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Graphic: Gun violence
Moderate: Animal death, Child death, Death, Blood, Kidnapping, Colonisation
Minor: Animal cruelty, Rape, Pregnancy
Now that that's out of the way: I loved this book so much.
Honestly, it was more than I ever expected it to be and brought out all the emotions, from anger and despair to heartbroken. These characters live in my head rent free and I'm glad to share the space with them. This book simply captivated me. Actually, it was more than that - I wanted to nerd out over this book, write a paper about the female characters and how McMurtry handled each one, and discuss every little nuance. It has been a long time since a book has effected me in such a way and I can't wait to read this again.
For a book written in 1985 about the 1870s, I was expecting heaps of misogyny, racism, and all the other hateful things that often spawn from those time periods combining. But . . . that wasn't what I got. Yes, there was misogyny and racism, but it was in the context of the time period (that didn't stop me from angrily crossing out the n-word in my personal copy every time I read it - some things I don't need to read over and over).
Moderate: Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Genocide, Hate crime, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Excrement, Trafficking, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Murder
Graphic: Child death, Death, Racism, Kidnapping, Murder
Moderate: Animal death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Grief
Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Slavery, Pregnancy
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Rape, Kidnapping
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Rape, Xenophobia
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Medical content
Minor: Ableism, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Slavery, Cannibalism
1. It is way too long.
2. Rampant racism and misogyny throughout - the treatment of women, minorities, and native Americans was very bad.
3. In all 37 hours of the audiobook there is only the faintest glimmer of a plot and so much unnecessary everything else. Why did no one edit out any of the tangents? What was the point?
But it won the Pulitzer and is your mother's favorite book, surely it must have redeeming qualities? And I did like the narrator and found the very beginning where they were just a few washed up Rangers hanging out in Lonesome Dove sort of funny. But if you think that a prize-winning door-stopper like this has anything to offer you, I recommend you list to Stars from Les Misérables while looking at pictures of the prairie - it will impart the same idea in significantly less time.
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault
Graphic: Rape, Torture
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Racial slurs
Minor: Animal death, Terminal illness