Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Blood Water Paint by Joy McCullough

4 reviews

mistress_of_fire's review

It became too much emotionally.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Child abuse

Minor: Grief, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, and Domestic abuse

annoyedhumanoid's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.5

undeniably a very powerful and harrowing story. i enjoyed the weaving of biblical stories. i just think that the verse aspect was underused; it had no bearing on the text except for a few occasions where the author played with the shape (like to funnel the text down to a "vanishing point").

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Body horror, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Misogyny, Rape, Blood, and Sexism

Moderate: Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, and Death

Minor: Abortion, Alcohol, Incest, Infidelity, and Suicidal thoughts

annekegdelooze's review

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Violence

in_love_with_bookish's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes

4.0

 

Everything begins from here:
the viewing point,
the place where you stand,
your eye level.
That single point on the horizon
where all other lines
converge.

Sometimes it does not matter whether you loved a book or not, what matters more is what the book is trying to say or the themes the story is portraying. To say that I loved this book would be a lie because I liked it but did not love it. so the logic would say that I should give it three stars but that would’ve been a huge mistake on my part and that’s why I upped my rating and gave it four stars instead. This is a very important poetry collection with the depiction of many important issues. I think this is a must-read as long as you're not easily triggered by issues like Rape, Sexual assault, Victim blaming and slut-shaming as well as many other issues. This is really a hard and painful book to read with many traumatic elements but it's also thought-provoking and eye-opening.

But I’m holding back
until I think
perhaps
my skills
can match
my heart.

There is an effortless blend of many genres in this book, it is historical but told through verses of poetry, it is also a Young-Adult book and it feels like a sort of a biography. It is also informative and educative. The story is centered on the Italian famous painter, Artemis Gentileschi who was born in Rome and lived under the thumb of her father until she was a young lady. Through her story, we are living the hardships that she went through as a woman, as a daughter, and as a painter in a time where women were considered lesser humans.

Even though her mother’s death was years ago, she is still reeling from that loss that affected her life in more than one way. She is struggling with her life with her father who is exploiting her talent and taking her art and accomplishments as his own. He is also negligent, verbally abusive, and does not care one way or another about the pain his daughter is enduring.

I wish men
would decide
if women are heavenly
angels on high,
or earthbound sculptures
for their gardens.
But either way we’re beauty
for consumption.

The book deals with a lot of sensitive issues like abuse, physical torture, rape, and misogyny. It also deals with victim-blaming and the corruption of the justice system when it comes especially to women and also the slut-shaming and the way women are perceived as something to own and to exploit, not as a person worthy of respect. I know that the story feels really bleak but our Artemis is a strong proud woman who fought like hell against the man who used her and she did not shy away from the truth. She found a refugee in her art and her talent and the way she evolved at the end was nothing short of admirable.

Not even voice
but breath upon my neck,
the slightest whisper
if I concentrate,
reach out in hopes
I’ll feel her reaching back.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Misogyny, Rape, and Sexual assault