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ellareads2's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
1. The Outing
2. Previous Condition
3. The Rockpile
4. The Man Child
5. This Morning, This Evening, So Soon
6. Sonny's Blues
7. Come Out the Wilderness
8. Going to Meet the Man (MAJOR TRIGGER/CONTENT WARNING FOR LYNCHING)
What I like most about "The Outing" is how close to home it feels. Baldwin perfectly captures what it's like to grow up in the Church around very religious people and feel all that shame, guilt, and trauma even as a child. Along with these religious power dynamics, he also explores how this intersects with gender and age within the congregation. I love the descriptions of male intimacy-whether platonic or romantic it could be read-between the two boys Johnnie and David. These boys, as well as their friend Roy, do not buy the narrative of salvation that others around them do. But Johnnie, being the preacher's son and living and breathing this religion, still desires the great love and intimacy all the worshippers around him display during the service on the boat. It is a beautiful scene that Johne observes, but he is not truly apart of. I felt that as a queer person with religious trauma, the seamless parallels Baldwin makes are very powerful.
*full review will be on blog*
Graphic: Torture, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual content, Car accident, Hate crime, and Racial slurs
Minor: Abortion and Slavery
asililydying's review
3.75
Graphic: Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Grief, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Torture, Child death, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexism, Child abuse, Cursing, Deportation, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Hate crime, Murder, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Classism, Religious bigotry, Terminal illness, Violence, Gore, Racism, and Genocide
ileanavill's review
4.0
Graphic: Slavery, Xenophobia, Drug use, Drug abuse, Racism, Child death, and Death