Reviews tagging 'Gore'

There There by Tommy Orange

25 reviews

gilnean's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Excrement, Murder, Gore, Death, Genocide, Colonisation, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Fatphobia, Cursing, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Child death, Alcoholism, Grief, Alcohol, Addiction, Drug abuse, Racism, Gun violence, Suicide, Drug use, Body shaming, Domestic abuse, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Ableism, Cancer, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Sexism, Sexual assault, Rape, Death of parent, Medical content, Car accident, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, Terminal illness, and Pregnancy

Minor: Pedophilia, Torture, Abandonment, Abortion, Self harm, Classism, Kidnapping, Confinement, Child abuse, Mental illness, Body horror, and Religious bigotry

ashylibrarian's review

challenging emotional informative sad medium-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? Yes

I finished the audiobook of There There by Tommy Orange yesterday. The stories are raw. They are real. They are emotional. 

Orange tells the story of twelve (12) characters who live intertwined lives with one another. They all  attend a powwow in Oakland, California, for different reasons, though their lives are not all to different from one another. 

I was immediately drawn in to the ties and knots that connected each character together. Orange crafted the lives of each character so individualistically but also so very interconnectedly. 

I won’t make any spoilers here, but the ending truly ripped a piece of me and left me frustrated, sad, upset, and confused. These stories may be fictional, but I can only assume there is  truth behind the words that Orange wrote, sharing Native voices and stories, expanding hidden truths, and exposing unseen traumas. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Medical trauma, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Medical content, Murder, Addiction, Alcoholism, Violence, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Blood, Body shaming, Mass/school shootings, and Gun violence

Moderate: Abortion and Pregnancy

laurao's review against another edition

dark sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Abandonment, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Sexism, Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Religious bigotry, Racism, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Murder, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Mass/school shootings, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Gore, Genocide, Fatphobia, Excrement, Drug use, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Death, Cursing, Car accident, Cancer, Body shaming, Blood, and Addiction

Minor: War and Xenophobia

The characters were numb and isolated. It’s an important topic, but it was just hard to read.

mommarex1221's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

😢

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Gun violence, Grief, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Death, Murder, Pregnancy, and Violence

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Abortion, Child abuse, Child death, Genocide, Grief, Suicide, Colonisation, Abandonment, Addiction, Cursing, Gore, Gun violence, Pregnancy, Self harm, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship

eve_o's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective tense medium-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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Murder, Gun violence, Alcohol, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Drug use, Drug abuse, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Abandonment, Excrement, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, and Rape

Minor: Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, Blood, Body horror, and Gore

anniefwrites's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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? Yes

I think this book is one of those reads that I’ll need to reflect on for a while to understand its full effect. Tommy Orange has such a strong voice and uses inventive and intensely visual and sensory language. I personally found the multiple perspectives a little difficult to keep straight (and appreciated the cast of characters at the front; I referred back to it often) and

I understand why Orange opted for a violent ending, but especially given what’s going on in the news right now, it was disappointing and hard to take in.

Nonetheless, I think this was a great place to start for me to read more Indigenous stories, and it explores an often ignored community—Urban Indigenous groups—in a very complex and full way. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Excrement, Alcoholism, Blood, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Mental illness, Murder, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal death, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gore, and Gun violence

Moderate: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Pregnancy

Minor: Ableism, Abortion, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Genocide, Sexual assault, War, and Racism

marisa_n's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Addiction, Child abuse, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Native American, mutliple POV, mass shooting

lyd41's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

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

3.0

Did not enjoy the ending 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Self harm, Rape, Racism, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Mental illness, Medical content, Mass/school shootings, Grief, Gore, Drug abuse, Drug use, Death, Death of parent, Cursing, Child death, Child abuse, Car accident, Bullying, Blood, Alcoholism, and Addiction

Moderate: Vomit

Minor: Forced institutionalization and Fatphobia

katsbooks's review against another edition

challenging emotional tense medium-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

4.0

"We are the memories we don't remember, which live in us, which we feel, which make us sing and dance and pray the way we do, feelings from memories that flare and bloom unexpectedly in our lives like blood through a blanket from a wound made by a bullet fired by a man shooting us in the back for our hair, for our heads, for a bounty, or just to get rid of us."

"Don’t ever let anyone tell you what being Indian means. Too many of us died to get just a little bit of us here, right now, right in this kitchen. You, me. Every part of our people that made it is precious. You’re Indian because you’re Indian because you’re Indian."

"Only those who have lost as much as we have see the particularly nasty slice of smile on someone who thinks they're winning when they say "Get over it."

This story was told masterfully. Each of the different stories was so interesting. Some of the stories were more fleshed out than others and it wasn't until I got to the end that I felt like I understood why. Watching so many of the different threads come together was really satisfying. (And very heart-breaking at times). 

I also appreciated that this story centered urban Indigenous characters. I feel like that's a perspective that isn't often represented. I can totally understand why this book was considered for a Pulitzer. The themes it explores are are challenging and feel very real to me despite the fact that I don't share much life experience with any of the characters. Which, honestly, speaks to Orange's writing, in my opinion. 

Please note that this book deals with heavy themes. Some trigger warnings include: death, gun violence, drug content and mentions of rape. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Body horror, Cancer, Car accident, Colonisation, Cursing, Gaslighting, Genocide, and Rape

rebwenhall's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative 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

4.0

I’m not really one to enjoy books that are written from many different character’s perspectives. That doesn’t mean it’s not a good book, it’s just not my favorite style. I also thought it was kind of annoying that towards the end, each chapter was like 1 page long and switched between several characters. <I’m also annoyed at the ending! I’m sad everyone died lol>

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Blood, Death, Gore, and Gun violence