Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Woman They Could Not Silence: One Woman, Her Incredible Fight for Freedom, and the Men Who Tried to Make Her Disappear by Kate Moore

20 reviews

beth_s98's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

4.25

I did not get through the third chapter the first time I tried to read this one, mostly because I was not in the right headspace. However, on my second attempt, I devoured this book. The subject matter is very heavy at times, although it is also a story of resilience. 

Reading it almost feels like reading a novel, and it felt very well researched, with lots of evidence beyond just the main plot of the story. I thought the pacing and the way the story was divided really worked. Around the middle of the story it got hard to put down, I was so interested! 

There were a few things I felt were a little repetitive, but usually I could follow the justification. Overall I think this book was both very informative and very accessible, which means if you’re someone looking to get into reading more nonfiction, I think this could be a great place to start. 

I do want to stress that the topics of violence against women/mental patients, the total control of coverture, and the legal cases are throughout the whole book, and can get hard to read. I definitely had to take breaks as I was reading for my own mental health. Please take the content warnings seriously!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gaslighting, Forced institutionalization, Confinement, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, and Sexism

Moderate: Eating disorder and Domestic abuse

megnut's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring slow-paced

4.25

An incredible story... but (as warning) with many warnings of the sexism & misogyny that controlled women's lives then and still affect us today. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Misogyny, Bullying, Confinement, Excrement, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Torture

Moderate: Suicide

ocoury23's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

*Review based on experiencing the book as an audiobook 

This book was incredible to listen to and learn from, but also was incredibly long. Elizabeth Packard was a name I had never heard before, but her story is inspiring and I would highly recommend this for book for any adult-level readers (due to the sensitive content that is discussed). Truthfully, my main drawback to this was the length - I’m not sure if I would be able to work my way through this again without taking my time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Physical abuse, Blood, Mental illness, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Excrement and Suicide

jhbandcats's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

4.25

This book was great. However, I really wanted to like it even more - I wanted to give it five stars. Ultimately I didn’t because occasionally it would devolve into histrionics. The story was so powerful that literary flourishes were unnecessary and distracting. 

That said, Wow. What a book. How is it that Elizabeth Packard is not a household name? She was extraordinary. Committed to an insane asylum because her husband found her outspokenness troublesome, she worked for three years to be freed, then worked the rest of her life to achieve equality for women, safety for mental patients, and the right of a mother to have custody of her children. 

The author relies on diaries, letters, newspapers, and trial transcripts. Everything she writes has been thoroughly researched. Her work here is exceptional. 

Having found Radium Girls equally important, I hope that Kate Moore continues to write. Her works are essential to understanding the history of the ordinary American in the late 18th - early 19th centuries. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, Excrement, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Misogyny, Bullying, Death, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Abandonment, Chronic illness, Classism, Physical abuse, Torture, Medical trauma, Racism, Sexism, and Violence

fkshg8465's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad slow-paced

5.0

I feel like everyone needs to read this book. We owe so much to this woman. I am both inspired and buoyed by this woman and appalled and disgusted even further by weak men. The amount of research the author must’ve done is impressive, but even more so is the way she wrote this story.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Grief, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abandonment, Bullying, Confinement, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Eating disorder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment, Slavery, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Torture

kld2128's review against another edition

hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Violence, and Mental illness

mrsdarcylynn's review against another edition

5.0

What a wild story! This book is so important to read, especially when understanding the evolution of women’s rights, mental health history, and legal processes surrounding “dependents”. This story was hard to stomach, but well worth the listen! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Ableism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Medical content, Mental illness, and Misogyny

matcha_cat's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Grief, Ableism, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, and Abandonment

Moderate: Classism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Torture, and Violence

Minor: Excrement, Death, and Gaslighting

lizardflake's review against another edition

challenging informative sad slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Grief, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Misogyny, and Violence

katieluvs2read's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring sad tense slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Religious bigotry, Confinement, Gaslighting, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Misogyny, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Suicide, Violence, and Toxic relationship