Reviews tagging 'Xenophobia'

The Measure by Nikki Erlick

4 reviews

kshertz's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-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? No

5.0

Wow! It’s a fascinating concept about life and learning about how long you will live. I thought it was a great commentary on the world and how we’d handle it. I was blown away by the analysis of what rules would be made, who would win the presidency and how the world would continue. It’s a must read. I think anyone who even slightly enjoys dystopian worlds would love this book !!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Car accident, Xenophobia, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death of parent, Abandonment, Blood, Death, and Grief

wickedgrumpy's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

The opportunity to create a new category of othering arrives overnight for anyone over the age of 22 and prejudices flow amidst the panic.

I wish that there was some closure on some of the (what I consider) plot holes, as well as a couple of characters we grew to know over the 15 years that pass in the book, though I was given enough to be satisfied.  It was a bit predictable and cliche, but I teared up a couple times and definitely cried at the end because thinking about life and death and found family gets me in the feels.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Grief, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Alcohol, Bullying, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Classism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Cancer, Child abuse, Medical trauma, Violence, Emotional abuse, Medical content, War, Car accident, Confinement, Murder, Suicide, and Xenophobia

cheye13's review against another edition

emotional slow-paced

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

2.0

This one fell apart for me early; the strings were not presented/narrated in a way that I could buy in. I didn't understand immediate global ramifications, I didn't believe things would move that fast, I didn't understand why it was such an intense and sustained "big deal." And with this being written post-covid, it felt even more egregious.

It's one of those books that reads like a straightforward MFA thesis. It's trying to say something big and poetic and falls short. It's stuck between a global storyline and a small personal one (when choosing one or the other would've been stronger). There's a "gotcha" set up and predictably executed. It's like the author got some big pieces of feedback and worked them in instead of sitting down and deciding what story to tell first.

I would've preferred a small, central story with Nina, Maura, Amy & Ben, exploring how life precedes with this added knowledge, maybe with some of the big deals amounting to "on the tv in the background" peeks. As is, once it grows to a bigger scale, it raises more questions about the conceit of the strings themselves. All of the deaths on-page are direct results of the strings existence. There's on-the-ground data about the strings (they're not recognizable material, they fog out surveillance). All pointing to in-world answers that we simply never address.

Not a popular comp title, but if you're interested in this, I'd recommend Hank Green's The Carls duology instead.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Violence, Gun violence, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Medical content

Minor: Car accident, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, War, and Xenophobia

some depictions of desperation (characters fearing for their lives) may be upsetting

alaina's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective medium-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? No

4.5

Warm-hearted reflective story on living and loving well. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Xenophobia

Moderate: Pregnancy, Suicide, Death, Grief, Mass/school shootings, and War