Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Some People Need Killing: A Memoir of Murder in My Country by Patricia Evangelista

14 reviews

zoinkie's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Police brutality, Confinement, Drug use, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Child death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, War, Drug abuse, Addiction, Body horror, Colonisation, Death of parent, Death, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Blood, Pandemic/Epidemic, Alcoholism, Classism, Cursing, Gore, and Violence

ange_astylecollector's review

emotional

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Mass/school shootings, Police brutality, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Blood, Gun violence, Murder, Physical abuse, Body horror, Child death, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Torture, and Violence

wendywoo1's review

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Miscarriage, Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, Child death, Child abuse, Abandonment, Gun violence, Death, Violence, Police brutality, Murder, Sexual violence, Body horror, Torture, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Rape, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, and Injury/Injury detail

clarxvizconde13's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

This work documents Patricia Evangelista's work as a trauma reporter, focusing on Rodrigo Duterte's War on Drugs. It painted a picture of how Duterte came to power - what made him the choice for some Filipinos - during the 2022 Presidential elections. 

Extremely heartbreaking, Evangelista's extensive research and beautiful writing made me devour the book. At times I had to stop and reflect because realizing how many lives were taken under the pretext of "nanlaban" is emotionally draining. 

Evangelista's play on words and translation made this an engaging read from start to finish. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Police brutality, Death, and Violence

booksbyquinn's review

challenging dark informative medium-paced

4.5

Very informative and well-written memoir. I found it very interesting when she discussed Duterte’s language and rhetoric. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Violence, and Murder

edill09's review

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

“Journalism, in the end, is an act of faith” (p. 123)

Despite the heartbreak, despair, and anger, Pat also imbued her work with hope. Hope that through the telling of this account, that some semblance of justice would (eventually) unfold for the thousands of victims and their families who’s lives were forever changed with Duterte’s “war on drugs”. A stark warning for others who may find “tough guy” personalities vying for power (ala 2016 and 2024), and what the consequences of complicity looks like among the electorate.

I especially enjoyed the moments of linguistic insight (laban, salvage, and more) and the historical and political context for this moment in Filipino history. The narrative arc of the Edsa Revolution and the ways in which the various political dynasties made promises (and then broke them) … so many discussion points and things to chew on. Would highly recommend to all! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence, Police brutality, and Murder

amy_park's review

dark medium-paced

3.5

Utterly harrowing and haunting. Not my "typical" type of read but was prompted to give it a go as it's on the longlist for the women's prize for non fiction 2024. This investigative journalistic memoir was eyeopening. I was shocked and horrified throughout, at the many eyewitness testimonies and pure grief families suffered during the drug war was relentless.
This book is not for the fainthearted. I was in such a state of horror throughout reading it did make me slightly disconnect from the book, but that definetly is on me. 
I didn't jell with the occasional passages on language and definitions, I think this was just my personal preference and I was in a state of overwhelm, so wasn't able to digest these sections (and some of the stories of killings) as much as I wanted too.
I learnt alot from this book and made me question how precarious democracy is and how anybody's life can easily change due to extreme political power.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, Gun violence, Police brutality, Torture, and Mass/school shootings

omgsynecdoche's review against another edition

dark informative reflective medium-paced

3.5

This is a thought-provoking piece about the state of not only the Philippines but also its people. In the midst of a “war on drugs” declared by a former president, there is a need to examine the casualties, and whether they were indeed enemies or simply collateral damage. 

Evangelista’s writing remains to be sharp yet poetic at the same time. I found especially interesting the way she paralleled the (re)birth of Philippine democracy 30+ years ago and the death of literally thousands of Filipinos. A must-read  if you’re Filipino, by blood, by law, or just at heart. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Child death, Violence, Death of parent, and Gun violence

owmyleg's review

challenging dark informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Child death, Death, Murder, Police brutality, Death of parent, and Violence

isthisbooktaken's review

dark informative sad tense medium-paced

4.25

I caught the last minute of Evangelista’s NPR interview and was impelled to read this book. This was a very heavy read. You should expect to feel frustrated and angry and heartbroken reading this book. You may find yourself continuously stopping to put the book down, take a deep breath, and process like I had to. Regardless of the weight, it is important to bear witness to this careful documentation of violence, corruption, and injustice during the Philippines’ drug war.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Grief, Murder, Death, Police brutality, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail