Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'

On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

490 reviews

mdavis26's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and War

k_lenn's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, and Racism

Moderate: Cancer, Gun violence, Homophobia, and War

t0rixoxo's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

5.0

this book is so beautifully written. ocean vuong's writing style is so poetic and detailed that i truly felt invested in these characters.

on earth we're briefly gorgeous is about a gay, vietnamese-american and the letters he writes to his mother. these "letters" describe different parts of his life with her and other people in his life, such as his grandmother, lan, and his lover, trevor. through these letters we get a beautiful look on how the vietnam war affected his family.

definitely a 5 star book, ocean vuong's words touch a deep part inside of me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gore, and War

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Homophobia, Racism, and Sexual content

Minor: Hate crime, Miscarriage, and Vomit

delliomellidom's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad 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

3.5

It is a beautifully written book; I am in love with the author's prose. The story was non-linear, which made certain portions difficult to know where exactly they fit into the story.

I hadn't known there would be Graphic animal abuse and death. I could have done without it.

There is graphic sex, which was fine with me, but still a little unexpected.

This story is going to stick with me, and I don't doubt there are specific portions I'll be revisiting.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Xenophobia, and War

Moderate: Abortion

lizziesz's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This book was very well written, and the poetry background of the author shines. But it's a hard and challenging read in many ways.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Domestic abuse, and Sexual content

ienbdri's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective sad 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Excrement, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, and War

a1exander's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-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? It's complicated

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Cancer, Grief, Abortion, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Violence, Excrement, Car accident, and Alcohol

emmaaadub's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-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

This was definitely an experience. It is clear from the first page on that Ocean Vuong is a poet. There are so many beautiful lines in this book that are masterfully crafted. I wish I could write like him.

But aside from the writing, I missed a plot. It's not like nothing is happening, but I had no sense of direction or connection to guide me through the novel. 

I also didn't like the animal abuse that is described in too much detail, and I find it strange that there isn't a trigger warning for it. 

To sum up, I think Vuong is an amazing writer and I will definitely pick up his poetry in the future, but this novel wasn't really for me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty

maxthebeetlesheep's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

A stunning book that i knew i would rate 5 stars from the very first chapter. absolutely captivating and such an important read. if i could only choose one book to read this year, it would be this one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Car accident, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gore, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Self harm, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, and Pregnancy

jesslhaigh's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Death of parent, and War