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harrownova's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, and Sexual violence
nkmustdie's review against another edition
- 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
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
- 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 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.”
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
- 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
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
b_day's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Homophobia, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts
paigieodo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
i hate grim books, books that are fixated on the ugliness of life. i just hate them, because that's never been how i see things. i don't think humans are selfish, that bodies are grotesque, that everyone is just waiting around for a chance to take advantage of you. i love my coke addict mother and and i love my drunk of a father and i love the disgusting mess my mom would feed me every dinner growing up with the scraps from the back of the cupboard because we were dirt poor. i love the people who have abused me, who have hurt me on purpose. i don't think there's anything ugly about being human. only things that hurt, things that shred us apart, things that make us feel too much in all the wrong ways. and all of it is beautiful.
joshua whitehead, through the character of jonny, encapsulates this better than any other author. rot and mess and mud and blood and cum and spit are beautiful because they're attached to the people we love, even the ones we love without really having a good reason to. whitehead has written the most wondrously human characters in this novel. i'm in love with them. i'll never forget them. god. i have a lot of feelings about this book and also nothing meaningful to say at all that will do it justice. i love it. i love every part of it.
Graphic: Child abuse and Physical abuse
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Chronic illness, Fatphobia, Rape, Drug abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Classism, Death, Excrement, Alcohol, Animal death, Body shaming, Grief, Homophobia, Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Colonisation, Death of parent, and Sexual violence