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bookish_bailee's review against another edition
5.0
Incredibly impactful with elegant, beautiful writing that steadily builds to an inevitably horrific conclusion. The meandering pace, cyclical descriptions, and detached narrative language create an unsettling, powerful lasting image unlike anything I’ve ever read.
Absolutely deserving of every accolade and I highly recommend it. Please review the list of content warnings.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Sexism, Violence, War, Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Animal death, Colonisation, Death, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Islamophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, and Sexual assault
bittersweetcritiques's review against another edition
3.5
Graphic: War, Violence, Gun violence, Rape, Vomit, Sexual violence, and Animal cruelty
lidia7's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
Graphic: Gun violence, Murder, Rape, War, Hate crime, and Genocide
Moderate: Animal cruelty
Minor: Vomit and Blood
ashleybakerwrites's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
Didn't like that the first few scenes were in the pov of the attackers, but I know that the victims pov would have been unbearable.
Graphic: Rape, Violence, Animal cruelty, Genocide, Racism, Death, Gore, Islamophobia, and Murder
samanthaleereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Confinement, Medical content, Genocide, Sexual assault, Violence, Kidnapping, Racism, War, Animal cruelty, and Gun violence
Moderate: Islamophobia
vklyle99's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Kidnapping, War, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Sexual assault, Islamophobia, Sexual violence, Rape, Child death, Death, Murder, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Racism, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, and Violence
lauraportalupi's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: War, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Murder, Gun violence, Kidnapping, and Death
Moderate: Animal cruelty
poisoned_icecream's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Rape, Genocide, Animal cruelty, Murder, Racism, Animal death, and Colonisation
nomonbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This was a masterful novella that felt full and detailed and intricate. Every word and scene and image was considered. Each detail is important. The resulting picture is a gut punch. It's haunting and masterful work.
I loved how Shibli managed to make motes of sand have more personality than the officer. The sprinkled use of emotional language in relation to scenery was so clever.
On a general note as well this is a searing portrayal of life under occupation as well as the occupations brutality. Saying so much in such a short book is so impressive.
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail and Death
Moderate: Gun violence, Rape, and Animal cruelty
miniingrid's review against another edition
- Loveable characters? No
Graphic: Murder, Animal death, Xenophobia, Kidnapping, Animal cruelty, Islamophobia, Colonisation, and Rape