Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

Home Is Not a Country by Safia Elhillo

11 reviews

kaynova's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

4.5

i wish i was able to express how beautiful this book was. i wish i could explain how this book has turned me upside down in the best way possible. i, wow, this book has left me speechless and i'm grateful to it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Islamophobia

Moderate: Pregnancy

xread_write_repeatx's review against another edition

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Islamophobia, Hate crime, Racism, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Police brutality, Death of parent, and Bullying

Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual harassment

hanhantap's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia and Islamophobia

Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, and Hate crime

tahsintries's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Abandonment, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

nonbinarylibrarianwitch's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Bullying, and Islamophobia

Moderate: Grief, Hate crime, and Racism

Minor: Racial slurs, Car accident, and Infidelity

amandalorianxo's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Wow. It’s moments like these where I don’t know if what I will write will be enough to convince people that this a book worth reading. For those us who are fans of Elizabeth Acevedo’s work, @safiamafia writing is similar but holds her own as we get to know Nima & her family. Roughly 211 pages of emotion, what if’s and a mere inkling about what happens when a teenager wants to know so much but is unable to seek out answers in a way others easily can. Nima is the child of Aisha, a single mom who is not ashamed of where she comes from nor the Arabic language in which she speaks. I saw a lot of Nima in myself - despite the fact that she’s fourteen - we both struggled in speaking the language our mothers want us to be fluent in and the accompanying jeers / racial tension from the American born kids. There’s a little bit of a supernatural spin to this story that I don’t want to give away but I highly recommend picking this up the next time you are at the library or at your local bookstore. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Islamophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Grief, Death of parent, and Bullying

Minor: Car accident, Torture, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Physical abuse

courtneyfalling's review against another edition

emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I wasn't sure how the highly introspective novel-in-verse form was going to work for me at first, especially since Nima starts as such a passive character. But I quickly became engrossed in how she understands the larger world around her and her loved ones, and the second half of the novel really picks up in how it uses this "alternate self" character and Nima's nostalgia for her parents' country. Lots of moments where I teared up. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Bullying, Death of parent, Hate crime, Gun violence, Islamophobia, Police brutality, Racism, Sexual harassment, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Racial slurs

Minor: Car accident and Infidelity

elwirax's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-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

4.5

*4.5/5

Giving "Home Is Not a Country" a proper review is difficult, all I can say is that it was beautifully written yet heartbreaking as it dealt with some heavy topics such as grief and racism. I wasn't expecting the magical realism half way through but it gave the story a whole different meaning. I highly recommend this book, especially to those who enjoy books in verse.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Islamophobia and Bullying

Moderate: Hate crime

Minor: Racial slurs

kayleyhyde's review against another edition

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Death of parent, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, and Islamophobia

Moderate: Murder, Police brutality, Hate crime, and Violence

Minor: Kidnapping, Pedophilia, and Gun violence

sartastic's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Islamophobia, Death, Death of parent, and Hate crime

Minor: Bullying, Infidelity, Medical content, and Racial slurs