Reviews tagging 'Pedophilia'

The Book of the Unnamed Midwife by Meg Elison

21 reviews

agentcopykat's review

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Trafficking, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Blood, Confinement, Infertility, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Slavery, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Murder, Pregnancy, Cursing, Gun violence, Rape, and Sexual assault

jessikalange's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I was hesitant to read this book because I don't usually like really sad books. Even though this book is very sad, there is hope in it. I can't really explain it. If you like dystopian books, wait until you need a good cry and then read this book. Also, make sure you read the trigger warnings... There are a lot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Grief, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Death, Infertility, Pedophilia, Self harm, Medical content, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Pandemic/Epidemic, Child death, Sexual content, Violence, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Confinement, Infidelity, Misogyny, Abortion, Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, and Alcohol

kailajay's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

This is not an easy read. There are significant spoilers in this review due to the nature of the book and a serious need for content warnings.

I first read this book a couple of years ago and when browsing my Kindle notebook noticed a highlighted quote from the 3rd book in the Road to Nowhere series and decided to reread the series.

The premise is a virus that sweeps (at least) America that kills 98% of men and 99%+ of women, particularly during childbirth. The US becomes a degenerative hellscape, where the straight men of the world battle for the few women left alive, and generally do horrible things to them.

The main character is assaulted within a handful of pages. There are in depth descriptions of FGM, sexual assault, miscarriage, stillbirth, child death, death during childbirth, child sexual abuse, and general violence against women. 

But it's still a deeply interesting book that draws you in. Written in a mix of direct storytelling and frantic journal entries, the 'Unnamed Midwife' is a complex and intriguing character who will do (nearly) anything to survive. We're introduced to concepts expanded on in the next books, the idea of these journals being copied over and over again to preserve both the story and the medical information, the 'wooden belly' that Ina wears, the settlement of Nowhere. 

The main character, the 'Unnamed Midwife'- she gives a different name to everyone she meets, and is an experienced midwife- goes through a long and complex journey to find her way to Nowhere, an ex military base. I don't know much about American geography but the people she meets, and the stories that she tells through them, are all incredibly gripping and while they don't always move the story onwards, they move the character onwards and build the new world up (or tear it down just that little bit more).

It's really hard to recommend this book because of how deeply dark the content is. I enjoyed this book in a very complex, rough way, but whether you want to read this needs to be a personal choice, based on whether you can process the content in a safe way. I'd advise taking breaks when you need to, even in a reasonably short book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Suicide, Torture, Medical trauma, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Miscarriage, Murder, Domestic abuse, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Pandemic/Epidemic, Violence, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Trafficking

perfectcupoftea's review

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Child death, Slavery, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Pandemic/Epidemic, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Trafficking, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Homophobia, Alcohol, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexism, Self harm, Physical abuse, Medical content, Racism, Murder, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Rape, Miscarriage, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Kidnapping, Infertility, Drug use, and Death

meaghanelizabook's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Infertility, Child death, Violence, Pandemic/Epidemic, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Death, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Blood, Religious bigotry, Murder, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Sexism, Gun violence, and Grief

Moderate: Suicide

Minor: Vomit

jmstorytime's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I never thought a book would ever top my favorite books of all time. This book though….chefs kiss. I devoured this beautifully written book in 24 hours. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Infertility, Gaslighting, Medical trauma, Murder, Physical abuse, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Abortion, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Medical content, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Self harm, and Sexual harassment

tr4shc4n's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, Infertility, Physical abuse, Transphobia, Sexism, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Murder, Violence, Miscarriage, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

Moderate: Pedophilia, Rape, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Biphobia, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Medical content, Medical trauma, Abortion, and Adult/minor relationship

kelishiaradhalal's review against another edition

dark hopeful fast-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Trafficking, Incest, and Rape

izzy_reads's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Miscarriage, and Rape

katrinarose's review against another edition

dark reflective 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

4.0

Extremely bleak and tough read but I could not put it down. I loved the character of the unnamed midwife and the how well the author also developed even minor characters as they appeared. I also like the alternating style of her journal and omnipresent narrative. I was taken aback at first when we learned about characters and events that the midwife did not know about but it was satisfying (although sad). I like that the author didn’t shy away from the brutal realities of this post-apocalyptic world, and didn’t sugarcoat her view of human nature, as depressing as it was. This book is definitely not for everyone (between the triggering content, narrative style, and somewhat bare plot) but I really liked it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Blood, Cursing, Death, Medical content, Pedophilia, Rape, Murder, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Homophobia, Infertility, Physical abuse, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Violence, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Trafficking, and Sexual content

Moderate: Abortion, Grief, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Confinement, and Emotional abuse