Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Beloved by Toni Morrison

57 reviews

marissasa's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

Beloved is deeply somber and at times painful. It's Toni Morrison's most well-known book and after reading it I can see why. It's full of tension and grief and symbolism, all reflecting to themes of how our pasts shape our present and future. It doesn't shy away from any of the harsh realities of slavery and how even for survivors of enslavement, their memories and trauma of torture will forever live within them even as they try to forge new identities as free colored people in their own communities. Sethe's past literally haunts her through the form of Beloved, a character that was fascinating in that she constantly bent the line between ghost of a dead child and reincarnation of a living child and as a reader you are left wondering which she is throughout the whole narrative. I am glad that I read this story and definitely want to continue reading Morrison's other books. The literary style and elegant writing she uses reflect her talent and free-thinking mind as an author who paved the way for Black writers and Black historical books to this day.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Sexual harassment, Violence, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Sexism, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Child abuse, Death, Sexual assault, Blood, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Murder, Racial slurs, and Sexual content

patterson_cj's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Racism, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Slavery, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Violence

clapyourshands's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Racism, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Slavery, Violence, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Abandonment, Blood, Genocide, Grief, Hate crime, and Physical abuse

justsade's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

lowri_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

glad to say this was my first read of many Toni Morrison’s novels. i felt that as i went through i asked too many questions on purpose and meaning, because of it i wasn’t able to appreciate the story as much. so i definitely recommend avoiding/preventing yourself from doing this to enjoy. one of the main reasons i feel that many believe the book as confusing is due to the unfathomable relationship Sethe has to motherhood, it is one that even her daughters can’t understand. there’s something about this so cleverly done by Morrison through the use of milk and blood motifs. afterwards in reflection i can value the way in which it was constructed. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child death, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Slavery

orlagal's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Ableism, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Violence, Toxic relationship, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Racism, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, and Murder

readingpicnic's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious sad slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Blood, Child death, Death, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, and Mental illness

jamesphillips0108's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• 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

Minor: Death, Emotional abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, Violence, Slavery, and Sexual violence

leahmoy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Racism, Emotional abuse, and Slavery

idolates's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Death, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, and Slavery