Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

45 reviews

salemander's review

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5.0

i don’t think i have proper words for how this book feels. 

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disguisedposer's review

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dark sad 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

4.5


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charliebites's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5


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scmiller's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense

4.0


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jodean's review

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dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25


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kylie_umber's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-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? No

4.0


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nminst's review

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challenging dark emotional informative sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

WOW! This historical fiction was heart-wrenchingly captivating. I couldn’t put the book down and pulled an all-nighter for this one. Reading about the inhumane treatment of slaves will never be something I take lightly. 

I believe if more people read the DIFFICULT stuff, meaning the ugly and vile behaviors of slave owners, more compassion could be shown. In addition, there would also be a better understanding of some challenges the black community still faces such as limited access to family lineage and black poverty.

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river23's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0


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yourbookishbff's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Going into this, I knew to expect time travel between present-day (at publication - late 1970s) and the antebellum South, but I did not expect that Kindred would ultimately be more character study than time travel/sci fi - and now I understand why it is such a memorable and timeless read for the genre. For a book under 300 pages that leans heavily on dialogue, this drives a nuanced, complicated, and deeply disturbing portrayal of the relationship between a Black woman living in the 1970s and her white (slave-holding) ancestor living in the early 19th century. The world-building is secondary here - we don't ever understand how this is happening, only why, as Dana is repeatedly pulled back in time to save Rufus's life and ensure the continuation of her family line. The abruptness of the story's start is mirrored again in its conclusion, and we are left reeling from the slow-building horror of a white boy who grows into a white man at a time when he is afforded every privilege of power and security. 

Butler consistently sows doubt in the reader: Is Dana's husband, Kevin, good enough to her, will he protect her, will he prioritize himself? Is Dana growing attached to Rufus, does she feel sorry for him, does she forgive him for his cruelty because she sees how he was raised? Do we become acclimated as Dana and Kevin do, do the horrors become loss horrible through exposure, do we become numb to it? What are we willing to sacrifice to save ourselves, a person we love, or a family member? Butler resists answering any of these questions, instead giving characters room to orbit around each other as they make their own decisions and shape their own histories. 

This is a challenging and graphic read, but a fast-paced one that evidences Butler's place in the sci-fi/fantasy canon. 

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aksmith92's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

Wow, this book may be relatively on the short side but it packed a huge punch. Kindred is about Dana, a woman living in the "modern" 1970s who somehow travels through time in the 1800s to save a child called Rufus. We are introduced to the characters in this novel, knowing little about how this time-traveling works or why it is happening to Dana, although around page 20, we begin to gather some pieces. 

When all is said and done, this book may be sci-fi/fantasy (I believe Butler noted that she would call it "grim fantasy" in an interview since there was nothing scientific about it), but it's more real than we would like it to be. It's about race and an incredibly dark time in American history. Butler manages to intersect historical records and research with the time-traveling trope in a fascinating and beautiful (but, as most books about this time, horrible) way. It is incredibly well-written and emotional. It pained me to read this, but it was so important to read it at the same time. 

As a note, Butler has decided to forgo a lot of explanation around this somewhat science fiction novel and has instead relied on metaphor and allegory during the more "fantastical" times of the novel. We don't get intense descriptions of the time travel or the "science" behind it - we just know it happens and its impacts. This is no spoiler and won't take away from the story, but those who are itching for more detail may find themselves frustrated. But, for a book of this caliber, I don't think it was at all needed.

I loved it and yet hated it so much because America at this time was awful. I had all the feels reading this book, but I thought it was incredibly well done. I'm sure excited to read more of Octavia Butler's stuff in the future. 


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