Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult

28 reviews

sparklyengineer's review against another edition

emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death

Moderate: Cursing and Medical content

Minor: Sexual content

nicoleolander's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Hate crime, Antisemitism, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Child death, Death, Grief, and Medical content

lcl_reads's review against another edition

challenging hopeful informative inspiring sad

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.5

As a Black woman living in the United States who has read several novels by Jodi Picoult, I was curious to consider how this one would be handled, particularly because of what I know of Picoult's background. I must admit, I was a little shocked when the first "nigger" was dropped, but as I read I appreciated the way Picoult confronted her subject head on and without flinching.

As I was reading, I felt a bit conflicted about rating the book. I really appreciated this part of the author's note at the end: " I was writing to my own community - white people- who can very easily point to a neo-Nazi skinhead and say he's racist... but who can't recognize racism in themselves." I think my conflicted feelings are because this book is not written for me.

This book was bold in its pursuit and the amount of research and thought Picoult put into the topic was evident to me.

Some critiques I've read of the book are that Ruth's story is not as developed and I actually appreciated that. I would have loved to have more of the respectibility politics, colorism, and relationships between Ruth, her mother, and her sister explored. I also think Picoult was smart in identifying that that was not her story to tell nor was that the point of this particular book.

I think it is important to remember that no book can be everything, so, yes, this book is not everything, but it is the story I think was right for Picoult to tell to the audience she has, from her position, with the support of the research she did and for what it is, it was executed as well as it could have possibly been.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Religious bigotry, Cursing, Hate crime, Medical content, Medical trauma, Xenophobia, Violence, Racial slurs, Child death, Homophobia, and Death

Moderate: Police brutality

Minor: Suicide

inirac's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Xenophobia, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Child death, Racial slurs, Death, Racism, Antisemitism, Grief, and Hate crime

Moderate: Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Police brutality, Blood, Self harm, and Medical trauma

crystalxqueer's review against another edition

emotional informative tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Racism, and Hate crime

Moderate: Violence and Racial slurs

Minor: Grief and Medical content

vanesst's review against another edition

challenging tense fast-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Homophobia, Misogyny, Death of parent, Hate crime, Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Antisemitism, Child death, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, and Violence

Moderate: Grief, Medical content, Pregnancy, Self harm, Slavery, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Police brutality, and Abandonment

Minor: Blood, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, and Alcohol

jamiejanae_6's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Sexism, Antisemitism, Body horror, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Self harm, Blood, Violence, Child death, Cursing, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Animal death, Animal cruelty, and Alcoholism

juliaathomsonnn's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Racism, and Murder

Moderate: Medical trauma and Medical content

Minor: Suicide

susannah_knox's review against another edition

challenging emotional 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? Yes

2.0

This book is written in alternating perspectives between Ruth, a Black labor and delivery nurse, Turk, a violent white supremacist, and Kennedy, a white public defender.  The plot pulled me along, but I found the writing wooden - the author's attempt to inhabit a Black woman experiencing discrimination did not feel authentic, and her attempt to inhabit a white supremacist was even more painfully fake.  The book is also filled with gratuitously maudlin back stories, a punch list of unnecessary side plots so the author can check off every point she wanted to make about race in America, and some really painful inaccuracies. The central plot point (no spoilers here as it's revealed in the blurb) was absurd: a nurse would never hesitate to aid an infant in distress just because she had been ordered not to touch the baby by white supremacist parents.  As a former public defender, I found another important plot point (also in the blurb) - that a defense attorney would insist on not bringing up race in a trial on those facts - equally absurd.  And there were smaller things... For example, the idea that a person in Kennedy's life circumstances, in this day and age, would say something idiotic like "I don't see color" is also ridiculous.  And then at the end she has the audacity to lecture her Black client about the difference between equality and equity to win back her trust and then they become besties?  I couldn't believe what I was reading.  Last and also least, it does not take 90 minutes by bus to get from anywhere in Harlem to the UWS.  Seriously, if it takes you that long, get off the bus and walk to the nearest subway station on the west side.  What on earth.  I give the author some points for a satisfying ending, which I don't see often enough in "serious" books.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Antisemitism, Child death, Hate crime, Medical content, Racism, Rape, and Suicide

gem114's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

I understand what Jodi Picoult was trying to do here, and after reading her author's note, I accept and appreciate her efforts, but I still have a really hard time being fully okay with it. Picoult knows her audience, and I'm hoping some of her repeat readers benefited from reading this book. Hopefully Picoult is the medium they needed to face the issue of racism and do some introspection. Meanwhile, I'm just hanging out over here trying to stomach the number of times she uses the n word and that

the skinhead gets a redemption arc.

Yes, the story was engaging. Yes, Picoult is a pretty good writer. But yes, it gets super preachy. Overall, I'm feeling kind of meh about it for myself.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Antisemitism, Racism, Medical trauma, Child death, Violence, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Medical content, Homophobia, Classism, Pregnancy, Blood, Police brutality, Murder, and Hate crime

Moderate: Death of parent, Mental illness, and Alcohol

Minor: Suicide