Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'

Betty, by Tiffany McDaniel

3 reviews

donutcome4me's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Mental illness, Hate crime, Bullying, Blood, Animal death, Child abuse, Torture, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Death, Cursing, Child death, Incest, Sexual assault, Animal cruelty, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Self harm, Rape, and Emotional abuse

bookscoffeetour's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

CW: rape, death of a child, animal cruelty, death of a parent, suicide attempt, pedophilia, racism, addiction, overdose 

 

I really am not sure how to even write a review for Betty by Tiffany McDaniel. I went into this book not really knowing too much about it. I knew it was highly recommended by a few friends and that it was primarily set in the Ohio Appalachian region. 

 

McDaniel’s story is based in part on her mother’s life story and her writing is hauntingly beautiful as she describes every hardship that Betty and the Carpenter family encounters. The members of the Carpenter family come to life throughout these pages and you feel each and every emotion they feel. The pain, the hurt, the laughter, the love. I’m not sure I’ve ever read a book that has so forcefully tugged at my heartstrings. 

 

This book has destroyed me in the best way possible to rebuild my heart in the end. Thank you Tiffany McDaniel for sharing the story of Betty. And of Landon, Lint, Trustin, Fraya, Flossie, Alka. These characters will stick with me long after finishing this book. Please read this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Moderate: Drug abuse and Vomit

unfiltered_fiction'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? It's complicated

5.0

Betty is the semi-biographical story of a half-Cherokee girl who was born to a family plagued with loss, pain, and fear. It is a tribute to the author's mother, and it is the most painstakingly beautiful coming of age story that I have ever had the privilege of reading.

I knew within a dozen pages that this book would take root in my heart, and stay there for a long time to come. I ordered Tiffany McDaniel's other book (The Summer That Melted Everything) as soon as I finished Betty, and ordered a second copy of Betty as a gift before I was even halfway through the book.

This book will claw at you and comfort you. It weaves beauty and goodness with evil and cruelty, creating a densely rich tapestry of human nature. You will finish it cherishing every good relationship with another human being that you have ever had, and knowing that you can survive whatever the world throws at you in the time to come. You will be wrung out and reinvigorated, renewed in the way that only the very best art can achieve.

Every time the tragedies of the Carpenter family seem unbearable, McDaniel lifts the reader, gasping for air, into a moment of sublime beauty. The odes to nature, art, and family throughout this book speak directly from one soul to another. In the beauty of the natural world, the skill of each character's artistry, and the unfathomable capacity of even the most wounded hearts to love, McDaniel reminds us why and how we persevere through times that seem impossible to survive.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough; but please bear in mind that it comes with heavy trigger warnings for violence, sexual abuse, racism, and death.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Death, Abortion, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Hate crime, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide attempt, and Violence