Reviews tagging 'Grief'

The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

45 reviews

lynxpardinus's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Hate crime, Medical content, Incest, Death, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, and Grief

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Child death, Classism, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Excrement, Sexism, and Death of parent

narbine's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Alcohol, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Bullying, Abandonment, Alcoholism, and Incest

Moderate: Animal death and Animal cruelty

Minor: Religious bigotry, Slavery, Grief, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Adult/minor relationship

iheartapolloxxi'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? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Blood, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Addiction, Classism, Cursing, Death, Fatphobia, and Incest

gkgkgk's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Grief, Incest, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Addiction, Pedophilia, Rape, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Hate crime, Sexual harassment, Body shaming, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Alcoholism, Abandonment, and Alcohol

marywahlmeierbracciano's review against another edition

challenging sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

Toni Morrison was a visionary.  This, her first novel, was my first foray into her work, and I found it approachable, yet deep with meaning.  It borrows its structure from a children’s “Dick and Jane” story, which Toni reads like a haunting incantation.  Her narration of the entire book is flawless and stunning, like the text itself.  The novel circles around Pecola, who rarely narrates but whose story is largely told by other characters, often children.  Her story is traumatic yet minimally graphic, making it appropriate, even, for most sensitive readers.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, and Bullying

Moderate: Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Excrement, Dysphoria, Physical abuse, Incest, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Child abuse, Animal death, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Violence, Pedophilia, Grief, Emotional abuse, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Abandonment

shoshin's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.0

I read this book for two reading challenges: one covering women who have won the Nobel Prize in Literature, the other for reading banned books.

I can see why this book has been banned, and while I'm very much against banning books, this one would need careful and thoughtful discussion with teens who read it. I was especially disturbed by

the sympathetic way Morrison portrayed Charlie, who raped and impregnated his 11-year-old daughter and was portrayed a merely being swept up in the moment because his daughter reminded him of his wife when they first met

. On the whole, I wasn't all that impressed with the book. Morrison has an afterword in which she expresses her own dissatisfaction with how it was received vs what her goals were in writing it. Knowing her goals, I see what she was trying to do, but ultimately agree with her later-in-life assessment that she missed the mark. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Violence, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Misogyny, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Rape, Pedophilia, Racism, Incest, Toxic relationship, and Child abuse

Moderate: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Abandonment, Death of parent, Grief, Blood, Bullying, and Pregnancy

Minor: Miscarriage and Child death

ekmook's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Incest, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Pregnancy, Animal death, and Bullying

Minor: Death of parent, Child death, and Death

bimbo_andthe_bookworm's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

too many things to say, full review on my blog

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Rape, Hate crime, Grief, Adult/minor relationship, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Classism, Pedophilia, Incest, and Abandonment

Moderate: Body shaming and Fatphobia

tannisahermansyah's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

4.5

I absolutely loved this. I found the subject matter challenging but very reflective. I also found the prose a little challenging at times but I will get better at comprehension. It really makes you think about what beauty means and how you use it to construct your identity.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Excrement, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Incest, Miscarriage, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Classism, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

jme14's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.75

Toni Morrison is officially in my top two authors of all time (next to Steinbeck, I can't choose between them). Morrison is a master at manipulating the form to tell her stories as they are supposed to be told. There are no rules: the story is out of order, the characters are unrelentingly disturbing and disturbed, and the language blunt. She is the master of empathy. She conjures such vile actors, then turns your rage into uncomfortable sadness, transferring that rage from the individual to the setting. I don't know how she can do it, but she's done it twice (in her labeled masterpiece "Beloved" and now in this). Her work is deeply disturbing, but there's no other way to convey these themes in a way as affecting as this. She is a true master and deserving in her place among the greatest authors of all time. 

I don't think this is QUITE as good as "Beloved" due to her clearly more unrefined style. This feels more restrained with its magical realism and slightly less comprehensive with its characters, but that is some extreme nit-picking. Seriously, read this book. I'm so excited (and emotionally nervous) to read the rest of her work. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Bullying, Death of parent, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Alcoholism, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Rape, Miscarriage, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Body shaming, Child abuse, Death, Child death, Hate crime, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Racism, Grief, Excrement, Alcohol, Mental illness, Xenophobia, Animal death, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Animal cruelty, Pregnancy, and Incest