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flykites's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
3.75
All you have to do is watch a child ride her bike directly into a brick wall or jump from the tallest branch of sycamore tree to know that we humans are reckless with our bodies, reckless with our lives, for no other reason than that we want to know what would happen, what it might feel like to brush up against death, to run right up to the edge of our lives, which is, in some ways, to live fully.
<Spoiler>
I enjoyed this book when I could read it for long sweeping spells but I felt ill invested at such pivotal parts. I think the passage of the novel in.which gifty recalls her brother's addiction and now we went from being this pro basketball player with all the opportunities to a man riddled with addiction, how isolated her family felt.in that moment, how people who praised him and his ability on the court suddenly could not care less and tied his rumoured drug addiction down to the fact he was black and not a whole other crisis in itself is so harrowingly done but the novel relied too much on flashbacks of memory that it was taking me out of the story and not showing me enough of gifty in other moments.
</Spoiler>
</Spoiler>
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction and Mental illness
Moderate: Xenophobia
tangleroot_eli's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
A beautiful and painful book that demands the reader's full attention. Gyasi doesn't lay things out A then B then C; instead, she gives us a puzzle of C then A then Q and trusts that we as readers are clever enough and paying enough attention to put the pieces together.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Child death, Grief, Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Addiction, Death, Ableism, Drug use, and Racism
Moderate: Blood, Racial slurs, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Xenophobia, Bullying, Body shaming, Sexism, Violence, Child abuse, and Animal death
Minor: Medical content, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Sexual content, Vomit, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, and Death of parent
frazilice's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-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? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction and Mental illness
Moderate: Suicide attempt and Racism
m_maria's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use, Addiction, and Mental illness
Minor: Racism
jrpie's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, and Addiction
Minor: Racism
kyana_'s review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
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? Yes
5.0
charaktere:
Gifty hat mich so beeindruckt und hab sie so bewundert. vor allem für ihre persönliche Entwicklung, teilweise war ich schon bisschen stolz auf sie als sie am ende dann mit han zsm gekommen ist und überhaupt nicht mehr diese Bindungsängste hatte wie mit Raymond (den mochte ich eh nicht).
fand die Beschreibung der mutter auch so gut, diese Hassliebe (hass ist vlt bisschen zu stark) zwischen mutter und Tochter ist super erzählt und man kann es total gut nachempfinden.
was ich bei Gift vermisst hab an manchen stellen war die reflektion. sie hat immer alles reflektiert und man hatte als Leserin daran teilgenommen aber z.b. als sie im college was mit ihrer Freundin Anna oder Anne hatte, hat sie das irgendwie gar nicht gross reflektiert, das fand ich bisschen unrealistisch, weil sie ja schon sehr religiös aufgewachsen ist und es dann sinn machen würde immerhin ein bisschen innerlich mit sich zu ringen wenn man eine gleichgeschlechtliche Beziehung führt
story:
plot fand ich super gut, immer spannend, konnte es nicht weglegen und sind mir alle ans herz gewachsen.
was ich aber etwas schade fand, war, dass das ende ein bisschen zu plötzlich kam. ich hatte das Gefühl viele dinge waren nicht so ganz abgeschlossen und dann aufneinmal stirbt die mutter und Ahn und Gift leben zusammen. das ende für die mutter fand ich auch etwas schade, hätte mir ein anderes ende für sie gewünscht, oder genauere Beschreibung, ausführlicher...
look:
das format/ die ausgabe vom buch die ich hatte war leider +berhaupt nicht schön (war aber auch ausgeliehen). war viel zu gross und sperrig, Seiten waren zu dick, Schrift war schön und angenehm zu lesen aber hätte auch kleiner sein können von mir aus.
Content Warnings
Minor: Addiction, Racism, Mental illness, Grief, Drug use, Drug abuse, and Death
elenaand's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Death, Racism, and Mental illness
florfang's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-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? Yes
3.5
This is probably better as a written book rather than an audiobook. It’s a coming-of-age story of a second gen immigrant that touches on loss, mental health, substance abuse, and navigating human relationships through grief. While I get it, and the writing style was fine, with the style of narration the reader adopted it felt like things weren’t hitting as hard as they were supposed to.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse and Mental illness
vajaakirjahylly's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness and Drug use
turtleduckiess's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Grief, and Mental illness
Moderate: Drug use, Suicide attempt, and Racism