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Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'
There's Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension by Hanif Abdurraqib
10 reviews
magicalsocks's review against another edition
5.0
...& this is how i slipped into the
shed just barely & watched through the cracks
& ate the only sandwich I hadn't abandoned
in the pursuit & watched five cops out of breath
collapsing into the grass field & shaking their heads
& there is the casting away of demons into a herd
though I can't recall which animal but maybe you can
---
"But let it be known that some of us never once dreamed of leaving. Never thought about making it out of any place as glorious as this. Tell me if you have ever built a heaven out if nothing, and then tell me what it would take for you to look for a new one somewhere else."
Moderate: Hate crime, Police brutality, Gun violence, and Murder
Minor: Blood, Death of parent, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, and Death
nicklybear's review against another edition
3.5
Moderate: Gun violence, Racism, Confinement, and Police brutality
Minor: Death of parent and Death
cindypepper's review against another edition
4.5
(Fleabag voice): This is not a book about basketball.
Yes, this book uses basketball as a lens to explore far-ranging themes of homecoming, what we owe the places we grew up in, the Midwest, police brutality, religion, and why people like sports so dang much.
No, I wouldn't say it's actually about basketball, so much so that basketball is an incisive and deeply personal lens to examine the above topics. And it works very well. Hanif Abdurraqib's style defies categorization; his writing is all at once cultural criticism, memoir, and poetry. There's something very dynamic about the way he writes, in the way that basketball moves at a breakneck pace, until it doesn't. Even if you don't know much about basketball, you can easily read this and understand why and how people love it, which (imo) is the hallmark of a great writer. (For context, I spent 8 years as a Dubs fan smack-dab in the Bay Area, including the year 2016, where thinking about those NBA finals stung. And I relived that trauma by reading the perspective of a fan from the other side!!! And it was more than fine! I loved it.)
All facetiousness aside, props to anyone who can make me feel nostalgic for something I never experienced. I found his meditations on the Midwest and coming back particularly resonant, especially as somebody who used to live there and was all too ready to leave.
Moderate: Police brutality, Gun violence, Hate crime, and Racism
christie_esau's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Police brutality, Gun violence, Racism, and Violence
sarahyjackson's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Police brutality, Racism, Gun violence, Grief, Child death, and Blood
shay43geek's review
4.25
Graphic: Confinement and Police brutality
Moderate: Gun violence
tenderbench's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Police brutality, Grief, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Racism
Moderate: Child death and Death of parent
uranaishi's review against another edition
4.75
Graphic: Child death, Grief, Police brutality, and Racism
Moderate: Death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Car accident, Abandonment, Death of parent, Murder, Gun violence, Hate crime, and Violence
Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Slavery, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Classism, Drug use, Alcohol, Blood, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Addiction, and Sexual content
bookmaddie's review against another edition
4.25
Through the lens of basketball, this essay collection explores the connection one can have to a city, to its people, and the perseverance and faith required to go on living. Abdurraqib makes a beautiful, spiritual plea for remembrance, love, and hope, ensuring we can’t forget values necessary for life. The power in Abdurraqib’s words blew me away—it almost felt holy in some moments (this coming from a very non-religious person).
Just genius—beautiful, endlessly touching, and full of love. I highlighted so much, but won’t share any quotes as the advanced copy I read isn’t final. Make sure you have your highlighters/pencils/pens ready for this one.
Thanks Random House and Netgalley for my advanced digital copy.
Graphic: Gun violence
ktkeps's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Police brutality, Gun violence, Death, Classism, and Grief
Moderate: Racism, Mental illness, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, and Child death