Reviews tagging 'Grief'

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

358 reviews

mamagina's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Wow. To think this is a first novel is amazing. Character and story intertwine with circular telling and visceral imagery. The story of a gay Vietnamese-American figuring out his identities and relationships with family and friends as it has not been told. There is so much quotable wisdom in this book. A challenging and stressful. Read, but told with such tenderness and love. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent

Moderate: Animal cruelty and Animal death

lena_and_her_books's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.0

Vuongs intimate and poetic writing captures the moving story of a gay son of a vietnamese immigrant mother. The boy finds himself in a crossfire of the american opioid crisis, homophobia and his mothers (and grandmothers) war trauma. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Car accident, and Abortion

Moderate: Xenophobia and Excrement

Minor: Rape

CW: gay slurs, forced abortion, drug abuse by minors, internalized homophobia, death by drug overdose

thevietvegan's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

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

4.0

I really struggled to read this not because it was written poorly, but because so many deep wounds Ocean described as a Vietnamese American were so real. His experience growing up in a family with deeply scarred people, with both physical and emotional abuse, with so much confusion and dealing with truths and hard realities that a child shouldn't have to face. It was a deeply powerful and transcendent read. The prose is beautiful, the poetry is poignant. The grief is palpable. It was a difficult book but an important read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Grief, Medical trauma, and Death of parent

ocean's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Cannibalism, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, and Murder

orlagal's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? No

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Abortion, and Death of parent

abbystevenson's review against another edition

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Grief

charleyroxy's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racial slurs, Grief, and Abortion

orchidd's review

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Violence, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, and Death of parent

bibliogouine's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence, Excrement, and Grief

laurenwerlinger's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad slow-paced

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

5.0

This book is so carefully and beautifully written. Vuog writes with sometimes painful honesty. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, and Sexual content

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Xenophobia, Excrement, and Grief