Reviews tagging 'Death'

Beartown by Fredrik Backman

60 reviews

coybean's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Child abuse, Hate crime, Bullying, Grief, Homophobia, Child death, Cursing, Rape, Classism, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Violence, and Xenophobia

Minor: Stalking, Murder, Self harm, Alcoholism, Racial slurs, Eating disorder, Alcohol, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship

samiamiam's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

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

5.0

My grandmother had bought me this book years ago after I read "My Grandmother Wants Me To Tell You She's Sorry" and despite devouring that book I thought Beartown wouldn't appeal to me. 

Boy was I wrong. I picked this book up because I needed a book with snow on the cover for a January prompt and I've never been so glad I did. This book was ohenominal and heart wrenching. I've already rush ordered the next two and I'm sure they'll be just as good. If you can stomach the darker themes of this book I can not recommend it more highly. 

the scene where Maya puts a gun to Kevins head and pulls the trigger is soemthinf we are told from the start will happen but i became so immersed in the story i forgot it was coming. When she dtarts talking ahout killing him or herself i remembered and i was in the edge of my seat. The fact that you dont kniw the gun is unloaded until the deed is done just adds ro it. The flashing back and forth to what you at first think is Maya and her future husband and what you learn after finding out the gun is unloadiled is Kevin and his future wife still gives me chills. This was one of the best written scenes i have ever read and i can not praise it enough

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Rape, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Alcohol, Grief, Drug use, Blood, Classism, and Death

stepnic's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Rape, Violence, Sexual assault, and Hate crime

Moderate: Fatphobia, Child death, Classism, Eating disorder, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Cursing, Grief, Physical abuse, Racism, Alcoholism, Blood, Body shaming, Death, Addiction, Alcohol, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Gun violence, and Homophobia

Minor: Vomit and Murder

kcrockford's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Alcohol, Bullying, Violence, and Rape

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Cursing

Minor: Death, Homophobia, and Physical abuse

beatle426's review

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Rape, Classism, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Homophobia, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Sexual assault, Violence, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Death, and Alcoholism

rhyzkneez's review against another edition

challenging funny hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Death, and Violence

aquakirst's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

this is genuinely a perfect book. i want to go back and bring down the ratings of every other book i've rated 5 stars because nothing can live up to beartown

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Addiction, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Sexism, and Bullying

Moderate: Drug use, Pregnancy, Blood, Death, Child death, Animal death, Classism, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Injury/Injury detail, and Panic attacks/disorders

lbsalas's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Drug use, Addiction, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Alcoholism, Violence, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Child abuse, Death, Suicide, and Death of parent

homealone2's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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: Hate crime, Blood, Rape, Death, Mental illness, Bullying, Suicide, Violence, Homophobia, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Bullying, Child death, Cursing, Gun violence, Alcohol, and Lesbophobia

jane_moriarty's review against another edition

emotional tense

• 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

1.5

I can't help but compare this to one my favorites this year, Firekeepers Daughter. Both are about a community in a northern town where icehockey players are the kings, both deal in parts with rape culture and both start with a scene were someone gets shot in the woods and we slowly find out what happened. But Beartown doesn't come close to the way Firekeepers Daughter deals with character development, topics about the beautiful and dark aspects of a community and wisdoms about intergenerational trauma and healing. 

Long rant coming up: 

First half was a 1 star tbh. If you enjoy Facebook motivational quotes on random nature backgrounds this might be for you. I hated the writing style, eyerolled at every pseudo-deep chapter conclusion that were like every fucking page after we were introduced to yet another cliche character who will probably be forgotten for the rest of the book. Not that I could tell the hordes of icehockey playing teenage boys apart but whatever. The author writes like he doesn't trust his reader to understand a single word if he doesn't drive it home with several repetitions and idiotic meaningless punchlines a la "it doesn't take much to let go of your children - it just takes everything", "she doesn't tell him that she's proud of him - he doesn't tell her he already knows" and so on. Also in case you didn't get it by the fiftieth time: ICEHOCKEY IS LIKE SUPER IMPORTANT IN BEARTOWN! 

The only story I was actually invested in were Benji and the bassist and the only reason this book gets two stars from me is the handling of the rape. The way this affects the victim and the way the community deals with it (or not) is written in a sensitive and imo realistic way, which not that many authors get right. 

Listened on Spotify (german translation) for the popsugar reading challenge "a book about about an athlete/sport".

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Child death, Cursing, Homophobia, and Bullying

Minor: Death of parent, Death, Eating disorder, and Drug use