Reviews tagging 'Drug use'

Against the Loveless World by Susan Abulhawa

14 reviews

ddnreads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

My heart ache for Nahr and Bilal 🥺🥺
But this book is much more than the love story of Nahr and Bilal (eventhough their love is extraordinarily tender and healing). 

Unputdownable and sharp, Against the Loveless World told a life of a woman who tried to find her way among the generational trauma of colonialism, refugee, and occupation. 

I love how the characters are flawed. How bare and jarring they told their lives. I love the raw honesty, the swearing, the curses.

This is a feminist book in its own way. 

I wept for the love mothers share. Their toughness through the worst of conditions. They're the real world's strongest soldiers. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deportation, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Toxic relationship, Violence, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Drug use, Grief, Cursing, War, Colonisation, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Deadnaming, Genocide, Islamophobia, and Misogyny

shieldbearer's review

This book was beautifully written but it didn't grab me the way "Mornings in Jenin" did. There is a lot of heavy, nuanced plotting here, but there are also several ways the plotting falls short, When looked at as a work of fiction, this simply does not do it for me. Part of it is that I can't get invested in the romance. A similar work that I preferred a lot is "Minor Detail"

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Classism, Islamophobia, Miscarriage, Police brutality, Cursing, Sexual violence, Ableism, Alcohol, Infidelity, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Deportation, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic friendship, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Vomit, and War

Moderate: Infertility, Abortion, Antisemitism, Outing, and Pregnancy

brynalexa's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-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? No

5.0

A powerful journey. Perfectly paced and gripping. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Car accident, Colonisation, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Kidnapping, Violence, War, Deportation, Drug use, Grief, Sexism, Sexual assault, Addiction, Abandonment, Chronic illness, Classism, Death of parent, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Gun violence, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic friendship, Abortion, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, Vomit, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, and Hate crime

Minor: Infidelity, Infertility, Fatphobia, and Dementia

issy_jacob's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Death of parent, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Homophobia, Grief, Gun violence, Child death, Sexual assault, Murder, Police brutality, Rape, Blood, Xenophobia, Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Colonisation, Animal death, Infertility, and Genocide

Moderate: Alcohol and Drug use

Minor: Addiction and Vomit

katialena's review against another edition

challenging reflective sad slow-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? N/A

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Murder, Police brutality, Colonisation, Islamophobia, Rape, Sexual violence, and Racism

Moderate: Grief, Violence, Cursing, Alcohol, Drug use, and Torture

Minor: Abortion, Antisemitism, Classism, Miscarriage, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, and Physical abuse

thienly's review against another edition

sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Abulhawa's writing feels almost poetic at times. I especially enjoyed the way she depicted the complicated relationships Nahr had with other women in her life. Parts of the book really validate the sentiment "men suck" 👹. Nahr goes through so much trauma as a woman and a refugee that when she gets any sort of relief I am ridiculously happy for her. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Colonisation, Rape, War, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Gun violence and Antisemitism

Minor: Torture, Death of parent, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, and Drug use

schlady's review

challenging dark emotional informative tense medium-paced

5.0

A painful, haunting, beautifully-written story of a Palestinian refugee woman's loss, suffering, and heartbreak alongside her strength, resistance, and love. The pace of the book is a steady balance of slow and medium throughout, with lyrical passages of devastating events and details sprinkled with moments of joy and hope. This memoir is technically a work of fiction yet it is very much real and historical, a history of brutal settler colonialism that continues into today. This novel is an important book, one that fights back while dancing.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Confinement, Sexual assault, and Rape

Moderate: Murder, Sexism, Colonisation, Sexual content, Torture, Gun violence, Islamophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Cancer, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Grief, Deportation, Genocide, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, War, Trafficking, and Violence

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Car accident, Drug use, Vomit, Infertility, Infidelity, Alcohol, and Animal death

britreads's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense slow-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

5.0

Like many people, I picked this up because I wanted to better understand the history of Palestine and the Palestinian people. By the end of this novel, I knew I needed to read more from Susan Abulhawa. 

The writing is lush and breathtaking. The characters are complex but also easy to understand. I loved the attention to detail once the MC, Nahr, reaches Palestine and how the author focused on the landscape, the culture and the community. 

Nahr's story is heartbreaking almost from the start, but there is a thread of hope and joy that travels throughout the novel. It is a reminder that joy and love is the purpose behind revolution. 

Definitely check the trigger warnings before starting this. But I believe this is a story worth reading if you want to learn about Palestine. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Colonisation, Violence, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Homophobia, Drug use, and Islamophobia

rachelsbookishlife's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Death, Sexual harassment, War, Physical abuse, Rape, and Violence

Moderate: Alcohol, Abortion, Death of parent, Cancer, and Death

Minor: Drug use

hilarylouise's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Sexism, Murder, Medical trauma, Sexual violence, Death, Colonisation, Sexual assault, War, Sexual harassment, Rape, Confinement, Racism, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Hate crime, Genocide, Emotional abuse, Violence, Sexual content, and Mental illness

Moderate: Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, and Drug use

Minor: Cancer