Reviews tagging 'Trafficking'

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

127 reviews

rachealcroucher's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Death of parent

Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, and Trafficking

moonbasket's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-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

5.0

This book is upsetting and stressful. It is not for the faint of heart, but it is a well crafted story about a minority demographic in the Appalachian mountains. As a Tennessee queer, this story was extremely important to me. It was also very well written. Check the content warnings for your triggers, but if it's within your tolerance, I highly recommend this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Medical content, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Gun violence, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Self harm, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, Abortion, and Pregnancy

hdavo's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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

5.0

Gut wrenching, heartbreaking, sad and hopeful. Love this book, hated the way it made me feel, happy I read it but not sure if I have the guts to read it again someday.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Trafficking, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Minor: Domestic abuse, Suicide, and Abortion

squirmosauruslex's review

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

So good! Definitely not lighthearted.  I listened to this book on 1.2 speed and it never dragged. Please note the content warnings— the narrative deals with several difficult topics, though none felt gratuitous.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, and Abandonment

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Mental illness, Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Pregnancy

This book deals heavily with poverty, abuse, neglect, and the substance use (and death) that often follows.

sarabarbry's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Trafficking, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

christinereichard's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny informative inspiring sad 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

4.5

I wish I read this in a book club.

I love this kid. I felt for him through every corner, every word of his story. Like yes, the themes of childhood poverty, resilience, social stratification...Those were all potent and well-delivered here. But I just love Demon. Barbara Kingsolver's voice for him was so very charming and engaging.

The parts that especially engaged me were his childhood at home with Mom & Stoner and then his life with Dori, for separate but overlapping reasons. The section with Mom & Stoner because I was just genuinely concerned for this stepdad ruining a kid's life. Then Dori, because it was plain painful but real to see Demon be with someone that you can't love hard enough to fix. I've been there and that's what made Dori so...I don't know. Haunting? Both of these sections together -- Demon took care of his mom and Dori in the same way so they stand out as a pair.

That one part of the ending made enough sense to me and I wasn't mad at it, but I agree with most that it could've been better developed. Overall amazing! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, and Death of parent

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, and Pregnancy

carlycompton22's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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? Yes

4.75

Beautifully created characters that make it feel like you're reading a true story about real people. Kingsolver delivers another sprawling masterpiece.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, and Death of parent

Moderate: Alcoholism, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

Minor: Abortion

niallgoulding1's review against another edition

challenging sad 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? It's complicated

4.75

I can understand the plaudits. The novel has a strong and unique voice. You will remember Demon for a long time after you finish reading. 

Powerful in its message, clever in its debt to Dickens and wise in giving humanity to a segment of society that is ignored/ forgotten except when they are being ridiculed. 

Both the people of Appalachia and drug addicts are only ever represented in the media as threats, inconveniences or failures. One of the strengths of this novel is showing the lack of nuance in such judgments. It shows how hard life is and how almost inescapable the cycle of poverty and addiction can be. The appeal of taking drugs to those who have suffered trauma is brilliantly captured and opened my eyes:
"This tether that's meant to attach you to something all your life, be it home or parents or safety, has been flaying around unfastened all this time, tearing at your brain's roots, whipping around so hard it might take out an eye. All at once, that tether goes still on the floor and you're at rest."

It also avoids overly romanticising poverty. There is no sugar-coating the grim ruins left by the opioid crisis in rural Appalachia or any delusions that the people there are better than anywhere else. There are those who have suffered trauma and exist to deal it out to others.
"The moral of his story was how you never know the size of hurt that's in people's hearts, or what they're liable to do about it, given the chance"

My only quibble is that i felt it was strongest in the opening half when Demon was a child. It dragged a little in the middle and could have been trimmed in places where the downward spiral felt repetitive occasionally. But a very satisfying read overall and a somewhat hopeful ending.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Abandonment

Moderate: Trafficking

Minor: Sexual assault

kristelbelle248's review

adventurous dark emotional funny reflective sad 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Abortion

tbr_tess's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Miscarriage, and Abandonment

Minor: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Trafficking, Abortion, and Death of parent