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martachbc's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
π½πππ₯πͺ ππ π£ππ€ ππ π£ βπππ is tough for me to review, because I didnβt hate it, but I struggled with it a lot. I actually finished it a while ago (if you canβt tell from the decidedly not-winter pic), but Iβve been marinating on it since.
Set in Japan right after WW2, Fifty Words for Rain tells the coming-of-age story of Noriko Kamiza, the biracial child of her upper-class mother and an American soldier. Her mother leaves her with her grandparents who either ignore or abuse her β until her half-brother moves in. Yet her saga doesnβt stop there: Sheβs sold to a geisha facility, rescued yet again by her brother (with whom she has a very weird, though not line-crossing relationship), stuck in a bizarrely abusive relationship, and periodically, Grandma shows up to tell her how much she sucks. Itβs a lot.
Where I think I land on Fifty Words For Rain: the story was compelling, but I had too many complaints to love it fully.
ππππ₯ π πππππ:
- A diverse main character in whom you could find both inspiration and sympathy
- A compelling epic spanning decades that made me not want to put it down
ππππ₯ π π»πππβπ₯:
- Apparently the author began writing this as a teenager⦠and TBH the writing was showed that at times
- This could border on torture porn. Every bad thing possible happened to Nori.
- As a character, Noriβs development felt stunted, then jumpy. I donβt always think she stayed true to her character.
ππππ₯ πβπ βπ π₯ ππ¦π£π πΈππ π¦π₯:
- The end.
Graphic: Abandonment, Bullying, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Racism, Trafficking, Toxic relationship, Body shaming, Car accident, Child abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Fatphobia, Self harm, and Suicide attempt
thevietvegan's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
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? Yes
4.0
It is a tragically beautiful read. Itβs simply pain upon pain but itβs still so hopeful despite how bleak it is. It seems so painfully unnecessary to put Nori through everything she went through. Do not read this story unless youβre ready for your heart to break multiple times.
Also trigger warnings galore. Like everything that could possibly have gone wrong went wrong. Like truly a fucking tragedy this book is.
Also trigger warnings galore. Like everything that could possibly have gone wrong went wrong. Like truly a fucking tragedy this book is.
Graphic: Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Car accident, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Vomit, and Xenophobia
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