Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

95 reviews

vixenreader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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? Yes

4.75

While “Foster” made me cry, this one made me seethe with rage, and it is an empathetic novella about mustering the courage to fight against injustices that are buried under the surface, even when you only have your bare hands to dig them up. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Classism, and Confinement

Moderate: Cursing, Death of parent, Death, Torture, Bullying, and Abandonment

Minor: Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Xenophobia, Excrement, and Terminal illness

Be aware that this novel addresses the Magdalen laundry, where religious institutions would abuse and isolate young “troubled” women. It is rough to read, and there is more details between the lines. Poverty and abuse of power had a huge hand in this discussion.

ruby_mae_read's review

challenging dark hopeful reflective 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? No

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Religious bigotry, Slavery, and Suicidal thoughts

captainrenjamin's review

dark reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Religious bigotry, Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Sexism, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Suicide and Death of parent

Minor: Cancer

Deals with the history of mother and baby homes and Magdalene laundries in Ireland

sophiesmallhands's review

challenging emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Confinement, Forced institutionalization, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Sexual harassment, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Xenophobia, Vomit, and Alcohol

faenth's review

inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, and Religious bigotry

notthatcosta's review against another edition

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

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

3.75

I had a lot of anticipation before reading this, and overall I found it very well written and well paced, albeit a lot more subtle than I was expecting. This is my first time reading Claire Keegan's work but I've since seen some reviews remarking that her other stuff is a lot darker than this, which intrigues me. 

The dialogue was particularly strong from the supporting townspeople, the opaqueness of which complemented the earnestness and pathos of the protagonist. I really got a good sense of his temperament, motivations and backstory, which is an achievement in a novella. 

I appreciated the economy of the writing and how it created an air of tension and mystery whilst providing enough exposition to keep you in the story. It made me hungry for more, which is the mark of a good writer, especially of shorter books. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Vomit, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Child death, Death, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Murder

michael_richter's review

emotional hopeful informative slow-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Religious bigotry, and Confinement

Moderate: Misogyny and Suicidal thoughts

skirteen's review

dark emotional mysterious relaxing tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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: Abandonment and Child abuse

Moderate: Religious bigotry and Child abuse

leahgustafson's review

dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? No

4.0

Here is another small but powerful novella from Claire Keegan. This story is set in the winter of 1985 in Ireland. Middle-aged Bill Furlong struggles to discern the meaning of life in his small, working-class town. He grapples with purpose, faith, religion, and doing the right thing (even when it’s difficult). As the reader, we get to witness Bill’s internal struggle making a difficult decision, but we never get to see the consequences of that decision. Keegan is such a skilled writer who trusts her readers to infer what comes next. This is a similar format/structure to her previous work, Foster. 

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The commentary on religion is extremely powerful. I also loved the focus on kindness, generosity, and the importance of recognizing our shared humanity. Magdalene Laundries were something I knew nothing about, and I appreciate how Claire Keegan captures the secrecy and the pain these institutions caused while also demonstrating just how woven they were into the fabric of society. 

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Again, this is fantastic if you’re looking for something short, literary, and historical! 

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Check out what I'm reading next on Instagram @LeahsLitReview!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Religious bigotry, Confinement, and Emotional abuse

bloupibloupreads's review

emotional 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? Yes

5.0

A short but impactful book, that’s for sure. Small Things Like These follow the story of Bill, an irish man happily married with five daughters, during the week following Christmas. Throughout the story we get insight if Bill’s childhood and oh boy it was sad. This book felt like a punch in the guts for me with a beautiful moral at the end. 
I need everyone around me to read this and I will go on a propaganda about it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent

Moderate: Religious bigotry and Child abuse