Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Animal Farm by George Orwell

72 reviews

nevermoregothic's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death and Classism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Violence, and Gaslighting

Minor: Gun violence

meganpbennett's review against another edition

adventurous dark fast-paced

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

2.0

Animal Farm was on a book challenge list and it was short, so I gave it a try. It has a lot of similarities to 1984, Orwell's best-known work, specifically the use of changing history to best suit the present, the use of a mouthpiece to speak for the ruler, and the use of scapegoats to cover when things go wrong. It was also dark and violent. 

If you want to read an Orwellian look at the world, read 1984. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Confinement, Death, Eating disorder, Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

rachelunabridged's review against another edition

dark reflective fast-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Murder, Gaslighting, and Classism

Moderate: Slavery

Minor: Alcohol

thechocolatefinger's review against another edition

challenging funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Murder, Gaslighting, and Classism

Moderate: Confinement, Slavery, Violence, and Alcohol

Minor: Bullying, Gun violence, Physical abuse, and Kidnapping

tigeryear's review against another edition

dark reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.5

books that make you feel like a broken-down horse. or perhaps a nihilistic ass.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Gaslighting, and Classism

Moderate: Ableism and Torture

Minor: Murder and Alcohol

sillyphillypegasus's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death

Moderate: Alcoholism, Gaslighting, and Classism

Minor: Gun violence and Injury/Injury detail

fujo_cat's review against another edition

medium-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? No

1.5

Oh dear Gods, this was even worse than I thought lol its really funny how many people regard this book as a true parallel to the October Revolution and the URSS experience, when it's all based on lies and exaggerations from mainly the USA - and hey, it worked, because almost everyone buys it without questioning, and if someone does question it, they are labeled as "stalinists" (as such thing exists lol Stalin only followed Marxism AND he did not make the decisions alone, there were councils, called soviets) and discarded. Anyways, the book itself was not even that good, it just worked because everyone linked it to the barely-underlying-message. Orwell himself worked for the British Imperial Police, he's no saint (but that no one dares acknowledge). 
Anyways, if you want to read it just because it's considered a classic, do it knowing it's full of anticommunism sentiment and it's not genuine. I would just tell you not to waste your time, but you do you - I myself only listened to it to be able to criticize it and refute it. Everyone has their reasons. You could consider it a "hate reading" haha 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism

Moderate: Violence, Blood, and Murder

Minor: Animal death, Gun violence, Suicide, Grief, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

sinaprst's review against another edition

challenging dark inspiring 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? Yes

4.75

Sure, the story is quite obvious for anyone who hasn`t lived under a rock for the past 200 years. The paralles to the Soviet Union are basically slapped into your face. But that doesn`t have to be a bad thing and it definitely doesn`t mean that this isn`t genius nonetheless.
It is so interesting to see the animals derail further and further from their communist ideals to a totalitarian regime that is no better if not worse compared to their situation before. The society they have in the end in no way resembles what they wanted in the beginning and is as communist as I am straight.
I especially liked the way that Orwell showed the effect that the propaganda and gaslighting had on the animals and how they slowly but surely turned into conforming slaves who couldn`t and mustn`t speak their mind. They were totally depended on what the pigs told them and the pigs obviously told them whatever suited their current agenda best.
The pigs unashamed twisted and turned rules, facts and even the other animals memory so much it made me wonder how anyone who behaves like this gets to sleep peacefully at night. I got like second-hand guilt from this. They turned more and more into what they were so heavily against in the beginning.   

until they in the end literally turn into their biggest enemy

 
It is such a great allegory for how lust for power and corruption destroys even the purest of ideals and how propaganda has been working and is still working in totalitarian countries. IMO this should be required reading in school. It`s brilliant.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Gun violence, Blood, and Alcohol

luca_18's review against another edition

fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Gun violence, Slavery, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Alcohol

thefemale_nickmiller's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense fast-paced

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

2.5

I’m ride or die for Clover, Benjamin and bless his heart Boxer.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Torture, Blood, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Eating disorder and Suicide