Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

A Mind Spread Out on the Ground by Alicia Elliott

7 reviews

dianakamau's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Religious bigotry, Racism, Sexual violence, Confinement, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Toxic friendship, Cancer, Abortion, and Body shaming

remimicha's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Panic attacks/disorders, Addiction, Alcoholism, Classism, Police brutality, Body shaming, Child abuse, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, Murder, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Violence, Cultural appropriation, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Transphobia, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Suicide, Gun violence, Homophobia, Eating disorder, Hate crime, Cancer, and Death

voidboi's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

3.5

These essays give you lots to think about, have great writing, and generously share the author's personal history and emotional work to make meaning from difficult parts of her life. The final essay asks you to do the same, providing questions with blank spots for the reader to reflect on and "share", and it is quite powerful. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Child abuse, and Mental illness

Moderate: Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Colonisation, Forced institutionalization, and Alcohol

Minor: Cancer

biancafrancisco's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Through a very personal narrative - using herself, her family and her nation as examples - the author touches upon more themes than I can mention, connecting bridges between a myriad of crucial societal issues, always leading back to the macro vision of the effect of capitalism, colonialism and the action of the state on people, while simultaneously making us keep checking our prejudices.

The book teaches you a lot about the issues indigenous communities and individuals struggle with (most that were imposed on them by colonizers), and how not only they are still dealing with and trying to heal from the very real and tangibly present damage this legacy of colonialism and genocide has transfered through generations, but are simultaneously dealing with modern versions of the same violence nowadays. 

I was surprised to see, that through the connections she makes between several systemic structures, there was much for me to relate to as well. I'm an immensely priviledged white european, but I'm still a woman, I'm still a daughter, I'm still bound by the constraints of capitalism and the patriarchy as well as witness to intergenerational trauma, to mention a few, and, in the end, you can't accurately assess any structural issue without it intertwining with the others.

All in all, I recommend it to literally everyone, as I think there's learning opportunities in this book for all of us. I'm extremely glad I picked it up. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Sexism, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, and Xenophobia

indrabindra's review against another edition

emotional reflective

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Colonisation, Sexual violence, Genocide, Gaslighting, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Alcoholism, Grief, Fatphobia, and Cancer

rini's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Police brutality, and Racism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Addiction, Bullying, Physical abuse, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Trafficking

Minor: Cancer and Drug abuse

sarah984's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring medium-paced

5.0

This is a series of autobiographical essays about dehumanization and the intersections of misogyny, poverty, mental illness and racism in the US and Canada. I really enjoyed the way the author would pull in disparate elements (the history of dark matter, a Susan Sontag essay about photography) to illustrate wider points, and most of the essays were beautiful.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, and Religious bigotry