Reviews tagging 'Torture'

Beloved by Toni Morrison

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

strabbyfieldz's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-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

4.5

the final part of this book filled me up and then emptied me out again, Toni Morrison's style and wielding of chronology is like no others. a really powerful exploration of the trauma that inevitably follows slavery.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Grief, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, and Blood

Minor: Animal cruelty and War

booksjessreads's review against another edition

challenging dark sad 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

This is my first Toni Morrison book, and honestly I really wish I had her way with words to express the emotions I had whilst reading this book. 

I won't lie, this book sometimes was so confusing that I had to use a guide to read alongside. However, I found this so helpful and after reading some of the analysis that was in the guide, it really helped me to appreciate this even more. Despite this though, I haven't read a novel for a while that has delved so deep into human emotion and trauma and in such an intricately exquisite way.

The freedom Morrison gives you when you take in her story is at times overwhelming, but excellently done. The titular character can be interpreted as a physical person present in Sethe's life, or as a metaphysical representation of the guilt and inescapability of Sethe's past trauma. Whilst grappling with the freedom of interpretation, you also have the challenge of decoding her lyrical prose. But this was most definitely the point. Trauma and the complexity of the emotions experienced by the character cannot be told in a linear narrative. Her writing is purposefully complex to reflect that. 

This story is a haunting and poetic retelling of the story of Margaret Garner, an escaped slave who murdered her child to save them from returning back to being enslaved. I didn't always get the haunting atmosphere around the house, but I certainly got a creepy feeling with regards to Beloved. 

I feel as though a re-read of this will really help to decode more of the meanings laced throughout this text. However, I do still stand by the fact that this book is absolutely beautifully crafted and whilst it was a challenge, it was an amazing read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Torture and Blood

hunkydory's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: War

coco_5's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

this book is an amazing piece of literature. a classic. a tragic story

that does end in a hopeful light

stunning writing, reads like poetry.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Gore, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Toxic friendship

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Abandonment, and War

elizajstocks's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery

Moderate: Child death, Racism, Rape, Torture, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Abandonment

so_many_ocs's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, and Murder

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

theremightbecupcakes's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

Download every one of her books she narrated. Even when the subject matter is dangerous and painful, like Beloved, her voice made me feel that warm, safe, storytelling feeling of having my mother or my elementary school librarian read to me as a child—that magic, storytelling feeling.

This is an unsafe ghost story. It will take you places you might not be ready to go, emotionally and historically. This is a reread, and I still feel worn out upon finishing it. But it is also a Great American Novel, and o say that without hyperbole. I was lucky enough to study it at Yale—my first read. Now I simply come to it the second time as a reader. I am enraptured and heart-rendered.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Grief, Murder, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

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

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