Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen

37 reviews

cassreading's review

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

This was wonderfully and thoughtfully written. It has so much to say about the Vietnam war, American imperialism, racism, the American Dream™, politics, language, representation. It's incredibly ambitious, and yet I think it manages to do what it wants well for the most part.

The ending was brutal to read (read TW). It definitely shows the brutality of war, the limits of sympathy, but I still feel unsure about it, and about the book's representation of women as a whole. Still working through that mentally.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Suicide attempt, Racial slurs, Rape, Racism, Suicide, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, and War

lavenderlion's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

maviemerveilleuse's review

dark funny mysterious reflective slow-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? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Torture, Rape, Racism, and War

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship

anarmandameg's review

adventurous challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

3.75

Just gonna recycle my review from The Hanging City and say 'Weirdly Horny'

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Drug use, Murder, Racial slurs, Fire/Fire injury, Addiction, Toxic friendship, Blood, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Sexism, Trafficking, Gore, Genocide, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Rape, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Infidelity, Racism, Religious bigotry, Torture, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child death, Colonisation, Death of parent, Deportation, Drug abuse, Confinement, Mental illness, Misogyny, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Violence, and War

Moderate: Blood, Classism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Fatphobia, and Domestic abuse

caseythereader's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Fatphobia, Gun violence, Racism, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, War, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Abandonment, Blood, Colonisation, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Child death, Cursing, Grief, Rape, Violence, Gore, and Murder

gabapentin's review

dark slow-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia, War, Rape, Racism, Violence, and Racial slurs

eslsilver's review

challenging dark funny informative tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, War, Rape, and Violence

Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism

Minor: Pedophilia

floriankogler's review against another edition

dark funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, War, Racial slurs, Rape, and Torture

catebutler's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

• 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

4.5

MENG 6510 Eminent Writers: Lahiri & Nguyen Fall Semester 2023

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, Death, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Torture, Emotional abuse, Colonisation, Gore, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, Genocide, Sexual content, and War

randomman0880's review

adventurous 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? Yes

4.5

This book occupies a very interesting part of literature in that it's an expectionally written book that handles Asian American identity and it's complexities well, exploring the historical and political contexts of the demographic without lecturing. However, occupying a niche that seemingly confronts Invisible Man and Miss Saigon, the book wields its own form of casual misogyny and unwieldy narrative that builds the main characters personality but seems unnecessarily excessive at times. The book sometimes uses its own brand of cruelty to demonstrate tragedy in contrast to the epic senseless violence that other Vietnam War stories often embrace, and I wish that this was less impactful on the story. The general treatment of several other side characters in the interest of atmospheric setting are in my opinion somewhat excessive.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Grief, War, Murder, Sexual assault, and Torture

Moderate: Racism, Misogyny, and Racial slurs

deals heavily with post traumatic stress and trauma generally