Reviews tagging 'Grief'

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

12 reviews

waytoomanybooks's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense 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

1.0

God, this book was such a waste of my time. I only finished it because I had to read it for school. It’s god awful. It was never entirely clear what was happening, to whom, or why. Most of the dialogue and narration just repeats and repeats, which serves to clarify literally nothing. The adults fail the children at every turn, which is hugely upsetting. And while no, books don't have to have happy endings, hopeful endings, virtuous characters, or good morals, so help me, I can’t tell what lesson(s) I’m supposed to take away from the torture the characters go through at every turn. My professor told us that this is one of Faulker's more “accessible” novels, and I have to wonder how his other works can possibly be less accessible than this novel. This novel is just word salad. I wish I hadn’t been assigned this book because it’s such a slog and with no pay-off.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity, Chronic illness, Child abuse, Death, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Sexism, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Death of parent, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Confinement, Cursing, Rape, Abandonment, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Vomit, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Grief, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Medical content, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, and Sexual content

gabriella_'s review against another edition

challenging dark 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? N/A

1.0

I hated this. I skimmed the essays at the end - Doreen Fowler’s Matricide and the Mother’s Revenge: As I Lay Dying was interesting though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Grief, Emotional abuse, Death, Incest, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, and Death of parent

lindseyas's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense 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

3.75

I read this for my new English class, which is analysis of Southern literature. Having Faulkner as our first book was definitely an intense beginning, and "As I Lay Dying" was just the cherry on top to set the scene for the variety of insane tales we'd be reading in class. A story about being set in your ways and stuck in your born environment, Faulkner tells the story of a family that barely acts like one, characters that can't get out of their own personal ruts and a death that rocks even the strongest of people to their cores. "The poison trickles through," as they tend to say, and it doesn't just stop when you're born: no matter how old or physically/emotionally separated you are from your parents and family, you can become like them whether you like it or not. Poverty, class distinctions and the ravages of war — both on the battlefield and in the brain — tend to do that.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Abortion, Animal death, Death, Forced institutionalization, War, Classism, Pregnancy, Grief, Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, and Sexual assault

brynhayes's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Grief, and Pregnancy

kwichris's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced

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

1.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Death

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Rape

Minor: Sexual content and Racial slurs

jakobmarleymommy's review against another edition

challenging dark slow-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

4.5

One of the weirdest books I’ve ever read. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Pregnancy, Vomit, Abortion, Body horror, Medical trauma, Death, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Infidelity, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, and Incest

tigeryear's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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

1.5

naive of me to read this the same year my dad died! at least he was loved by many, unlike addie bundren. i'd almost excuse what her husband did to her (in life and as a corpse) if i didn't absolutely hate his guts, too. sorry poverty kicked you in the ass; could you NOT take it out on your children, you groveling bum?? (note: it's too much of an ask)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Classism, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Racism, Child abuse, Bullying, Sexism, Abortion, Ableism, and Animal death

Minor: Vomit and Pregnancy

strawberrytheauthor's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark tense 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? Yes

4.0

I read this for school and it was one of the better books I’ve had to read for school. While very confusing at times, it is also enjoyable.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Racism, Racial slurs, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Abortion, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Medical content

hannalizzy's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-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

Did I enjoy reading this? No, not in any way. Would I read it again? No, probably never again. Do I feel cooler/like a better English major because I did? Yes, absolutely. Though it wasn’t a fun read was it objectively good? Yes. I am glad I read it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Death, Death of parent, and Grief

Moderate: Abortion, Sexism, and Sexual assault

Minor: Racism and Racial slurs

cnohero's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

 Wow, this was a very impactful book for me. The characters felt so real and there is so much bottled up emotion in them. I really had a hard time putting it down.
I liked how the characters were strong and overcame major adversity but it also seems so senseless. A part of me rages and their poor choices and a part of me weeps for their pain and hardships.
This book could certainly be disturbing from many readers. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and Grief

Moderate: Death, Rape, Pregnancy, Mental illness, and Gore

Minor: Body horror, Sexism, and Abortion