Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

Apocalipsa by Stephen King

24 reviews

_leitmotif_'s review against another edition

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i’d never read a steven king book before, and this one seems to be considered his best/fan’s favorite. it was a slow week in my libby holds and it was available for an immediate borrow.

writing style and story are so engaging, i get why king has such a rabid fan base…AND NO ONE SHOULD READ THIS BOOK.  

it is deeply racist and misogynistic to its core. like grossly, blatantly so. casually, ‘i definitely meant to do this/it’s so rooted in me i also didn’t even notice’ so. and it’s not just the relentless use of racial slurs in the dialog, and the description of women’s bodies and gross sexualized pov’s written for some of the female characters, it’s how the Black and brown characters are written and the positionality they take up in the story; covering all bases; from ‘thug’ to ‘magical being’, all as foils to the white characters. 

oh, and this book is ALSO riddled with horrible ablism and fatphobia. all around fucking trash. 

he wrote this in the 70’s. i get it, people felt REAL free to be super open with their white supremacy and misogyny. perhaps he’s grown? and even if so, where is the rewrite/updated version of this story or the disavowal? 

disgusting.
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bookish_manda's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

I had several people recommend this Stephen King book to me, including my history teacher friend from high school. This is my fourth King book, and at this point I’ve enjoyed reading 50% of them. I’m a fantasy and dystopian fan, but I think I mostly like King’s high fantasy books (Fairytale and The Eyes of the Dragon). I really didn’t like Gunslinger. 

 As far as The Stand goes, I don’t think this book was worth the many hours of listening. I opted to listen to the 2008 complete and uncut edition, and I think that was a mistake. A forty eight hour audiobook is really long. Especially a Stephen King audiobook… 

I liked this book better than Gunslinger, but there were so many things that bothered me about The Stand. It was originally published in 1978, but 2024 me struggled getting passed the old-school norms of misogyny, religious influence, rape, and language towards minorities (persons of color and persons with disability). 

I think I will need to try King’s later books and non-fantasy/dystopian books (excluding any future high fantasy books). 
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glysing's review against another edition

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

0.5

Worst book I have ever read. Very good proof of why men are unable to write women’s perspectives. And also a school book example of a book where every single woman character is a sexobject or a mother. Over all a confusing storyline that feels like a series who got to seasons enough. Do not recommend to anyone ever. 
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tovajohanssonn's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-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

4.5

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gagereadsstuff's review against another edition

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

2.5

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nyxlexica's review against another edition

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adventurous dark slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

The opening quarter of The Stand is incredible, showcasing King's ability to render character and setting in three lines flat. But then the book falls into the middle-section slump, with the female characters reduced to domesticity while the men scratch at politics. The concluding quarter regains some of the grit, movement and magic we saw at the start, but was to me unsatisfying.
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katie_helf96's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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rosereadsalot's review against another edition

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5.0

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bookitbecky's review against another edition

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2.5

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lucyford's review against another edition

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dark hopeful mysterious reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Such a fun read even though it took me about 9 months to finish it. I really enjoyed every chapter and all the character dynamics as well as the whole downfall of society as glen explained it. Such great writing by Stephen King, I was very impressed and there was never a boring moment in the book.
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