Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

Maame by Jessica George

7 reviews

amalas_bookstop's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad tense 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

5.0

This book is a coming of age story of a young Ghanaian woman in her 20s living in London. Throughout the story she tackles work related race stressors, relationships, grief, family, moving out for the first time and finding a voice. 

I can hardly believe this is Jessica George’s debut novel. The way she was able to capture grief had me in tears (and I do not cry easy). After reading her forward I realized her dad is no longer with us. Which totally explains how she was able to have Maddie tap into that grief. 

I loved how she was able to explain complex topics like love and culture. It was very relatable and her characters felt so real. 

If you are looking for a realistic black woman version of a coming of age story, this is it! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Misogyny, Sexual content, and Abandonment

Moderate: Cursing

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Infidelity, and Drug use

bethanwx's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

Maddie is a protagonist I deeply loved to and I found her story so moving. Her growth into the version of herself she wants to be is messy and I was so proud of how she handled everyone in her life at the end. George's exploration into how women can be forced to grow up too soon, whilst men can get away with less, is deeply explored. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse

Moderate: Misogyny and Racism

Minor: Transphobia

jourdanicus's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective 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? It's complicated

4.0

While not a perfect five-star read for me, this book still touched on a lot of my "catnip" topics and I really enjoyed it.

Maddie as a character is naive in a way that toed the line of believability for me sometimes, esp cially for a gen Z/millennial with the lived experience of being Black in a colonial country. However, the way the themes of racism, misogyny, and sexuality were included is perfect for readers who might be newer to those topics and interested in diversifying their reading.

I did find Maddie relatable in a lot of ways too. The characters and the story were sweet without being saccharine. The plot was a little slow to build, but the second half/third was worth it.

For better or worse, the real life experiences of the author really came through in the story, and I think this book is a well-executed answer to the prompt of "write what you know."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Death of parent

Moderate: Dementia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content

Minor: Medical content, Misogyny, Suicide, Drug use, Racism, Alcohol, Biphobia, and Eating disorder

nanirump's review

emotional hopeful informative 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Medical content, Sexual content, Drug use, Gaslighting, Terminal illness, Misogyny, Chronic illness, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Homophobia, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Death of parent

theinstabookworm's review

emotional informative tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I had a book hangover while I was reading this and I think that affected my enjoyment level. I liked learning about Ghanian culture and the mental health rep was well done. I feel like this is relatable for anyone in their twenties or entering their 30s and I did see myself in Maddie at certain times.

However, Maddie was also very naive, and although I could relate to an extent, she needed to grow a backbone sooner when it came to her mother and brother taking advantage of her. The use of Google was a bit much and grew tedious after a while. I also felt the pacing of the story was off, as some parts held my attention, while others didn't. The writing also wasn't my favourite. It irks me when characters "talk" to the reader, and this book has a bit of that.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Suicide, Misogyny, Death of parent, and Grief

kimveach's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad slow-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? Yes

4.0

This book started slowly, but it was worth reading until the end.  Watching Maddie come into her own was tremendous.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Racism, Bullying, Medical content, Sexual content, Alcohol, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Death of parent, Misogyny, Vomit, Dysphoria, Infidelity, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Classism, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Grief, and Death

ittywitty's review

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted sad tense 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

5.0

Brilliant debut and coming-of-age story. I was not prepared for Maddie and now I wish I could be her friend. Some parts witty and hilarious, other parts raw and heartbreaking. I devoured in days, would highly recommend.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Grief, Racism, Death of parent, Sexual content, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Drug use