Reviews tagging 'Racism'

McGlue by Ottessa Moshfegh

25 reviews

lilrainbow's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

3.5

Otessa Moshfegh is so willing to make nasty interesting characters and it’s so readable. Incredible respect 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

teaselkie's review

Go to review page

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

4.0


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

alexandrabelze's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

look, i love otessa moshfegh’s writing style, but i can’t looks past the recurrent use of slurs throughout the book. it would be different if they only appeared every once in a while, but there were times when there were 3+ slurs on a single page. and i didn’t fuck with that. i understand what she was trying to pull off with the narrator, but it was too extreme. i love a good unlikeable or unreliable narrator—if done right. mcglue was not done right. it could’ve been done right if it had been written as “gay pirates with internalized homophobia learn to love each other and themselves.” sadly, i would instead describe this as “the narrator drops the f slur and racist comments every ten sentences while pining for another man.” disappointment.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

trashkatchewan's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a great read, much better than Eileen and really gripping in its rhythm. I crashed through it in an evening and I'm glad I just pushed through, not a story I want to dwell on because it was just heartbreaking and then obviously the amount of slurs was just egregious , but it was absolutely of quality in terms of writing style, conveyance of the character's issues, and tone.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

espears's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

4.5

I keep seeing stuff about McGlue being a pirate story?? It is not. McGlue is an alcoholic sailor, struggling to deal with himself and the reality of what happened between him and his best friend. TW: There are a lot of homophobic/racist slurs being flung around here. The prose is beautiful. The journey of self-loathing and reflection that McGlue experiences over the course of these pages felt visceral. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

biggaywave's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

2.0

Use of derogatory terms that should come with a trigger warning for some. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

nina5sophie's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

sexist, racist(!), homophobic. But it was literally a love story between an alcoholic man, who can't remember a single thing and a rich man, who's been killed by him. Would have been a 3 to a 3.5 star, but because of all the sexism racism homophobia it's a 2.5. It was literally too much, why did she have to write the book like that?

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

nargott's review against another edition

Go to review page

Too much racism, sexism and homophobia. Literally a slur at least once a page. I don't understand how a book like this, written by a straight, white woman using such anti black and homophobic language could be so widely praised. Trash.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

jp_riemersma's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

3.0


Expand filter menu Content Warnings

kaymichelle's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5


Expand filter menu Content Warnings