Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

107 reviews

zzberg201's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Incredible. A master craft. Cannot say enough good things.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, and Colonisation

nick13's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

• 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

4.5

I have never read any of Octavia Butler's work before but now I need to check some more out because this read was astounding, emotional, but astounding. Every single character in this was incredibly well written and well thought out, making every one of them believable, even if some are VERY unlikable.

All I wish more for in this story was for the time the characters spent in their present to be more fleshed out along with Edana and Kevin's relationship to be a bit more expounded upon instead of just presumed throughout the book.

But really, if all I'm wishing for in a story is more of it, it clearly did something very well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Trafficking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Incest and Infidelity

Minor: Infertility, Miscarriage, and Pregnancy

rachelcurrier's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense fast-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Sexism, and Slavery

Moderate: Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence, and Grief

mcchristofoletti's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5361633531

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and Colonisation

Minor: Ableism, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Medical trauma, and Murder

perfictionistreviews's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

jesticulate's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Medical content, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

chezz's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative tense fast-paced

• 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

I will be thinking about this book for a while. Masterfully written; traumatic but not to the point of needing to put the book down. Balances on the knife’s edge of being too much, but the writing’s restraint keeps the story accessible.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

gummifrog's review against another edition

challenging dark informative 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? Yes

5.0

This book was an excellent read - and for myself, as a white person, it was very challenging.  In many places, it was difficult to stomach the violence and emotional pain and abuse slaves were subject to at the hands of their white subjugators.  

Butler makes an effort to explore so many ideas in this - the intimacy of the relationship between these two groups, because there can be intimacy in hatred and distance.  No amount of intimacy can close the gap, though, between the person who keeps you ground under your foot.  Interracial relationships and the comparison and contrast between how they would have existed between both time periods was also a large theme.  

I was most captured by the resilience, cunning, and analytical strength of the main character, Dana.  She feels the guilt of having been born in a period where black people are no longer slaves in the US.  Although she is no less consenting to the horrors she is subject to, she is entrapped in many ways and ultimately chooses to free herself physically - but always with the ramifications of what she went through mentally, leaving behind a piece of herself always in the past.  There is a lot of emotional content and philosophy behind the action Dana takes at the end of the book, and I definitely need some time to sit with it and absorb it.

This is a powerful historical fiction / scifi novel, the precursor to Outlander, but so much more culturally relevant and an absolute must-read.  While reading it, I was surprised about how many people hadn't even heard of it.  This is absolutely a classic that cannot be missed.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Gun violence and Rape

Minor: Child death, Terminal illness, and Death of parent

linneak's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

jessreadreceipts's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, and Injury/Injury detail