Reviews tagging 'Child death'

The Deep by Rivers Solomon

43 reviews

charrlee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

"'What is belonging?' we ask.
She says, 'Where loneliness ends.'" (Solomon 49)

"How disorienting it is to go most of your life wondering about a thing, only to happen upon the answer, and it is a horror." (Solomon 57).

River Solomon's novella is profoundly atmospheric. I've never connected to a work so deeply and I will continue to be spellbound by Solomon's beautifully tragic narrative. Listen to "The Deep" by clipping. to see the inspiration and building of the mythos. I am thrilled for my future reread. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Genocide, Hate crime, Racism, Violence, Grief, and Murder

Moderate: Death and Death of parent

mmestitches's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Death, Genocide, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Colonisation, and Classism

kiingalysha's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective fast-paced

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

3.0

I wish this book was longer so the author could have spent more time telling us about the world. I would have LOVED a better look into this unique world. While I understand the book was about Yetu and her journey, I felt like the world she lives in is unclear to me. Ironically, or maybe intentionally, her world feels unclear to me. I just wish we could have built on this special concept so much more. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Slavery, Violence, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy

Minor: Child death and Fire/Fire injury

alicelalicon's review

emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Racism, Self harm, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy

building_a_bookdom's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Eating disorder, Genocide, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, and War

Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

pages_and_cacti's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

2.5

The Deep by Rivers Solomon

Yetu, the Historian for the Wajinru, descendants of pregnant African slave women that were thrown into the ocean by slavers, wants to live a life of freedom from the history she holds for her kind.  She must learn that her history is what makes the Wajinru who they are. 

My thoughts: I actually enjoyed the story as a whole and the meaning of the importance of one’s history. I love the line, “We cannot understand a people that would willingly choose to cut itself off from its history, no matter what pain it entails”.  Our history is who we are and should never be lost. The problem I had with the book, other reviews touted this as an LGBTQ+ book and I am not  as convinced. While Yetu and Oora did develop a relationship, Oora was human and Yetu was a “mermaid”. The Wajinru were described as fish, had both sex organs, and also called an “animal” in the writing. This relationship would seem to be more like beastiality than a lesbian relationship. I understand that this is likely not what the writer meant to portray, but it came across that way to me. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Genocide, Self harm, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

marsh_mall0w's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Genocide, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Animal death, Gore, Self harm, Suicide, Blood, Murder, and Abandonment

Minor: Eating disorder and Fire/Fire injury

maeverose's review against another edition

5.0

I don’t have the words to properly review this but this book is beautiful and everyone should read it (though check content warnings first, there are some heavy themes in it).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Violence, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Gore, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, and Suicide attempt

Death in childbirth, baby is born after mother died

kendal_reads's review against another edition

emotional 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: Body horror, Child death, Death, and Blood

galexy_brain's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful medium-paced

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

3.75

This novella beautifully explores how intergenerational trauma can wear on individuals of later generations. It touches on how forgetting is easier but doesn't allow for healing. Interrogating the past is important because one is nothing without their history. Supporting one another as a community is a way to work through the collective trauma that stops individuals from shouldering the burden alone. 

I overall enjoyed this book but found the main character, Yetu, quite frustrating. I appreciated that the themes also explored parents misunderstanding their children (notable quote: "Yetu appreciated Amaba's caring nature, but sometimes her gentle chiding turned into chafing, and Yetu was reminded of all that was wrong between them.") and what I interpreted as navigating a neurotypical world as a neurodiverse person. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal death, Child death, Death, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail