Reviews tagging 'Suicide'

The Unfortunates by J.K. Chukwu

4 reviews

karemark's review

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emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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tjminus's review

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challenging dark emotional funny sad tense medium-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? Yes

4.5

First, definitely check the trigger/content warnings before reading this book. It is a DARK comedy. The writing style/presentation was so unique and creative and I truly enjoyed it.  I just felt like the last 80 or so pages rushed to complete the plot and the book easily could have gone another 20-30 pages to match the plot pace of the first 2/3rds of the book.
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dominmuenster's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense
  • 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? Yes

5.0

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bahareads's review

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challenging dark emotional reflective tense fast-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? Yes

3.0

The Unfortunates was a good book; I just don't think it was the book for me. Chukwu deals with some hard issues (trigger warnings) - things like suicide, suicide idealization, self-harming, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, eating disorders, body dysmorphia, racism, and classism. The synopsis paints this novel as a mystery, which it is not. It is more of a book of self-discovery. Sahara is struggling with all of these things while dealing with immigrant family expectations which just adds another struggle.

I know from personal experience that being the first daughter in a family is not easy (at all). I'm so thankful for the real relationships that Sahara had in this book - her best friend specifically. Professors who ACTUALLY care for their students are a blessing; it was great for Chukwu to show the range of professors' care in college. Some of them do not give a shit about you but others will make space for you and give allowances. Thank God for professors who actually care.

College is already stressful and being at institutions that do not support you, and have barely any people of colour is TOUGH. Feeling unsupported and having imposter syndrome is so so real. I laughed out loud at a White man being the head of the Black Student Union, like HOW?!? Chukwu has a range of Black personalities and people here. The one at stuck out was the rich Whitewashed Black person. She was shown in an awful light. She was shallow, an enabler, and not even someone I would not call a friend in any respect. While Chukwu does a great job of showing how Sahara was supported by her people. I wish there were even more exposition on the relationships. A lot of characters were in here and it felt like we did not get to see the depth of some of the relationships.

The art in here was intriguing. A lot of the pages have some visual element on them. JK Chukwu is a visual artist and I think that makes her work stand out. The fact that she uses her skills as both a writer and artist in combination is beautiful.

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