Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

Minor Detail by Adania Shibli

58 reviews

suzyreadsbooks's review against another edition

5.0

“Besides, sometimes it’s inevitable for the past to be forgotten, especially if the present is no less horrific.”

haunting.
striking direct comparisons between the two sections. very effective in the repetition of mundane details alongside the horrors of 1949 and present-day occupation of Palestine.

despite being so short, the first half took me a few days due to the content, but I loved the narrator’s voice in the modern day half.

“I fast forward the tape, then I rewind it. Again and again, I build settlements and dismantle them.” (quotes transcribed from audiobook so formatting may be incorrect)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Rape, Violence, Murder, and War

withlivjones's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Wow. This was a haunting read that hits particularly hard right now. I thought that the recurring motifs between the two halves of the novella were really clever. I also thought that the banal, almost clinical descriptions of both the horrifying things the Israeli soldiers do to the young girl in the first half and the injustices that the Palestinian woman and her peers have to endure in the second half really clearly revealed the horrors of the occupation. I’m still reeling from the ending - normally I’m not a huge fan of abrupt endings but it really does work well in a novella like this. Read this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Torture, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Murder, and War

Moderate: Animal death and Panic attacks/disorders

jonezzzing's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Murder, and Colonisation

Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty and Blood

emily_mh's review

dark 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? No

5.0

This was a harrowing story about the horrors of settler-colonial violence, one that makes clear that these aren’t a thing of the past and that they will keep repeating so long as the settler-colonial state exists.

The simple writing style employed here is incredibly effective, allowing the reader to look beyond the denotative to the connotative. There was so much to think about, such as the potential insect metaphor for the futility and brutality of colonisation found in the first part (I could be wrong with this interpretation). Also, and I may again be off the mark here, but I believe the only time direct speech was used was when an Israeli character was glorifying the settler-colonialism of Israel. I thought this was significant, as it suggests that even within her own story, the Palestinian main character’s voice is given less weight (through indirect speech) than her oppressors, again illustrating the ills of settler-colonialism. There are countless more examples of deeper meaning to be found.

The book being split into two parts was another skilful choice as it provided the opportunity for parallels which demonstrated, sickeningly, the repetition of settler-colonial violence as well as providing clear contrast between the voices of the Israeli military officer and the Palestinian civilian.

Gut-wrenching is not a strong enough word for this story. I could not put it down. Shibli did not deserve to have her ceremony cancelled. Read books by Palestinian authors!!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Violence, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death, Physical abuse, and Grief

Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Blood, and Excrement

bchantele15's review against another edition

emotional tense medium-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Colonisation, and War

Moderate: Animal cruelty

rosie135790's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

4.0

so I believe the old woman and the girl we see in the end or the same girl in the beginning. Also once we found out that this was a military shooting area, I thought they would use her as target practice. Then when she put her hand in her pocket for gum I was like well she is going to die now. Then she did.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Islamophobia, Murder, and Sexual harassment

sophiareads_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Medical content, Murder, and Colonisation

Moderate: Vomit

Minor: Animal cruelty

etbliss's review against another edition

dark emotional tense slow-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Murder, and War

shelvesofivy's review against another edition

sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual violence, Police brutality, Kidnapping, and Murder

Moderate: Colonisation

Minor: Vomit and War

arachnophobia

readingwithcoffee's review against another edition

dark informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Heavy book that’s not for the faint of heart but important and the author fits so much of Palestinian present and past in the short novella and I will have to reread to get the symbolism with the dogs and the smell of gasoline 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Colonisation

Moderate: Rape, Violence, and Xenophobia