Reviews tagging 'Grief'

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

9 reviews

ritte_e's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Racism, and Rape

Moderate: Classism, Misogyny, Bullying, Grief, Medical content, Body shaming, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Hate crime, and Slavery

wickedgrumpy's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad tense slow-paced

3.75

Difficult to read, but in the way that it challenges how you think about things.

In particular this made me consider the times it took place during, the "good ole days" and how shitty they were for a lot people.  I make it a habit to not read much about a book before I pick it up to give everything a fair chance and the reason why I picked those one up was because I saw it on a list of commonly banned books.  While it contains some mature(-ish) content, it is much tamer than many things I read as a youth and the value of showing other-ing on a personal degree is unmatched.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Alcohol, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Abandonment, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Genocide, Grief, Blood, Body shaming, Car accident, Child abuse, Classism, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Violence, Sexual violence, and War

madamenovelist's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Child abuse, Hate crime, Abandonment, Rape, Pedophilia, Racism, Racial slurs, Gore, Grief, Death, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Car accident

A very thoughtful, caring, emotional memoir with exquisite prose, but mind the warnings. The way she describes being SA’d as a child is extremely graphic, disturbing, and heartbreaking. I am grateful for her honesty and bravery telling exactly how all the victims of such a horror have to walk a tightrope of expectations, and how adults often make it harder for a child to tell anyone if they are harmed. Best part is how much love overflows in the pages for everything dear to her. Maya Angelou is a wonderful soul.

alexisgarcia's review

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

4.0

very profound and necessary, everyone should read this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Child abuse, Sexual content, Grief, Rape, Violence, and Death

chriswoody94's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Grief, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Child abuse, and Racism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Murder, Violence, Sexism, and Pregnancy

a_bloom's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.25

It took a little while for me to get used to the writing and actually interested in the story, but within a hundred pages it REALLY captured my attention. Her writing is beautiful and descriptive and painfully aware of how her younger self perceived the situation of her birth and life. However, the last few chapters come off awkward as it strays from the usual pacing, but considering she had more autobots it makes sense.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Racial slurs, Pedophilia, Abandonment, Sexual violence, and Sexism

Moderate: Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Grief, Death, Blood, Abortion, and Addiction

Minor: Infidelity, Hate crime, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, War, Incest, Gun violence, Xenophobia, Transphobia, Toxic relationship, and Slavery

readingwithkaitlyn's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Rape, Violence, Racism, Sexual harassment, Abandonment, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Body shaming, Ableism, Sexism, Grief, Mental illness, Alcohol, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Misogyny, Medical content, and Child abuse

Minor: Child death, Bullying, War, Infidelity, Car accident, Police brutality, Torture, Slavery, Infertility, Adult/minor relationship, Excrement, Blood, Suicidal thoughts, Homophobia, Drug use, and Classism

Poverty, WWII, concentration camps, Japanese displacement, homelessness, d slur.

michaelion's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

4.25

One thing that makes it hard to get through nonfiction is that it is often pure and objective fact, nothing but hard statements and the evidence to back it up, but Angelou writes in a way that doesn't just feel the way a memoir / autobiography would, like someone telling their life story, but in a way that is colorful and bright and fluid like fiction usually is. Well, good fiction at least.

And on a personal note a lot of moments hit a little tew close to home. I'm not gonna list them but not me and Miss Dr Angelou living the same life having the same experiences feeling the same feelings!!! I had to put the book down a couple times and cover my face!!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Rape, Child abuse, Racism, Domestic abuse, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Ableism, Classism, Grief, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Body horror, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Violence, Abandonment, Gaslighting, Murder, and Xenophobia

Minor: Hate crime, Abortion, Fatphobia, and Police brutality

raelin's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

Heartbreaking and heart warming. Uplifting and depressing. Isn’t that life though? It is all the things, as is this memoir. 

This audiobook read by the author was so moving. The raw honestly and painful openness in how she beautifully and tragically describes her early life is amazing. 

It really reinforces that the adolescent experience is almost universal. The awkwardness and lack of self confidence while also being incredibly sure footed in some situations was so very relatable even 50 years after it’s original publication. 

I really would recommend this to anyone, and especially sullen teenagers who feel misunderstood by everyone around them. This really brings home that everyone has a story, and you may never know another person’s whole story, but that there are some near universal feelings about finding your place in the world and how to fit in. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Hate crime, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Minor: Alcohol, Blood, Car accident, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Lesbophobia