Reviews tagging 'Medical content'

The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline

11 reviews

zombiezami's review against another edition

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Grief, Death of parent, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Genocide, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Child abuse, Gore, Blood, Murder, Animal death, Death, Child death, Racism, Torture, Violence, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Colonisation, Vomit, Sexual violence, Stalking, Rape, Pregnancy, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Drug use, Drug abuse, and Alcoholism

msbarnesela's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Disclaimer: I’m not the target audience for this book. It’s YA, and it reads like YA, and I am not a teenager. I read this to determine whether I could use it with my students.

The plot moves quickly, and the chapters are short. The premise is compelling. The characters make sense, given the situation and setting. I wanted good things for them. They weren’t always likable, but they’re trying to survive while people are hunting them, and most of them are also dealing with puberty, so some prickliness is to be expected. 

I’m not a huge fan of the style of the prose. The book is from the perspective of the main character, who is a teen boy. The way his emotions and observations are narrated feels a little too exaggerated while also being weirdly self-aware. I would have enjoyed a bit more emotional subtlety and maybe just more writing craft? But again, I’m not the target audience. And I wonder if some of the storytelling techniques are echoing oral narrative techniques that I’m just not culturally connected to.

This is a book that I will use with my students. It has references to some really terrible things (see content warnings), but none of it is graphic. Violence and sex are acknowledged but not narrated, so it’s appropriate for younger high school (and maybe mature 8th graders, with adult support to contextualize and process the traumatic parts). Stylistically and structurally, it’s probably an easy enough read for middle grades. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Death, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Racism, Trafficking, Violence, Child death, Cultural appropriation, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cursing, Medical content, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Rape, and Trafficking

One character alludes to being gang-raped (the lead-up and aftermath are briefly detailed, but not the rape itself). Another character is said to have been raped (no detail). Kidnapping, trafficking, medical experimentation, and murder of indigenous people are the premise of the book, so it’s to be expected that it’s referenced. Residential schools are referenced frequently, but there’s very little description of the experience of institutionalization since only one character in the book had spent any time in the schools. There is one reference to sexual arousal between two teens, but nothing happens beyond kissing, and it’s awkwardly and abruptly interrupted. Two young adult characters couple up, and the woman is mentioned to be pregnant, but it’s a passing reference. Some characters shoot people (mostly justifiable self-defense) and feel bad about it afterwards.

augustar14's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.75

This book is so powerful. Very well done, hard to listen at times but all important because while set in the future, many of the experiences are based on reality or historic reality for indigenous Americans. Definitely recommend, if you're in a space for something that is heavy and strong.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Rape, Addiction, Forced institutionalization, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence

Moderate: Animal death, Alcoholism, and Vomit

Minor: Sexism, Xenophobia, Confinement, Medical content, Cannibalism, and War

eve_reads's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

Overall Thoughts:
⁕ My own ties to indigenous culture is very minimal, so I am in NO way an expert or authority on these topics, but my personal opinion (as well as the many reviews from own voices readers on Goodreads, etc.) is that this a great introduction to discussing white supremacy and its impact with younger readers. I wish I had books like this in high school instead of Hatchet and To Kill a Mockingbird.

⁕ We get many of the background characters' "coming to" stories, which provided some context to the state of their dystopian society. I admit that I wanted a little more world-building, but I don't think it was necessary to the plot and overall message Dimaline was trying to get across.

⁕ The ending is such a beautiful display of resiliency and hope. I cried and snotted all over the place when I read it.

To read my full review, visit: https://evereads.online/
For regular book-related content, follow my Instagram account: @eve_reads 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Colonisation, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Violence, Medical trauma, Medical content, Child death, Grief, Child abuse, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racial slurs, and Racism

caseythereader's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Colonisation, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Rape

offbrandclubsoda's review

adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad fast-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

5.0

I absolutely loved this book! It is beautifully written and kept me engaged the whole time. The world-building and story telling is excellent. Cannot recommend enough!

Spice level: 🌶.5/5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Genocide, Grief, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Medical content, Medical trauma, Police brutality, Racial slurs, and Torture

Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Suicide, and Vomit

Content warning: Residential Schools

sonygaystation's review

challenging dark informative mysterious reflective tense 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

4.5

I really, really liked this. It takes a familiar genre of YA post-climate change dystopian fiction and makes it fresh and interesting with indigenous characters and a compelling narrator in Frenchie. One of the things I struggle with most with dystopian fiction is that it so often feels like the things that make a world dystopian are hinged on how white people (myself, of course, included in this grouping) view and interact with the world. Lots of the things white characters experience in dystopian novels are things BIPOC experience right here and right now. It feels kind of telling that so many of the 1- and 2-star reviews I see on this book are overwhelmingly from white people. I think every aspect of this book feels infused with Dimaline, her culture, and her identity. I see it reflected in the story-telling, the entire plot, and the relationships of the characters with each other. The dystopian aspect more a backdrop for the characters, this book is overwhelmingly about the things you do for the people you love, and how you continue to connect and build community with each other when the world tries its hardest to extinguish you. It's pretty brutal in parts and it doesn't shy away from the nuances of systemic mistreatment of First Nations, indigenous, and Native people at the hands of white oppressors, but it ends timely and hopeful and packs a pretty intense punch.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Confinement, Death, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Medical content, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Torture

Minor: Animal death

elinordashwood's review

challenging emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A really wonderful book that draws on the combined horrors of residential schools and environmental degradation through racial capitalism, albeit with a fantasy twist. Although I would have liked to see the fantasy aspect explored more in depth, as well as a greater sense of direction throughout the novel, (plus I could have done without the love triangle), it was overall a very good read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, and Grief

Moderate: Blood, Child death, Kidnapping, and Medical content

Minor: Death of parent

bekah445's review

adventurous emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• 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: Addiction, Alcoholism, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, and Vomit

Moderate: Cannibalism, Confinement, Excrement, Medical content, Miscarriage, Religious bigotry, and Sexism

psokid's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Torture, Racism, and Medical content

Minor: Genocide