Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

When the World Didn't End by Guinevere Turner

11 reviews

parenthesis_enjoyer's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Rape, Drug use, Incest, Body shaming, Sexism, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Pregnancy, Violence, and Eating disorder

Minor: Animal death and Death

tkelley23's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Eating disorder, Toxic relationship, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Body shaming, Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Adult/minor relationship

chovereads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective tense

I devoured this.

this approach is one I have found in other memoirs -- writing about their childhood self, but staying in the perspective of that child without letting the adult they are now influence that writing. I really really like this. continue to seek it out. the use of the diary entries here was such an addition to the book, I can't imagine it without them.

one thing I got confused about was the dates of the diary entries. I'd forgotten the time period the book started in and the entries before she left the cult were dated '04. I guess I thought it was 2004 even though that didn't seem right. later when she's in public school, they randomly switch to 1980. I believe this was showing she was transitioning from the "Family's time" and that they tracked the years differently. 

my favorite part was when she recounted how she taped a scale from every fish that was caught the summer she lived in MA and recorded all the details in her diary. 

the book did end rather abruptly and it seemed a bit odd to not know more about what happened with the man who took her in and became her legal guardian in high school. but of course, she was writing about her escape, and with him, she was free.

very challenging and difficult subjects for some, check the content warnings! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, and Religious bigotry

poisonwood's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Minor: Eating disorder

librarymouse's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

4.5

Prior to reading Guinevere Turner's account of her childhood, I'd never heard of the Lyman family. Reading Turner's story though both retrospective reflection and direct quotes from journal entries from when the events she describes took place made her storytelling so immersive and the horrors she endured all the more gut wrenching.
The story starting with the failure of an ascension predicted by the leader of the cult Turner was born into was such an eye catching hook to being readers in, and while it primed me for some of what to expect for some of  he other Lyman family beliefs, other aspects of Turner's story were totally unexpected.
Guinevere Turner has a mastery of language and how to keep a reader invested that is tangible even in the diary excerpts.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Eating disorder, Rape, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Mental illness, and Misogyny

Moderate: Medical content, Pregnancy, Vomit, and Abortion

Minor: Death, Animal cruelty, and Animal death

vtlism's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective tense

4.25

Excellent memoir! Challenging, bleak, horrendous material, superbly written. I would be interested in a follow up. It's interesting she was raised in a cult but never calls it that, and I'm wondering about her recovery from that and the rest of her wildly fucked up childhood. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Violence, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Rape, and Stalking

bzm0023's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

4.0

Read this in a day! Similar vibes to Educated and The Sound of Gravel, which to say there were parts that made me feel sick/had to skip. (TW: childhood sexual abuse starting Chapter 34.) I was expecting it to be a big lead up until the spaceship/world ending event but the author was only 6 so the story is the aftermath.  Still a very fascinating perspective on cults, what defines family, and the power of choice.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Sexual violence, and Physical abuse

stargirlmolly's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Body shaming, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, and Alcohol

Moderate: Blood, Eating disorder, Suicide, Stalking, Abortion, Cursing, Drug use, and Fire/Fire injury

elude's review

challenging emotional sad

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse

daphnehumming's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-paced

5.0

Terrific memoir it really does read like a novel. It is dark,

you really have to admire Guinevere’s perseverance and writing ability, both as a young person and today. Unfortunately, the story doesn’t truly look up until the end. I can only hope Turner decides to write a sequel.

for fans of I’m glad my mom died.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Misogyny, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Abandonment, and Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Eating disorder, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Violence, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Homophobia, and Physical abuse

Minor: Death and Abortion