Reviews with content warning for Rape - City of Girls

Reviews tagging 'Rape'

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert

8 reviews

mulhollen's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

I loved reading about the theater world of 1940s New York. The story and characters of this time were quite interesting.

The first half of the book had me captivated, but the ending got slow and the books beginning only comes back into play at 85% complete or so. I wish we heard more about Frank, Nathan, and those later moments in life in as much interesting detail as her 20s.

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lindsey_bear's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

Wow! I enjoyed every word of this one—Gilbert so eloquently wove historical fiction themes of feminism, WWII, NYC showgirl culture in a way that made it feel relevant to you. This book is for any woman who wants to read a strikingly honest and believable, but also adventurous coming-of-age story. A huge theme was female friendship, and this was emphasised in the end as Vivian reflects on the many friendships we get engulfed in throughout the novel. It genuinely feels like you’re learning Vivian’s lessons with her, in real time. I cannot recommend this one enough, and am so glad I took the chance on a book that normally isn’t my preferred genre.

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betsygrace's review against another edition

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Too much weird sexual content and sexual assault/rape vibes for me. It’s very normalized in the circle that the main character runs in, and I got tired of hearing it (listened on audiobook)

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lotten4's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective 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

I really liked the ambiance. (Also, good writing)

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flowtjo's review against another edition

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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

Dang!! I was shocked at how much I loved it. It's really a 4.5, there's just *something* that's stopping me give it 5 stars. But I love love loved it and Elizabeth Gilbert knocked it out of the park. Strong queer themes, an unapologetic main character, male and female characters with substance...DAMN I can't get enough of it!!!

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naiu_cs's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

This is not the type of book I usually read, but it was really enjoyable nonetheless.
The writing was great, and the characters were amazing. And although there were parts of the book that bored me and made me roll my eyes, it is outweighed by the moments that really touched me and made me reflect on how I am living my own life.
A very good book indeed.

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jadenebean's review against another edition

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lighthearted reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

I really enjoyed listening to this audiobook. The narrator is perfect for the story!! The beginning really held my attention but everything from leaving NY onwards felt very slow. There are lots of overarching aspects that I loved… specifically the nuances of relationships. What does love look like? What makes a family? The way that sexual relationships were explored was really interesting. There was a particular section where Frank talks about forging your own path in life. It really resonated with me so I stopped the audiobook and jotted it down.

“The world ain’t straight. You grow up thinking things are a certain way. You think there are rules. You think there’s a way that things have to be. You try to live straight. But the world doesn’t care about your rules or what you believe. […] Our rules? They don’t mean a thing. The world just happens to you sometimes. […] And people just gotta keep moving through it, best they can.”

Overall, slow but enjoyable read. Powerful, independent women are my favourite.

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kari_f's review against another edition

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3.5

“I hope you’re having a good time... People will tell you not to waste your youth having too much fun, but they’re wrong. Youth is an irreplaceable treasure, and the only respectable thing to do with irreplaceable treasure is to waste it.”

The first half of City of Girls plays out according to this advice; we see the gritty, boozy, sensual, thrill-seeking lifestyles of the young and beautiful in 1940s NYC. Small blunders turn into bad habits, and it’s clear throughout that multiple characters are headed toward catastrophe.

If the first half of the book is careening toward chaos, the second half is learning from mistakes and moving on. We see the maturation of a listless young woman who isn’t really sure of what she wants out of life.

With vivid sensory details, the reader can almost hear the theater music and feel the silky fabrics and see the vibrant colors of the stage costumes. Gilbert has a way with words, and this book is like her others, in that she engages the reader with her beautiful language. There were a few sections where (for me) the story felt slow, but the fluid and descriptive language kept me invested in the story despite any plot lags.

City of Girls includes many dichotomies: listlessness and purpose, debauchery and reckoning, lust and love, denial and rage, rationalized ignorance and reflective discovery. Gender-related stigmas are addressed head-on. In many cases, incidents and judgments are reflected upon through the lenses of age and experience, and the reader can see where leaps in societal norms have occurred and where they haven’t.

This story doesn’t box itself into one genre, and it won’t appeal to everyone. In fact, I would wager that there’s at least one aspect of someone’s personality or character that will upset or even offend any given reader, and I think this is done intentionally. There are no perfect or polished people in this book, and everybody has skeletons in their closet and secrets hidden beneath the surface. Not only is this a well-told and beautiful story, but it encourages a bit of self-reflection and vulnerability in the reader.

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