Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert

14 reviews

joanna_banana's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

3.0

I had checked this out of the library several weeks before I started it. Then I got COVID! It was the perfect book to listen to while resting. I didn’t really like Vivian, though I thoroughly enjoyed the narration and was pleased to see that Blair Brown won an Audie for this. The pacing overall seemed a little off - deeply detailed in NYC for the first half or so and then kinda mixed pacing for the rest, you’d get into dialogue and heart wrenching details, and then zoom back out to narration to Angela. I enjoyed the last part, but again, it was odd to have something like 60 years of life covered so quickly. She also got into these monologues on topics like her sex life when she is older and I thought that was too much or could have been woven into the conversations better. And some characters just drop off! Becomes all about Vivian. Overall, I was entertained and the novel offers some thoughtful perspective on the expectations of young women in the 1940s and how that changed or did not change through the decades. I felt like Vivian was fairly self-aware by then end, but also still quite proud and vain in an annoyingly forced way. So, I guess it was just inconsistent for me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Sexism, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, and War

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Infidelity, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Antisemitism, Racial slurs, Biphobia, Sexual violence, and Lesbophobia

Minor: Pregnancy, Abortion, Car accident, and Mental illness

ariannalane's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted sad 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Sexual content, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Infidelity, Pregnancy, War, Mental illness, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Abortion and Addiction

Minor: Toxic relationship, Misogyny, Antisemitism, Death of parent, and Domestic abuse

brookey8888's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

4.25

I really enjoyed this! I honestly had no clue what this was about when I picked it up, I just heard good things about it. Also that people compare it to Evelyn Hugo(which yes. It’s the same sort of plot. 

I just loved seeing Vivian come into her own and her found family. Vivian was honestly so iconic and funny. The commentary on women and sexuality was also done well in my opinion. Honestly the plot doesn’t happen I feel like till 200 pages, but I didn’t mind because I was so invested in the characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Lesbophobia, Death, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, Cursing, Chronic illness, Misogyny, War, Sexual content, Alcohol, Death of parent, Biphobia, Alcoholism, Gaslighting, Antisemitism, and Classism

kalaser's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, War, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Alcoholism, and Alcohol

Minor: Grief, Car accident, Sexual violence, and Death of parent

lindsey_bear's review against another edition

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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Content Warnings

Moderate: Pregnancy, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Grief, Abortion, Addiction, Sexism, Sexual assault, War, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Infidelity, Misogyny, Rape, Outing, and Sexual content

karyan1's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic relationship, War, Sexual content, Body shaming, Classism, Grief, Infidelity, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Death, and Drug use

Moderate: Lesbophobia, Antisemitism, and Death of parent

Minor: Car accident

leonormsousa's review against another edition

emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

REPRESENTATION 

lesbian SCs, LI w/ PTSD, PoC SC

QUOTE 

“Anyway, at some point in a woman’s life, she just gets tired of being ashamed all the time. After that, she is free to become whoever she truly is.” 

GENERAL OPINION 

• I devoured and loved this book!
• It's super addicting, which I wasn't expecting from historical fiction.
• Love the topic of women's liberation as well as the ones that are "left behind" during war.
• It does non-likeable-main-character perfectly.
• A bit slow at first but definitely picks up after the first one-third.
• Felt like the romance at the end was unnecessary and would have preferred it if it wasn't a part of the book. However, considering that is there, wouldn't have done it a different way.

READ IF YOU ENJOY

• non likeable and flawed main characters
• self-aware narrator
• New York as a setting
• glamour, theatre and fashion
• women in a liberation and self-discovery journey

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Cancer, Classism, Death, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Racism, Toxic relationship, Grief, Infidelity, Lesbophobia, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Violence, and War

PTSD

bookmarkedbyfi's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: War, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Sexual content, Alcohol, and Pregnancy

Minor: Death of parent and Alcoholism

lotten4's review against another edition

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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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, War, Alcohol, Mental illness, Death of parent, Death, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, and Sexual violence

m4rtt4's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-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

4.0

Didn't expect to like it as much as I did! Time travelling through books has always been nice, and this time it was genuinely FUN and addicting as well. But why the f was the book written in the form of a letter? That was completely unnecessary, and I don't think the story would have been any less interesting had it just been about Vivian (as it already was), without the constant remarks to "Angela". I mean, NOBODY writes letters 500 pages long to explain anything, let alone something like this. I didn't really like Vivian either, sometimes she was painfully insufferable. However, I did like her story, and that's what matters. I might have fallen in love with the dusty, cigarette-reeking yet compelling Lily Playhouse as well.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Death, Sexual content, Alcoholism, and War

Moderate: Medical trauma, Infidelity, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Fire/Fire injury, Death of parent, Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Terminal illness

Minor: Biphobia and Antisemitism