Reviews tagging 'Death'

Still Life with Bones by Alexa Hagerty

18 reviews

vbarsi's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

This is one of my favorite books of the year so far (I’ve read over 15 books as of May 2024). It combines history, forensic science, politics and religion, and cultural beliefs surrounding death with the anthropologists own personal stories and experiences of her life and her time doing forensic anthropology in Argentina and Guatemala. I think this is an incredible read, though it is gut-wrenching and challenging to read about the violence. It also shows how the United States is complicit in overthrowing democratically elected governments in favor of violent dictatorships, because it suits their financial interests. I will always think of Guatemala when someone tries to mention the United States as the moral compass of the world. Additionally Alexa highlights the corruption of the catholic church in Argentina

and their ability to overlook or help the dictatorship with disappearing people.

Overall, it was beautifully written, with amazing metaphors. The one quote that really hit me: “the work of mourning involves killing the dead or dying with them”. As someone who lost their dad at 10 years old this hit me in my feeeels. Will be recommending this to every person I know!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Genocide, Gore, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Gun violence, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Death, Torture, Violence, Grief, Kidnapping, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders

errie's review against another edition

challenging informative

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mass/school shootings, Physical abuse, Racism, Child death, Genocide, Death, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Confinement, Violence, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Police brutality, Trafficking, and War

ngilbert's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Police brutality, Child death, Death, Death of parent, and Genocide

pinkvogue's review

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Violence, and Death

shann32's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Beautifully written, deeply informative, and a unique insight into a job that is full of contradictions and difficult emotions.
Reading this has given me a new perspective on aspects of global conflict and mass murders that have occurred and are currently occurring around the world. The narrative focuses strongly on the lasting and complex impacts that genocide has on the survivors and people who are left behind when family members are dissappeared.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Murder, Child death, and Death

Moderate: Torture, Sexual violence, and Violence

kefink's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative slow-paced

5.0

Resonant and deeply moving. Absolutely a must read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, Grief, Violence, Medical content, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and War

vigil's review

dark emotional informative reflective sad tense

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Genocide, Death, Violence, Blood, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Torture, Police brutality, Gun violence, and Child death

betsythegremlin's review

challenging dark informative sad medium-paced

5.0

Heartbreaking read but very important. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Gun violence, Violence, Hate crime, Death, Mass/school shootings, War, Torture, Child death, Police brutality, Murder, Gore, Xenophobia, and Kidnapping

pickledbeez's review against another edition

challenging reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Genocide, Violence, Torture, Sexual violence, Police brutality, Gun violence, and Death

bookbrig's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

I learned so much from this book, and it made me want to go back to reread The Bone Woman by Clea Koff. I only knew the very vaguest details about the history this book recounts, so I'm also hoping to read some of the books mentioned in the text for more context and info. This is a moving mixture of memoir and history and testimony and witness to atrocities that feels particularly timely, though I suppose it is unfortunately timely at any given moment. It's not a light read, but it is a really well written one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Grief, Death, Child death, Medical trauma, Mass/school shootings, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Police brutality, Torture, Confinement, Violence, and Panic attacks/disorders