Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah

83 reviews

tayrod4594's review against another edition

emotional funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

This memoir is absolutely stunning. It's an unflinching, honest portrait of South Africa, of how the various influences might combine to create a man whose greatest quality is his empathy. He makes no bones about the harsh realities of poverty, racism, domestic abuse, and crime; however, he doesn't position himself or his loved ones as victims or martyrs. It's simply the reality, and humor and hope are an ever-present thread weaving together his history.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Classism, Misogyny, Child abuse, Violence, Toxic relationship, Racism, Blood, and Colonisation

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Racial slurs, Police brutality, Addiction, Sexism, Car accident, and Child abuse

gwenswoons's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

4.0

Liked this a lot - lots of beautiful storytelling, tons of deep history about South African apartheid told in really personal ways, and an unusual balance of comedy and vivid, traumatic, clear information that Trevor Noah does so well. The structure, for me, wasn’t totally successful - I think the word “Stories” in the title is key, and it’s definitely built more like vignettes - to my reading, it was often not entirely successful from the extent of the non-sequitur - than like a traditional memoir (I’m not a major memoir reader anyway, so I was ok with this! But the timeline leaps and unrelated stories sometimes felt like they could have been built into a slightly more effective arc). I listened on audio, and can’t recommend it enough - he’s obviously such a great narrator, so funny, so inflected and beautiful (and, so amazing hearing him switch between different languages in different stories - I loved!!). Can’t imagine reading this NOT on audio! I’ll def read more of his books as he writes them 💜

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Hate crime, Medical content, Body horror, Gaslighting, Gore, Child abuse, Murder, Police brutality, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Grief, Colonisation, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Classism, Sexism, Stalking, Violence, War, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Alcohol, and Blood

elyssajoh's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, and Alcohol

Moderate: Hate crime, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Slavery, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Medical content, Misogyny, Blood, Grief, Classism, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Toxic relationship, and Bullying

Minor: Vomit, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts

zoegupta's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Physical abuse, Violence, Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Gore, Drug use, Addiction, Racism, Alcohol, Blood, Colonisation, Animal death, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexism

nicdic's review against another edition

funny informative inspiring sad fast-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Hate crime, Racism, Gun violence, Xenophobia, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Misogyny, Classism, Violence, and Slavery

Minor: Animal cruelty

ressicajicks's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

Yeah okay survivor of an abusive alcoholic stepfather figure take my 5 star rating. I finished this book sobbing

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Sexism, Slavery, Kidnapping, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Medical trauma, Misogyny, and Racism

mondovertigo's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective sad fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Gun violence, Child abuse, Police brutality, Violence, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Classism, Misogyny, and Racism

Moderate: Excrement, Animal death, and Fire/Fire injury

pomoevareads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring medium-paced

5.0

Trevor Noah’s voice came shining through in this book of essays about his life growing up in South Africa as a mixed race child. It is clear from this book that Trevor Noah became the intelligent, thoughtful and the critical thinker he is, in large part due to his mother and her careful way she imbued Trevor with reason and love. 

Growing up in the waning years of apartheid, Trevor was isolated from society because his mother was a black Xhosa woman and his father was a white Swiss German man. At the time it was illegal for races to mix. With the release of Nelson Mandela and the end of apartheid and the beginning of democracy, Noah still struggled to find where he belonged. He was a child with an unruly Afro and pale skin. He identified as black but was seen as other. 

At many points Noah’s sense of humour burns through the instances of racism, abuse, and poverty he experienced. He tells stories of being a bit of a grifter and a troublemaker with an innocence of someone who doesn’t want to hurt others. He shares what it was like having an abusive step father and moving between times of leanness and poverty. 

Told together, the stories make up a memoir of sorts for the period of Noah’s life up until the time he is beginning to really get noticed for his comedic talent.

Overall, this book of stories feels genuine and honest. I have been a fan of Trevor Noah’s comedy and see him as a modest, smart thinker who has surpassed the life of many who have had more.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Gun violence, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Physical abuse, Racism, Police brutality, Misogyny, Medical content, and Animal cruelty

voicenextdoor's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Misogyny, Medical trauma, Toxic relationship, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Colonisation, Racism, and Medical content

Moderate: Police brutality, Antisemitism, Alcohol, Classism, and Animal cruelty

miggyfool's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative lighthearted mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Addiction, Xenophobia, Colonisation, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Medical trauma, Violence, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Racism, Body horror, Suicide attempt, Blood, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Classism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, and Misogyny