Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Mornings in Jenin by Susan Abulhawa

6 reviews

nessreadsalot's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This beautifully written debut novel from Susan Abulhawa tells the story of four generations of the Palestinian Abulheja family. Beginning with their forced removal from Ein Hod in 1948 to the Jenin refugee camp where Amal is born and brings us through her life. We experience her childhood, love, loss, marriage and motherhood. 

From heartbreaking moments of loss to the wonderfully magical stories of joy this is a wonderful book. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Genocide, Violence, Death, Child death, Blood, Grief, Mental illness, Torture, and War

cerilouisereads's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad medium-paced

• 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

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death of parent, Torture, Mental illness, Death, Kidnapping, Genocide, Child death, and War

nineinchnails's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

 this book broke me. this was definitely hard to get through at some parts, knowing it was first published in 2006, because despite it being 2023 almost nothing has changed. this is technically historical fiction but so much of this has been written around real life events in palestine and even if the characters are fictional their trauma isn't. the story is beautifully written (albeit slightly confusing with the switching of narrator) and gut-wrenchingly painful. it follows the lives of 4 generations within a single family against the backdrop of 1948-2002 palestine.

it feels weird to rate this book like i would other fiction novels, since many of these fictional events are recurring as we speak. what i will say is that anyone even slightly interested in learning about palestine stands to gain a lot from reading this book. while it is definitely heavy and dark, it shows so much beauty in the land and culture too. the story switches hands between characters a fair amount here but i think it works in its favour and is necessary to tell this particular story. i don't think anything i write here could do this book justice but i loved this book from front to cover and i don't think the contents will ever leave my mind. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, War, Colonisation, Islamophobia, Grief, Genocide, Gun violence, Racism, Police brutality, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Child death, Gore, Animal death, Religious bigotry, Mental illness, Hate crime, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexism, Sexual content, Dementia, Blood, Confinement, Pregnancy, Kidnapping, Antisemitism, and Torture

Minor: Incest, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Miscarriage, and Rape

fkshg8465's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative sad tense slow-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? No

4.0

So much sadness in this book. I am admittedly anti Zionist. I cannot fathom the entitlement they feel they have based on the writings of men long gone. Neither can i fathom the pain that brought them back. But it seems they too cannot fathom the pain they are rendering on people undeserving of it. This book seems to reinforce all of that for me - people behaving badly, people trying to survive.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Hate crime, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Child death, Death of parent, Islamophobia, Mental illness, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Death, Grief, Gore, Racism, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Genocide, War, and Xenophobia

ollie_again's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative sad

4.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Death, Violence, Islamophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Gun violence, Torture, and Child abuse

Moderate: Antisemitism, Racism, Abandonment, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Kidnapping, Child death, Blood, and Mental illness

Minor: Pedophilia and Incest

writingcaia's review

dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

You will never be the same after this book. 
It’s hard to transmit all I’ve felt during it, even now after a few hours. 
This book is not only informative and deeply meshed into the history of Palestine, the culture, the family ties, the smell and love of that country, it is also a very open window into the invasion/occupation and conflict with Israel, the camps, the ethnic cleansing, and all the atrocities of the apartheid since. 
Although this is the fictional story of a Palestinian family going back three generations when they’re first taken from their ancestral home in 1967 and forced into the Jenin refugee camp travelling time and countries to end in 2003, this is still based on hundreds of real stories that happened during those 40 years.
A book that I now consider a must read to all that want to understand humanity at its most intense level of experience, from love to hatred, loss and despair to hope, from war to art.
The writing is poetic and deeply resonating, and the way it tells of the love of country and people even through such severe loss is humbling and takes you on a journey inside your own feelings as you follow those in this tale.
I cried, despaired, and raged, and still feel the aftershock of all the information, all this history, all these feelings, this is definitely not a book for the faint hearted still I cannot recommend it enough, and will be doing so forever more.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Dementia, Excrement, Genocide, Hate crime, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, Child death, Islamophobia, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Mental illness, Murder, and Panic attacks/disorders

Moderate: Sexual violence

Minor: Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, and Miscarriage