Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

19 reviews

ominous_emu's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Racism, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Child death, and Confinement

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Rape, Classism, Pedophilia, Abandonment, and Cursing

princess_marie's review

challenging dark emotional 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Confinement, Death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Forced institutionalization, Child death, Gun violence, and Torture

Minor: Abandonment, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, and Murder

gotnoculture's review against another edition

emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Child abuse, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Death, Hate crime, Violence, Murder, Torture, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Blood, Pedophilia, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Medical content, Sexual assault, Grief, and Addiction

Minor: Homophobia, Kidnapping, and Abandonment

skyroxy's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery

Moderate: Child death, Forced institutionalization, Death, Bullying, Slavery, and Abandonment

tigerkind's review against another edition

dark informative sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Child abuse, Blood, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Confinement, Child death, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Cursing, Fire/Fire injury, Vomit, Xenophobia, Sexual violence, Addiction, Alcoholism, Murder, Bullying, Alcohol, Pedophilia, Rape, Medical content, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Slavery, Physical abuse, Police brutality, and Death

Minor: Death of parent, War, and Excrement

lizreaderhold's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Abandonment, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Murder, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Slavery, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Torture, and Xenophobia

citybookspgh's review

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

Powerful book about a real-life reform school for boys. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Murder, Forced institutionalization, Racism, and Torture

A difficult but important read.

mmwiseheart's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense 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

4.5

This is a fantastic book, which feels weird to say since the content is so heavy and dark. However, it is very well written. More importantly, it tells the story of boys whose stories were largely unheard. It is based on a true story of what happened at a reform school in Florida. The only thing I didn’t like about it is that I felt it wasn’t fully resolved. Which is perhaps intentional. 

I read this for book group and was forewarned that I needed to start reading it earlier than I normally would because I’d need to take breaks from the heaviness of it. And that turned out to be the case. The only other book I’ve read that I remember having to put down and come back to this much was John Hersey’s Hiroshima. 

I recommend this to everyone. It’s a lot to handle, but it’s so important. It’s important to know about and learn to recognize the injustices that have happened, and are still happening, in our country so that we can affect change.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Child death, Bullying, Confinement, Murder, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Torture

Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Abandonment, Pedophilia, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, and Slavery

davianareads's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual content, Murder, Rape, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Racism, Death of parent, Death, Blood, Abandonment, Child abuse, Racial slurs, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Drug abuse, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Hate crime, Bullying, and Addiction

maxgardner's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? No

5.0

Definitely one of my favorite books of the year. Colson Whitehead gives us well developed and lovable characters, especially in Elwood and Turner, and his writing style strikes a perfect balance between minimalism and flourish. This is a story about the tension between idealism and realism (cynicism/pessimism) set in the midst of the Civil Rights Movement, specifically in a prison for young men that's officially branded as a reform school. Through Elwood's journey at Nickel, Whitehead explores themes of racism, justice, trauma, and survival. Also has one of the most subtle but gut-punching endings I've read in a while.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pedophilia, Torture, Violence, Abandonment, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Hate crime, Rape, and Racism