Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Betty by Tiffany McDaniel

111 reviews

lgiery's review

dark emotional hopeful sad slow-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

2.5

"Betty" draws from the author's mother's childhood, blurring the lines between biography and fiction. Despite this, I found many scenes unbelievable. The characters were flat and lacked depth, and I missed their complexity. 

Additionally, some scenes of abuse, violence, racism, and sexism seemed unnecessary and insensitively executed. There is also so much cruelty packed into this book with very little human complexity. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Suicide attempt, Abortion, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Rape, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Incest

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Drug abuse, and Homophobia

carrieella81's review

dark emotional 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Animal cruelty, Racism, Child death, Miscarriage, Self harm, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, and Incest

stellahadz's review

adventurous dark sad medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

I can't start this review without saying that Tiffany McDaniel is an immensely talented writer. You can tell that she really put her heart into writing this book, which is based on her own mother's early life. The prose is beautiful and lyrical, contrasting deeply with the heartbreaking story. This is an unforgettable book. Every character feels so real, and every event in the story of their lives makes the reader feel real anger, sadness, and joy right along with them. 

This is easily one of the best books I've read this year, and I can see it becoming an American classic. I highly recommend it, but I also suggest reading the trigger warnings beforehand, since it contains *many* emotionally heavy topics. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death of parent, Misogyny, Racism, Incest, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Abortion, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Classism, Homophobia, and Religious bigotry

mbrunner's review

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Violence, Child death, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Rape, Racism, Incest, and Abortion

Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Bullying, Gaslighting, Drug abuse, Sexism, and Self harm

lselin's review

dark emotional sad medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Self harm, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Sexual assault, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Abortion, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Physical abuse, Incest, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, and Child abuse

Minor: Alcoholism and Addiction

libbyyjo's review

emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Miscarriage, Rape, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Animal death, Grief, Death of parent, Sexual harassment, Sexism, Cultural appropriation, Physical abuse, Child death, Abortion, Abandonment, Drug abuse, Sexual violence, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Violence, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Body shaming, Self harm, Pedophilia, Incest, Blood, Adult/minor relationship, and Addiction

andrearenee42's review

challenging dark reflective 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? It's complicated

4.25

Beautiful love story to family with beautiful writing, but read the content warnings 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Animal death, Pregnancy, Self harm, Sexism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Murder, Violence, Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Abortion, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Rape, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Hate crime, Incest, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship

very graphic depiction of animal torture, specifically kittens

syellico's review

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Racial slurs, Suicide attempt, Incest, Sexual violence, Mental illness, Abortion, Animal death, Grief, Suicide, Death, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Self harm, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Child death, Pedophilia, and Racism

kridenour's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Grief, Blood, Classism, Racism, Mental illness, Death, Rape, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Death of parent, Abortion, and Animal cruelty

angrylittlegartho's review

Was unaware of the content and hadn't seen trigger warnings prior to starting the book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Classism, Religious bigotry, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual violence, Blood, Racial slurs, Hate crime, Suicide attempt, Rape, Incest, Violence, Racism, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Child death, Pedophilia, Suicide, and Self harm