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artemisg's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Once you settle into the way this is written it is absolutely gorgous and heartbreaking and atmospheric. There are several different timelines with no introduction and several different points of view - complete with narrative changes (from third- to first-person POV with no preamble). Once you have a moderate handle on that, you can appreciate the absolute beauty of the writing style. Every word is used with such purpose, and he sentence structures and so intentional and beautiful.
They were not holding hands, but their shadows were.
This book follows Sethe, a resident of 124 Bluestone Road. The house holds her and her daughter, Denver, and the ghost of another daughter who dies in infancy. Paul D, a man from Sethe’s past as a slave, joins the house. Then, a a mysterious woman with unlined hands and dark, dark eyes turns up. She calls herself Beloved, the word engraved on the gravestone of Sethe’s dead daughter. Us readers, and the characters, try to decipher where Beloved came from, and if she is the spirit of the dead daughter or not. We fall in and out of love and fear with her. We also follow the lives of Sethe and Paul D when they were slaves at a farm called Sweet Home (it is anything but either of those things) before they escaped. It is brutal and vile and violent and hard to read. All of this is hard to read while being beautiful and smooth.
Clever, but schoolteacher beat him anyway to show him that definitions belonged to the definers - not the defined.
This book is am accomplishment and I am glad to have read it, and understood it as much as I could. Gorgeous prose, a heartwrenching story that I know is based in history, with lovingly crafted characters.
“Me and you, we got more yesterday than anybody. We need some kind of tomorrow.”
Graphic: Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, and Torture
Moderate: Sexual violence
kendallreallyreads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Sexual violence, and Slavery
ctatu's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Death, Racism, Toxic relationship, Grief, Murder, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment
rkorevenge's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Dementia, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and War
mx_sunshine'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
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
b_easelbub'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
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Pregnancy
artis_meretrix's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Incest, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Pregnancy
allyreadabook'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: Child death, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, and Murder
ashlyn922's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Child death, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
inkyinky's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Classism