Reviews with content warning for Torture - Actos humanos

Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Actos humanos by Álvaro Colomer, Mar Abad, Han Kang

198 reviews

americattt'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? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

“Soundlessly, and without fuss, some tender thing deep inside me broke. Something that, until then, I hadn’t even realized was there.”

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miaaa_lenaaa's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

Reflections on death and attempts at burying memories so as not to have to relive them conflicting with those who see no other option but to relive them

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madamenovelist's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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oldhagsyndr0me's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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jrisants's review against another edition

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5.0

This book gutted me. I don’t know if I will ever recover from the words and emotions expressed through this.

Han Kang details the happenings and long-standing impacts of the Gwangju May Democratic Uprising (1980) using six different perspectives across 30 years. It is clear that some creative license is taken in one of the stories (namely to imagine what one might think or experience after death), though it seems that the core thread of Dong-Ho’s story is intact and that the author holds integrity to his memory, as well as those whose stories are also shared—which makes reading this even more painful.

What I appreciate is she did not seek to make heroes or inspirations out of the participants stories. She leans into the fear and trauma that are inextricably linked to these types of experiences. This part stood out to me most as an American reader since I am so accustomed to stories about standing up against corruption as bold, macho, and exciting with clear acts of bravery meant to inspire and often uplift the person who hears them. This is a story of suffering, as any experience with injustice and mistreatment is.

I cried through every chapter. I mourn what these people had to endure. I am grateful that they have been offered dignity through truth.

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bargainandbooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? N/A
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

5.0

I went blindly into this book based solely on the beautiful cover and my goal to read more translated books. This book shook me to my core. How can a book about such a horrific historical happening be written in such a beautiful way. I devoured the book and was left utterly crushed by each characters chapter. I loved the way everyone was connected, and still showed different aspects of the time and how it affected the people and the community that was left grieving. Brilliant.

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angievansprang's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

A harrowing account of the Gwangju Massacre from a cast of characters all connected by the death one young boy - Human Acts by Han Kang will tear your heart apart. Despite the horrific content of this story, I found Kang’s descriptive writing to be beautiful and unique. Her descriptions of death and death-adjacent experiences is like none other I’ve read before.

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