Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

29 reviews

carnivalchimera's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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? Yes

5.0

My favorite book I've ever read

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Racism, Suicide, Gun violence, Grief, Child abuse, Confinement, Hate crime, and Physical abuse

zulliekinz's review against another edition

emotional hopeful medium-paced

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

5.0

I absolutely loved this book. What a curious way to bring the reader in - the focus of bees - somewhat of a mystery yet with a comfort and familiarity, and a main character who is flawed and loveable within an instant. As we meet the rest of the main cast the story has set us up for an unfolding that has me turning the pages. Sue's ability to bring these characters to life, to make me feel their pain, their wisdom and their joy, was breathtaking. From about 65% of the way through the book I essentially cried the whole way through. What a read and I cannot wait to see the musical adaptation live on a few weeks! Fantastic - I'll remembered to highlight some of my favourite lines and will definitely be holding close some of the important life lessons Sue shared through Lily's journey. A fantastic reminder to show yourself love and love life fully. ❤️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Death of parent, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Physical abuse

ilariasbizzera's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Hate crime, Death of parent, and Racism

Minor: Physical abuse, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Addiction

shull3464's review against another edition

adventurous emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Suicide, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Cursing, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Death, Grief, and Racial slurs

michaelion's review against another edition

emotional funny 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

4.25

Teenage me would've loved this.

I think the movie warped my  little baby brain, so then I ended up liking stuff like The Help and Hairspray, which I absolutely was obsessed with. But the focus on women, bees, connections to mothers and ancestry and selfs... Like ancestry lives within you and also you are your own mother... That white lady kinda popped off writing this. She kinda had a point to make. She kinda dotted her i's and crossed her t's. She kinda had her cake and ate it too. She kinda gobbled ate right the fuck up left no crumbs. She kinda did her thing.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Death, Racism, Grief, Physical abuse, Suicide, and Child abuse

Moderate: Confinement, Murder, Abandonment, Ableism, Animal death, Blood, Torture, Toxic relationship, Fatphobia, Police brutality, Gun violence, Violence, Xenophobia, Gaslighting, and Child death

Minor: Vomit, Misogyny, and War

uss_mary_shelley's review against another edition

emotional funny inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I've owned this book since 2014 and only just read it. It was a warm story with a lot of heart. I liked how bees were used throughout to tell us more.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Suicide, Racial slurs, Child abuse, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Police brutality and Mental illness

Minor: Vomit

orchidlilly's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

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

2.0

So... This was not nearly as great of a classic as I was led to expect. First of all, it succumbs to the common pitfall of all books of whatever genre this is; it's so unbearably pessimistic. Most of the book is pg torture porn wherein we watch the protagonist suffer while also getting blasted with the fact that she isn't suffering nearly as much as other people. The commentary on racism is cliche and not very well addressed. Every single black woman is the mammy stereotype, I didn't know it was even possible to have every character be the same stereotype. They all have practically no depth and no arcs of their own besides 'we exist to further the character arc of Lily'. The take on racism at the time is extremely one-sided and, pardon the wording, entirely black and white. And my biggest issue; I get that it's a coming of age novel, but the romance is, quite frankly, gross. Lily is 14, middle school age, and Zach is, from my recollection, gearing up to head into college, already weird. Then you have to factor in that completely out of the blue segment in the book where the love interest sucks honey off the main character's fingers. This scene is described in detail, about how it makes her slightly hot and bothered, and how she's also semi disgusted with herself because loving a black man is wrong. This scene is so entirely jarring and completely unnecessary that it pretty well ruined the entire book for me. The romance isn't even a main part of the book, but it's just so uncomfortable that I couldn't focus on anything else.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Racism, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Cursing, Grief, Mental illness, Police brutality, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Gun violence, Death of parent, and Misogyny

Minor: Sexual content, Ableism, Religious bigotry, Blood, and Bullying

teyahdawn's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

I felt like crying the whole time. The way she describes grief and longing are so... right. But I was also not comfortable with everything about this book. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Physical abuse, Racism, Death of parent, and Mental illness

thewrappedupreader's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad fast-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

4.75

This is so so sad! Along with the all the death and sadness, there is a lot of informative facts. 

I would definitely recommend this book. It’s so so good. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicide, Racism, Racial slurs, and Physical abuse

jessicohen15's review against another edition

hopeful inspiring reflective 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? No

3.75

Historical fiction isn’t always my jam but it was beautifully written and certain passages I’d often skip over in other book, ones of great detail of reflection, popped off the page in angelic notes. I didn’t have to read this for school, just for fun and I think not having to dissect the piece definitely allowed me to enjoy it more.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Religious bigotry, Slavery, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Chronic illness, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Racial slurs