Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World by Elif Shafak

15 reviews

stabilesero's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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? N/A

4.75

The balance Shafak managed to reach between being absolutely heart-wrenching and comforting... Is astounding. There is no comfort from the book plot and main themes (it is a very heavy, but must be spoken about kind of book), but Leila's friends and their commitment to her body and soul is breathtaking. I almost cried, and that says a lot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Police brutality, Death, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Sexual assault, and Religious bigotry

sweeettea's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Self harm, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Classism, Xenophobia, War, Physical abuse, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual violence, Racism, Rape, Transphobia, Trafficking, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, Murder, Misogyny, Mental illness, Islamophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Adult/minor relationship, and Death

hanami_sui's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Pedophilia, Murder, Sexual assault, and Transphobia

Moderate: Body horror, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, Self harm, Violence, Body shaming, and Miscarriage

Minor: Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Fatphobia, Grief, and Panic attacks/disorders

lianne_rooney's review against another edition

dark emotional funny sad 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? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Self harm, Pregnancy, Police brutality, Murder, Grief, Drug use, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Incest, Hate crime, Death, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Mental illness, and Religious bigotry

avamaria90's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Violence, Death, Child abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault

hanamany's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Drug use, Religious bigotry, Death, Murder, Miscarriage, Drug abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, Incest, Suicide, Self harm, Transphobia, Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, Rape, Chronic illness, Alcoholism, and Addiction

meadhbh's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.5

This is the story of Leila, a sex worker who has just been killed in Istanbul, and the memories she recalls in her last 10 minutes and 38 seconds of life. It's also the story of the friends she's made, and how desperately we can care for the people we love.

I used to think that I didn't like historical fiction. It seemed boring and stuffy to me, and I could never really get into it. 

I mostly still feel the same, but a series of non-Western modern history books have been slowly warming me to it. The Seven Moons of Mali Almeida and Mexican Gothic are two other recent reads I have loved. 

This book is mostly about Leila and her friends, but it's also about Istanbul. It's about communism, and Islam, and sex work, while also not really being about any of those things. Read it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Religious bigotry, Death, Grief, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Transphobia

Moderate: Self harm, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Trafficking, Blood, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Miscarriage, and Murder

Minor: Genocide

irenemarie's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

Whew. My heart is filled and aches at the same time with this novel. The first half your admiration grows for someone whose fate you know is death. It is truly bittersweet. Tequila Leila is the friend you want to have, compassionate, accepting and courageous. Through her last minutes of life, you are introduced to her people, the five, whom she was fiercely loyal to, in return through the second half we learn how much she meant to them. I will reiterate what others have said, Elif Shafak is a phenomenal storyteller. Learning more about her voice through this novel and subsequent browsing on her, she is solidified as an auto-buy author for me. I am excited to explore her back catalogue.

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Death, and Child abuse

Moderate: Sexism, Religious bigotry, Self harm, and Transphobia

Minor: Police brutality, Trafficking, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Child death, Suicide, Ableism, and Rape

moonchildjuli's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Ableism, Death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Religious bigotry, Sexual harassment, Incest, Grief, Sexual assault, Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Drug use, Hate crime, Misogyny, Police brutality, Rape, Transphobia, Violence, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Homophobia, and Trafficking

thewordsdevourer's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.0

10 minutes 38 seconds in this strange world fortunately proves to be a better elif shafak read for me than my previous, thwarted effort. this book is abt those on the fringes of society, but also abt istanbul and turkey at large. 

aided by an interesting, intriguing structure, the novel's first part reads like snapshots from the main character leila's life. while initially very slow going - the pace making me actually put down the book for 2 weeks - things start to pick up once we get out of leila's hometown, leila thrusted into the wider world - for better and for worse - while also gradually learning abt the five friends she so treasures.

i rly enjoy reading abt istanbul thru the POVs of characters marginalized by society, seeing the city thru a different, less sanitized perspective, yet a sense of love for the city, interestingly, still pervades. shafak spotlights those rarely seen or heard in the mainstream, let alone humanely, in this novel, be it those who are turkish and arent, esp the more recent and pressing refugees. the book's period of upheaval also serves as a revealing, rollicking - though at times painful - historical archive. 

what i love most abt this book is perhaps the relationship between leila and her 5 friends, both individually and as a group. theirs is  a bond deeper and closer than those of their respectively wretched families, and it's surprisingly touching. in a society that shuns them and wrongs go unpunished, they band tgt to survive, find joy and stand up for themselves. 

this is an enjoyable book thats as much abt the characters as the city of istanbul they live in, in all its glory and misery. though i personally think there's too much exposition, some parts could be trimmed, and the initial pace too slow, i dont merely feel but also learn a lot from this book, and thats always a good reading experience in my book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Sexism, Misogyny, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Child abuse, Death, Transphobia, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Mental illness, Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Trafficking, Violence, Murder, and Racism

Minor: Miscarriage and Infidelity