Reviews tagging 'Pedophilia'

Finding Me: A Memoir by Viola Davis

59 reviews

power0911's review against another edition

challenging funny informative inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Physical abuse, Animal death, Abortion, Suicide, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Racial slurs, Child death, Pedophilia, Drug abuse, Death of parent, Addiction, Bullying, Cursing, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Vomit, Toxic relationship, Racism, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Grief, Violence, Terminal illness, and Sexual harassment

nebraskanwriter's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring fast-paced

5.0

This is one of the best memoirs I have ever read/listened to. Viola Davis is an incredible person. Her strength and all the things she went through is unimaginable. This was a hard book to listen to at times, Viola does not shy away from taking you through memories of her childhood. Her dad’s abuse towards her mom, sibling abuse from her older brother, poverty so intense most of the time they didn’t have electricity, food or a working toilet. How she overcame so many obstacles and horrible things that happened to her growing up to then go on to graduate from Juilliard, then go on to act with Denzel Washington and then Meryl Streep until her big break out in How to Get Away with Murder is truly incredible. She is an amazing individual and a true inspiration.

This book is one that I know will stick with me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Abortion, Addiction, Alcohol, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Death, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Slavery, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Rape, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Vomit, Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Excrement, Bullying, Cancer, Medical trauma, Racism, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Alcoholism, Animal death, Classism, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Body shaming, and Sexual harassment

matthaniaa's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring sad tense medium-paced

4.5

“Memories are immortal. They’re deathless and precise. They have the power of giving you joy and perspective in hard times. Or, they can strangle you. Define you in a way that’s based more in other people’s fucked-up perceptions than truth.”

Amazing story. It was sad, heartbreaking, and hard to read at times. Everything her mother, her family, she herself went through, it was unfathomable. How can a human survive that level or poverty and abuse? Somehow, Viola and her family did. It was inspiring. To see where she came from shows her resilience, hard work, and dedication. It really makes you take a step back and reevaluate. She's so strong, and I have an abundance of respect and adoration for her. She didn't give up, and look where she is now. She is an amazing woman, a phenomenal actor. Finding Me was eye-opening, and definitely made me want to read more memoirs/autobiographies. There were so many good quotes, but the one above is my favorite.

Would've been a five star if not for the editing. I think this could've been structured better. Some things felt out of place and not cohesive. But all in all, a great read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Death of parent, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Addiction, Death, Domestic abuse, Racism, and Blood

Moderate: Drug abuse, Cancer, Terminal illness, Abortion, Pedophilia, Rape, and Infertility

rebekah_florence's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

What a treat to hear her own story in her own words in her own time.  I love Viola Davis. Her work meant so much to me from the moment I saw her in The Help at 12 years old.  Immediately after returning home, I furiously searched everything I could about her, her acting career, and how I could EXACTLY what she did- represent dark-skinned Black women on screen. Viola tells stories in such a captivating way that, even in time jumps, they flow seamlessly.  I don’t know if I believe in rating a memoir below 5 stars. I don’t know if I believe in rating a memoir at all, however, if someone has the courage to share their story, amen to that. Viola exposes some of the deepest parts of herself- trauma, abuse, bullying, self-doubt and ultimately forgiveness.  So many parts of the book had me in tears because I could relate to them.  I see how the stories she decided to share connect to her work.  This was raw and inspiring and beautifully done.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Cancer, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Blood, Cursing, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Abortion, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal death, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Medical content, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Rape

Minor: Drug abuse

yomireads's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Viola Davis is a master at the craft of storytelling, evidenced not just in her brilliant talent honed to a razor's edge through dedication in her career as an actress, but in the way this memoir enraptured me from start to finish. This story is one steeped in life's trauma, but more importantly, reflects the break-back work of taking the adversity and shit thrown your way, and persevering. A brutally honest read of how even for all the agonizingly hard work Viola put into her talent as an actress, the reality is that luck was a deciding factor in her career.

I was moved by her resilience in the face of abuse to forgive, her faith when she felt abandoned, her candid approach to therapy, and so so much more. I'm better for having read this book, and I scarcely feel this way about books.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Sexual assault, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Cursing

Moderate: Animal death, Sexism, Classism, Misogyny, Infertility, Abortion, Addiction, and Alcoholism

Minor: Incest

herceia's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Incredible, inspiring, beautiful, unbelievable, amazing, brutal, heart wrenching, and so much more. A perfectly brutal memoir

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Blood, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Grief, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual violence, and Misogyny

Moderate: Drug use and Pedophilia

mariasilva's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Violence, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Grief, Racism, Sexual violence, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Drug abuse, Rape, Excrement, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, Child death, Death, Incest, Infertility, and Medical trauma

nrogers_1030's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

One of the most powerful biographies I’ve ever listened to.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Death of parent, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Violence, Blood, Bullying, Cursing, Rape, Domestic abuse, Racism, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Abortion, Pedophilia, Incest, Infertility, and Pregnancy

Minor: Terminal illness, Cancer, and Medical content

anpen's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Racism, Abortion, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Violence, and Pedophilia

leonormsousa's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring medium-paced

4.0

QUOTE 

"It is a widely held belief that dark-skinned women just don't do it for a lot of Black men. It's a mentality rooted in both racism and misogyny, that you have no value as a woman if you do not turn them on, if you are not desirable to them. It's ingrained thinking, dictated by oppression." 

THINGS I ENJOYED

• Viola Davis' narration in the audiobook: she is a powerhouse!
• What a life story!
• Great insights into the world of acting (theatre, cinema and tv), including the difficulties in “making it” and the prejudice within it
• The way Viola’s dedication to her art is palpable is incredible and inspiring
• It’s a very raw book and it definitely appeals to your emotions

THINGS I DIDN'T ENJOY

• There are sections where the book jumps back and forward in time, without references, and it gets a bit confusing/hard to follow

RECOMMENDED TO

• If you’re into memoirs, you’ll probably like this one!
• Viola Davis fans and appreciators of the art of acting will probably like this one particularly (the second half especially)
• This is a strong one and I found myself selecting almost every item from the TW list, so be aware of that going in!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Grief, Animal death, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Violence, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body shaming, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Abortion, Cancer, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Death of parent, Rape, Infertility, and Vomit