Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler

36 reviews

throwback682's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark inspiring reflective sad 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

Reading this book in the year before its action takes place is both troubling and validating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Child death, Body horror, Classism, Drug abuse, Gore, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Cannibalism, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Addiction, and Slavery

Moderate: Police brutality, Rape, Sexual content, Suicide, Domestic abuse, and Racism

The violence that comes as people scramble and fight for resources at the end of the world is expected but

an 18 year old girl being with a 50+ yo man was creepy, unnecessary, unexpected, and kind of took me out of the story.

wormgirl's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad fast-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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Pedophilia, Racism, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Gun violence, Murder, Physical abuse, and Rape

Moderate: Racism, Trafficking, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Violence

Minor: Abandonment, Mental illness, Misogyny, Animal death, Cannibalism, and Police brutality

corine's review against another edition

dark reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

Interesting take on a dystopian setting, through the eyes of Lauren, who is coming of age and trying to make sense of her life and next steps through a new kind of religion. Lots of trigger warnings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Alcoholism, Addiction, Gore, Death of parent, Violence, Slavery, Sexual assault, Rape, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Murder, Sexual harassment, Mental illness, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Cannibalism, Body horror, Trafficking, Drug abuse, Grief, Death, Sexual violence, Drug use, Racism, and Fire/Fire injury

bookaddictellagershon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Drug use, Police brutality, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, Classism, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Confinement, and Death

ksrkat's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Murder, and Mental illness

Moderate: Sexual assault, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, and Trafficking

nojerama's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

Terrifyingly plausible, absolutely gripping, should be required reading everywhere. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Rape, Torture, Trafficking, Drug use, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Vomit, Child abuse, Cursing, Death of parent, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Cannibalism, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Hate crime, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Slavery, Violence, and War

Moderate: Death, Dementia, Drug abuse, Abandonment, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Medical trauma, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Stalking, Deportation, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Incest, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Grief, Hate crime, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Suicide attempt, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Racism, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, War, Suicide, and Trafficking

gagereadsstuff's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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: Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Mental illness, Violence, Addiction, Cursing, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Child abuse

Moderate: Misogyny, Classism, Animal cruelty, Sexual content, Police brutality, Racism, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Sexism, and Sexual assault

vrkinase0411's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense 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

3.5

I can now see why people find this work to be prophetic. When we stand still long enough to look around us we can absolutely see what our hypo-empathetic and lack of history will turn us into.

I can't say I'm not offended, however, in Butler's portrayal of poor and homeless people along with conflating middle class "privileges" as something inherently communal.  While, she does draw attention to the widening rich-poor gap, the ACTUAL poor seem to figuratively discarded for a sympathetic view of middle class destruction. Not sure that was her intention, but the demonizing of addicts and actual poor people while engendering sympathy for the loss of the middle class feels on brand for neoliberalism.

Aside from that, it was pointedly written to examine our current conditions and really look at where we are headed.

Olamina makes stark obersevations and creates a coping mechanism that drives her to action while allowing herself to submit to change.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Classism, Gun violence, Drug abuse, Rape, and Slavery

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Misogyny, Police brutality, Death of parent, Physical abuse, and Mental illness

Minor: Incest and Cannibalism

pettigrew143's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death of parent, Drug use, Grief, Slavery, Cannibalism, Suicide, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Police brutality, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Child death, Death, Gore, Blood, Gun violence, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, and Fire/Fire injury

conspiracycrows's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

Reading this, in 2023 as a 25 year old is eerie. Especially when the main character was born the same year as your younger sibling. This book will set you on edge, make you think, and remind you in so many ways that people are people.
Evil, angry, barbaric
And
Kind, good, thoughtful 
You will find the phrase "god is change" drifting through your thiughts no matter your religion, because no matter your religion something about it rings true. 
The one true constant in this world is change. 
And in accepting that we can begin to use that change. 
I hope, pray, and work to make sure a future like the one in this book never comes to pass. That as much as this world changes, I can at least guide my small portion of it to something softer. 
If enough of us do that, perhaps we can make a world that is kinder, that is softer. 
A world where someone with hyper empathy, whether the extreme syndrome detailed here, or the real life symptom of some neurodivergent people like myself, do not have to be afraid of seeing the world around us. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Murder, Body horror, Drug abuse, Slavery, Violence, Death of parent, Blood, Cannibalism, Gun violence, Suicide, Classism, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Trafficking, Child death, and Gore

Moderate: Colonisation, Death of parent, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, Animal death, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Slavery, Sexual violence, and Classism