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joyful_bookworm_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Bullying, Murder, and Grief
mulletapologist's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
Graphic: Blood, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Murder, and Violence
aqtbenz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, and Violence
tuanasimsek's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Murder
peter7's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Minor: Addiction, Blood, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Murder, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Violence, and War
lunep's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Bullying, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death, Child abuse, Grief, Medical content, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Classism, Addiction, Blood, Gore, Police brutality, Alcohol, Death of parent, Drug abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Xenophobia, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Kidnapping, Medical content, Misogyny, Animal cruelty, Sexism, and War
Graphic depictions of poverty and homelessness take up a significant portion of the story. Graphic description and discussion of giant spiders.manarnia's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Mental illness, and Murder
Moderate: Alcohol, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Addiction, Rape, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Gore, War, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Misogyny, and Sexual violence
albusmumblecore's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.25
i am a long term fantasy reader, i am used to male authors writing male dominant stories with sidelined and sexualized female characters. i am also used to male readers praising books full of this trope and not even recognizing it. name of the wind is no exception yet there was also something about its specific depiction of women that deeply pissed me off.
there are noticeably few women in the entire story for no clear reason, even as background characters, and it’s even pointed out that women are a rarity at the magic school (why?). nearly every female character is sexualized or traumatized. i don’t criticize authors lightly. this was a genuinely fucking weird depiction of women. they exist to be pitied or lusted after by the narrator.
women and girls are described as, without any awareness of it being problematic:
1) “Young, pretty, unassuming...The sort of girl who spent her life in a perpetual flinch because the innkeeper had a temper and a sharp tongue and wasn’t afraid to show her the back of his hand.”
2) a thirteen year old: “She threw her arms around me and kissed my cheek...I hadn’t noticed before, but she was beautiful.”
3) a fifteen year old: involved with a man twice her age (and using him), discussed by said man, who is a sympathetic character and friend to the protagonist
4) instinctively and universally disliking a female character because she gets male attention (this epiphany is told to a teen boy as genuine advice by an adult man)
at one point, a male character POINTS OUT that there’s a “paucity of women” in the tale, and the main character goes yes of course my guy you are so right, it is missing a **singular woman** who of course has a mysterious traumatic background and then at one point needs rescue by our hero.
this was also a wildly exhausting book to read, and took me 6 weeks when i’m typically a 1-3 day reader. anyway, i enjoyed the overarching story and i will read the sequel because i’m an idiot clown.
Graphic: Misogyny, Murder, and Sexism
Minor: Pedophilia