Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Friday Black by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

71 reviews

cheazcakeguy's review

challenging dark funny reflective fast-paced

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

3.5

This is a collection of short speculative fiction. There is a decent amount of variety, but there are a few stories that tackle similar themes/topics, especially consumerism and racism. Many of the stories are set in a world similar to our own, where one or more aspects of our own world have been exaggerated to the point of absurdity. As a result, the stories often have an extremely dark sense of humor and expose the absurdity inherent in real-world concepts like racism, violence, consumerism, and truth. Some of the stories have a different tone, but I never quite felt the emotional weight behind the ones with a more pensive, poignant feel. To me, the writing was much better at evoking feelings of rage, shock, despair, and defiance than sadness or regret.

Some stories were more interesting than others. A couple were a bit dull, but my favorites were the ones that really leaned in to the ridiculousness. I especially liked The Finkelstein 5, Friday Black, Zimmer Land, and Through the Flash. Nothing really blew me away, but this book was certainly unique and unexpected. Overall, this is a pretty thought-provoking, well-written collection of stories.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs and Violence

Moderate: Racism, Torture, Cannibalism, Xenophobia, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, and Murder

Minor: Child abuse, Police brutality, Suicide, and Domestic abuse

eve81's review

dark tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Torture, Racism, Murder, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts

leahjanespeare's review

medium-paced

4.0

I'm not a huge reader of short stories, but I LOVED Chain-Gang All Stars so I wanted to give Nana's debut collection a shot. I could guess that this came earlier because the writing (while excellent) wasn't as good as his novel, but the ideas are unflinching and it's pretty out there (and yet not at all out there). I hope his next published work is another novel rather than short stories, but will read it all the same either way!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence and Racism

Moderate: Mass/school shootings, Abortion, and Suicide

amyjo25's review against another edition

adventurous challenging funny fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence and Racism

xwritingstoriesx's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective 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? It's complicated

4.5

A brilliant surrealist, satirical exploration of racial suffering, resistance, consumerism and economic materialism. I'm looking forward to picking up Chain-Gang All Stars after this experience. 

The Finkelstein 5 - 4.5 stars

Things My Mother Said - 4.25 stars

The Era - 4.5 stars

Lark Street - 4 stars

The Hospital Where - 4.25 stars

Zimmer Land - 4.75 stars

Black Friday - 5 Stars

The Lion & The Spider - 4 stars

Light Spitter - 4.25 stars

In Retail - 3.75 stars

Through The Flash - 4 stars

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Racism, Gun violence, Child death, Child abuse, Violence, Hate crime, and Murder

Moderate: Abortion

Minor: Animal cruelty and Animal death

bookrokosmos's review

challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Murder, Gun violence, Racism, and Body horror

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Suicide, Death, Animal death, Mass/school shootings, and Child death

wanderingtones's review

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Hate crime, Violence, Classism, Racism, and Gore

Moderate: Suicide, Mass/school shootings, Abortion, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, and Racial slurs

Minor: Mental illness, Torture, and Self harm

madsmacmath's review

challenging dark 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? It's complicated

4.0

I don’t read a lot of short stories, and they’re a unique genre in their own right. It took me a second to get the feel and cadence, and to realize my criticism, that the stories felt like they were ripping off real life, is the whole damn point. These stories feel like looking at an uncanny valley image; they’re just different enough for you to see the story but so hauntingly and eerily familiar. It’s like everyone else has said - dystopian, sci-fi, selective realism. Like a Black Mirror episode on the page.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Racism, and Gun violence

Moderate: Violence, Mass/school shootings, and Racial slurs

readingwithgoose's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racism, and Murder

m_papaya's review

4.0

Bleak, violent, read in one sitting. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Gore, Torture, Self harm, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Child death, and Abortion

Moderate: Bullying, Addiction, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Islamophobia