Reviews with content warning for Violence - Toffee

My first read by Sarah Crossan and how amazing it was!

TWs: domestic abuse and violence, homelessness, chronic illness

Two women from different generations end up being dependent and close to each other while sharing the common trauma of domestic abuse among other issues while trying to find their own identity in the chaos. Or while trying simply to survive.

One old, one young- generation apart, yet the common binding is that of pain and sorrow. One trying to remember who she is and the other trying to forget her past life.

Allison is a young girl who runs away from her abusive home. She wants to live with her father but can’t understand where to find the silver lining. She wants to forget her past life so she takes refuge in a lonely cottage at a beach. But to her surprise, there lives a 70-something woman Marla who is struggling to remember herself. She has Dementia and hence she mistakenly thinks Allison is her long-lost friend Toffee. And this misunderstanding forms a beautiful relationship between the two, which is the backbone of the story.

𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘦𝘭𝘭.
𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘦.

𝘖𝘩, 𝘺𝘦𝘴. 𝘐 𝘥𝘪𝘥
𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘦…
𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘪𝘮𝘦.

The story deals with some serious topics of domestic abuse, dementia, and homelessness among others and yet it was heartwarming! The relationship between the two women shows the importance of friendship no matter the age. It is intensely compelling and emotional. So much so that for the first time I couldn’t help myself but made some doodles along these lines.

This is a book written in verse so you can easily fly through it but the emotions hit you hard. Domestic abuse is always a hard topic to read about. It is the toxicity of it, that makes one believe that they deserve it, that it is their fault that no one loves them. And it is what Allison is struggling through, to get the love of her father.

I felt the ending was a bit rushed. But other than that, it was truly amazing. I connected to these characters, and I felt for them. The emotions are strong and the storytelling is perfect.

Definitely recommended 💜

Content Warnings

thatsevenbetter's review

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challenging emotional inspiring sad

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

5.0

Content Warnings

krystaltyong's review against another edition

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reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

Content Warnings

durrareadsstuff's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced

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

4.0

My first time reading a book written in verse and I absolutely adored it. The stroy itself was completely heartbreaking; I can't believe some children actually go through this. And Sarah Crossan did a wonderful job with the poetry, it told the story beautifully and it's just so cool. Whatever I don't really know how to rate poetry.

I didn't cry but it's really sad, I'm telling you. And I was really angry at Allison's father—like 🤬🤬🤬 angry not just 😠😠😠. Like how can someone be as mean as that? It's just awful what Allison had to go through. And I loved the character arc and how Allison stood up for herself in the end. She has such a terrible life and to see her have a happy ending made me so sad-happy, you know? It's just so sad 😔😔

I also think the way dementia was written was great, and it showed not just what Marla goes through but the people around her too. How some people just give up when it gets too frustrating. I thought Lucy was gonna be Allison's friend, but I kinda liked how she didn't. Instead, you get to see a character who uses wealth to manipulate "lowly people" and thinks they can get away with it. Overall, awesome book, loved it.

Content Warnings

bookishflaneur's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.25

omigod this book was so beautiful. aaah i cant-

Content Warnings

eloiseisreading's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

thesalalmon's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful sad tense

Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

The first book I’ve ever read in verse, that I recall, and I must say the writing is absolutely impeccable. I loved this. This is what I messaged my friends after finishing it:
“Also final verdict on Toffee (the book I was reading) DEFINITELY recommend. It deals with some really heavy content, but it is so well balanced with humour and hope and love that I didn’t need to stop and put it down and step away at all throughout, the way I normally do when reading emotionally heavy material. So freakin’ good. And it handles the heavy content really well too! It felt really honest, and genuine, and not rushed over or brushed past“

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