Reviews tagging 'Rape'

The Reformatory by Tananarive Due

111 reviews

author_d_r_oestreicher's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative tense fast-paced

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

5.0

 

The Reformatory by Tananarive Due is set in 1950, Jim Crow Florida. Twelve-year-old Robert Stephens, Jr. defends his older sister Gloria from the unwanted advance of white Lyle McCormack. For kicking Lyle, he is sentenced to Gracetown School for Boys—a brutal place run by the psychopath Fenton Haddock. The brutality of the Jim Crow South is balanced by the nice people that Robert meets and the haints (ghosts) that befriend him. A novel about the United States in the 1950s, and well worth reading. 

 

For my extended notes: https://1book42day.blogspot.com/2024/03/the-reformatory-by-tananarive-due.html 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Rape, Torture, Bullying, Child death, Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, Adult/minor relationship, Antisemitism, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Death of parent, Police brutality, and Child abuse

Magic realism

box_wine_hero's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Listened to the audio book and it was amazing. The ghost story combined with the real horrors of the Jim Crow South is so harrowing it was hard to stop listening.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse

Moderate: Murder, Rape, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Racial slurs, and Racism

Minor: Cancer, Bullying, and Death of parent

delilahblues's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book is a finalist for the Bram Stoker Award this year and I definitely see why. This is not my first experience with Due, so it wasn’t surprising for this book to be so good. I love the writing style as well as the story itself.
The story is about a young man who is sent to a boys school for a minor crime. Once there, he begins to see ghosts and finds out about the dark history of the school. It is a duel perspective book with most of the story told between the young boy and his older sister who is willing to do whatever it takes to rescue her brother. 
I’m not typically a fan of multiple perspectives in books bc they can often be disjointed, but Due’s writing style makes it easier to follow. 
All in all, I cannot recommend this book (or really *any* of her books) enough. This book is hyped for a reason. Be sure to check trigger warnings before diving in though! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Torture, Death, Physical abuse, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Sexual assault, Violence, Confinement, Grief, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Racism

nrogers_1030's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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

Damn

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Violence, Racism, Physical abuse, Bullying, Confinement, Racial slurs, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Murder, Torture, and Blood

Moderate: Rape

brittonmc1221's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Racism, Rape, Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Violence, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Torture, Murder, Death, Child abuse, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, and Physical abuse

thehmkane's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

A very good and important book. While I enjoyed Due's prose, I felt like the pacing took much of the urgency out of the story - the climax moves at a good clip, though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Confinement, Genocide, Abandonment, Bullying, Torture, Hate crime, Gore, Racism, Animal death, Classism, Death of parent, Blood, Terminal illness, Grief, Police brutality, Child abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Emotional abuse, Child death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Antisemitism, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Trafficking, Medical content, Rape, Sexism, Animal cruelty, Slavery, Violence, Sexual harassment, and Pedophilia

samburkhouse's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Torture, Child abuse, Child death, Forced institutionalization, and Racism

Moderate: Death of parent, Rape, and Fire/Fire injury

cbrigs99's review against another edition

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? It's complicated

5.0

This was such a phenomenal read that I anticipate becoming a classic in the near future. Due is a masterful storyteller that reminds me much of Toni Morrison, and does an exquisite job telling such a painful and gut wrenching story. The characters are all incredibly complex, and Due is able to evoke such strong emotions of shame, revulsion, sadness and love all in the span of this story. I felt all the emotions while reading this book, and anticipate thinking of this one for a long time after finishing. I fail to quite capture the magnificence of this novel, but all I can say is: this should be required reading for everybody. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Murder, and Child abuse

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

erin_l's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Toxic relationship, Toxic friendship, Racism, Murder, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Forced institutionalization, Violence, and Hate crime

Moderate: Police brutality, Medical trauma, and Murder

Minor: Sexual violence, Rape, and Pedophilia

sshelbyreadss's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional

5.0

This story was so gripping and powerful. I was on the edge of my seat during the climax and about had to pull my car over while listening. The number of times I was clutching my chest and holding my breath with hope! Dear god!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Torture, Gun violence, Racism, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Rape and Sexual violence