Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

12 reviews

kathytwitch's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Another satisfying adult fairy tale style story from Naomi Novik, I think I liked this one better than Uprooted. 

This twist on Rumplestiltskin also has a Slavic slant, accented by a narrator with a Russian-type accent. Told in several voices, this story brings three young women together in a way that allows them to each triumph over their separate trials. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Racism, and Violence

Minor: Alcoholism, Child death, Sexual content, and Torture

One main character faces strong anti-Semitism, and her family fears to antagonize the townsfolk in any way, lest they be killed. One main character faces severe poverty and physical abuse by an alcoholic father, while her brothers suffer child abuse when they cannot hide. Starvation is a real threat to this family. One main character faces a very different trial, an arranged marriage to a powerful man who is possessed by a violent demon that is intent upon killing her, slowly and painfully. The poverty-striken family buried many babies under a tree, only to bury their mother there as well. There's abuse from the father of this heroine, and torture by his demon of another heroine's unwanted husband. Our third heroine is also subjected to an unwanted marriage to the powerful, hostile elven king. Both unhappily married women spend much of the book trying (successfully) to avoid the consummation of their marriages. When, at the end, events change both of the unwanted husbands, we are left to speculate about their happily ever after. While there are no bedroom scenes, there's plenty of talk about how to avoid what happens on one's wedding night.

minttangle's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious fast-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

4.75

Oh, how I loved this book. It was the first book in a long time that I actually enjoyed reading. There are a lot of narrators, and while the lack of an indication of who was narrating each section did leave me confused for the first few sentences sometimes (particularly between Wanda and Stepon's sections), the frequent changes were enough to keep my brain engaged and feeling like it was consuming fresh new content, which meant I could read for longer stretches of time without getting bored or antsy. The only thing I've decided I didn't like about this book was the ending. It wrapped up so quickly, and I feel like it really could have been longer and more fleshed out. However, this is a complaint that has only developed now that I've had time to think about it, and when I first finished the book I was nothing but happy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse

Moderate: Racism and Violence

Minor: Domestic abuse and Rape

The racism comes in the flavor of anti-Semitism, and while I wouldn't say it ever gets too detailed in its description, it is brought up in nearly every chapter, so proceed with caution.