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jessie_deee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.25
Moderate: Child death, Child abuse, and Rape
twistykris's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.25
Some might call the writing "flowery," but I found it to be beautiful and engrossing. The descriptions of the children running freely during the summers left me feeling nostalgic and entranced. The descriptions of the horrors made me sick to my stomach.
I appreciate that all of the perspectives are told from 4 girls, ranging from 13-17. This is their story, their journey, their sorrows and trauma, their love and triumphs.
There are very disturbing references to normalized, societal incest in this book. I struggled reading certain sections depicting overt abuse (physical, emotional, and sexual) of girls, young teens, and women. When reading disturbing content like this, I often wonder how the author could possibly get such imagery, and I wonder if it's for "shock value" more than anything. But after reading about Jennie's experience working with traumatized and sexually abused children, it made me understand that this was not "shock value" content, but a deep understanding. Jennie is knowledgeable of what she is portraying and does it well.
An uncomfortable read that will stick with me for a long time. Rating may be updated in the future.
Graphic: Child death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Murder, Sexual assault, Suicide, Ableism, Alcoholism, Death, Blood, Child abuse, Rape, Sexism, Pedophilia, Pregnancy, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Incest, Miscarriage, and Misogyny
Moderate: Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Grief, and Excrement
Minor: Body shaming and Bullying
This book has references to child abuse and incest between fathers and daughters. While it isn't overly graphic and a lot of the abuse is implied, it is an integral part of the story and can be very difficult to read. The author, Jennie Melamed, "is a psychiatric nurse practitioner who specializes in working with traumatized children. During her doctoral work at the University of Washington, she investigated anthropological, biological, and cultural aspects of child sexual abuse."whatvictoriaread's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Child death, Death of parent, Eating disorder, Incest, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Mental illness, Misogyny, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Blood, Body shaming, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, and Suicide
lovefromhannah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Misogyny, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Death, Sexual harassment, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Rape, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, Infertility, Incest, and Grief
catrickbateman's review against another edition
3.25
Graphic: Pedophilia, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Rape, and Death
rebyreadsandwrites's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
Graphic: Child death, Eating disorder, Gaslighting, Grief, Infertility, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Pregnancy, Blood, Confinement, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Rape, Sexual content, Suicide attempt, Violence, Medical content, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Ableism
lizzicyrus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
eed8's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, and Incest
mikayyyla's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Pregnancy, Child death, Rape, Domestic abuse, and Pedophilia
jewelia's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Incest, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Grief, Infertility, Medical content, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual assault