaming, Forced institutionalization, and Pedophilia

rowy148's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Self harm, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Rape, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Chronic illness, Blood, Physical abuse, Death, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Car accident, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Drug use, Death of parent, Child death, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Death, Drug abuse, and Ableism

stefs1974's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

The tragedy in this book is extremely intense.  Not an easy read at all because of the content.  Get your tissues out!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Addiction, Emotional abuse, Grief, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Self harm, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Violence

brennsteez's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I feel ill. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Medical content, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Eating disorder, and Domestic abuse

flowersophia's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Insert every trigger warning ever, but no book has made me feel as hard as this one does. There’s a lot of valid critiques on the severity of the content, but it’s so innovatively written; the story-telling is incredible. It definitely helps to remind yourself that it’s fiction, but that didn’t stop me from sobbing several times. I can’t say I recommend it to anyone, but it is extremely impactful. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Self harm, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Suicide attempt, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Body shaming, Grief, Sexual content, Death, Car accident, Rape, Blood, and Medical trauma

ottolee's review

I have had to rewrite this review repeatedly to succinctly gather my thoughts on why this book is one of the worst I have ever experienced. I listened to this book on CD while driving and have chosen to drop it at around the halfway point following a double whammy

of a suicide attempt and an overly long description of child sexual abuse

because a quick Google search confirmed for me that it would not only not get any better, that it would only get worse.

Plain and simple, this novel is an exercise in endurance, not simply because it is incredibly long, but because Hanya Yanagihara seems to be into repeatedly and brutally abusing her main character and forcing the reader to witness the almost comical lengths to which she chooses to hurt him. There are increasingly infrequent sections of the novel breaking up the increasingly frequent and drawn out depictions of physical and violence against an ambiguously gay, ambiguously ethnic, disabled man. 

This is what causes the book to be as long as it is; it is the literary equivalent of Yanagihara strapping the reader to a table and drawing increasingly large quantities of blood out of them to see what they can stand, giving them cookies and Gatorade in between each draw just so the next one can be bigger. The reader hopes that, at some point, she will get what she came for, finish the experiment and give you back what you gave up. But she doesn't. She just wants to watch you bleed.

I think Yanagihara explains herself best. 

"I wanted A Little Life... to begin healthy (or appear so), and end sick — both the main character, Jude, and the plot itself." (https://www.vulture.com/2015/04/how-hanya-yanagihara-wrote-a-little-life.html#_ga=2.58977709.1601876994.1578809567-1295422479.1578809567)

And so it does. And I, personally want to vomit.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Torture, Toxic friendship, Violence, Addiction, Rape, Self harm, Ableism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Car accident, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Bullying, Chronic illness, Confinement, Medical trauma, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Trafficking, and Death

ghostpuppy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I hate this book and i love this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Vomit, Self harm, Sexual violence, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Body shaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Kidnapping, Murder, Violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual assault, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Car accident, Religious bigotry, Ableism, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, Grief, Terminal illness, Addiction, Mental illness, Torture, Trafficking, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

megandirks's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Drug use, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Mental illness, Violence, Addiction, Death, Emotional abuse, Chronic illness, Medical content, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Adult/minor relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Rape

kseibold's review

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Outing, Forced institutionalization, Sexual content, Drug abuse, Body horror, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Cursing, Bullying, Medical trauma, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Child abuse, Vomit, Biphobia, Blood, Sexual assault, Gore, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Confinement, Violence, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Chronic illness, Toxic relationship, Torture, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Sexual violence, Rape, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Medical content, Homophobia, Grief, Kidnapping, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Death, Gaslighting, and Eating disorder