Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

Jonny Appleseed by Joshua Whitehead

20 reviews

djbobthegirl's review against another edition

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

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Grief, Transphobia, Alcoholism, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Biphobia, Cursing, Drug use, Homophobia, Sexual content, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Addiction, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Violence, Body shaming, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Outing, Physical abuse, and Bullying

Minor: Sexual assault, Racial slurs, Cancer, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Pedophilia, Racism, Vomit, Excrement, and Infidelity

julie_42's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Hate crime, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, and Sexual content

Moderate: Drug use and Racial slurs

angelbabe_cj's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Addiction, Child abuse, Homophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Drug use, Racism, Body shaming, and Racial slurs

Minor: Death of parent and Eating disorder

dominiq_ec's review against another edition

very heavy on the inner monologue, which I usually don’t mind. however, i’m reading this book digitally, and its becoming hard to concentrate. hopefully I can pick it back up at a different time!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Sexual content, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Colonisation, Grief, Animal death, Blood, Death, Homophobia, Body horror, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Abandonment, Hate crime, Bullying, Child abuse, Religious bigotry, Racism, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, and Racial slurs

Minor: Kidnapping, Colonisation, and Fatphobia

most of the content warnings pertain to the lived experiences of native peoples / NDN folks. if you’re not familiar with this, please do adequate research before reading.

journey2's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

Jonny Appleseed is the story of an indigiqueer 2 spirit (self proclaimed NDN glitter princess), Canadian living in Winnipeg. 

This is the story of Jonny, who has left the rez he grew up on and is now living in Winnipeg. He's working as a cyber sex worker and getting by digital date by digital date, becoming whoever it is that his clients need. 

Jonny is faced with having to return to the rez for his stepfather's funeral. In the week before he heads home he is lost in recollections of the past. Of his mother, of his kokum, and of his on again off again lover since they were preteens. His lover who's not gay. Never. He just likes to be close to Jonny. 
 Jonny visits with him and his girlfriend, both of whom he loves very dearly. 

This book is sad, beautiful, romantic, and heartbreaking on many levels. It deals with love and loss and pain and suffering and discrimination and the mundaneity of life. 

It also deals with family and love and connection and heart. I listened to this on audiobook and I was completely enraptured. It made me think and it made me cry. If you're looking for a sad but beautiful story that will make you very introspective and touch your heart, than this is definitely the book for you. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Physical abuse, Death, Racism, Drug use, Pregnancy, Eating disorder, Racial slurs, Alcoholism, Blood, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Grief, Sexual content, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Death of parent, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Medical content

Reference to residential schools and their lasting impact on survivors

nkmustdie's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Death, Cultural appropriation, Transphobia, Vomit, Grief, Child abuse, Body shaming, Blood, Animal death, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Violence, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Adult/minor relationship, Sexism, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Dysphoria, Cursing, Classism, Racism, Bullying, Terminal illness, Sexual violence, Colonisation, and Chronic illness

foldingthepage_kayleigh's review

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

4.0

I tried to listen to this audiobook last year, but it was right during the middle of a heat wave, and I was feeling stressed, trapped in my body, and the visceral way in which this book is written was just too much for me at the time, and enhanced my hyper fixation on the physicality of being. 

I am so glad that I tried again this year, because I feel like I read this at the right time. Having just read People Change by Vivek Shraya, which  increased my appreciation of mutability and change, helped me better grasp the beauty of impermanence and the way things shift as portrayed in this book. I also read Full-Metal Indigiqueer, Whitehead’s debut collection of poetry before coming back to this audiobook, which helped me recognize the stunning poetics across this book.

All in all, the more time I have away from this book, the more I like it. Going in, be prepared for a visceral slice of life story that will immerse you into the seasons of Jonny Appleseed.

“You gonna be changing, and that’s fine. But you come back when you do, okay? You come back here and you change me too.” 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Medical content, Racism, Blood, Bullying, Colonisation, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Cultural appropriation, Death, Fatphobia, and Homophobia

maekay's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

Intense and nihilistic story about realities of modern Indigenous and Two Spirited life. The writing is amazing, the author balances dichotomies perfectly: it's disgustingly beautiful, violently touching, and ambiguously insightful. Not for the faint of heart, there is a lot of pain in this novel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Drug abuse, Racial slurs, Addiction, Bullying, Drug use, Child abuse, Rape, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body shaming, Sexual assault, and Animal cruelty

balth_the_chaotic_good's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Racism, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Colonisation, Grief, Hate crime, Cultural appropriation, and Homophobia

Moderate: Death of parent, Blood, Fatphobia, Vomit, Infidelity, Transphobia, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Classism, Cursing, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

b_day's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts