Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

52 reviews

ablotial's review against another edition

challenging dark informative sad slow-paced

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

4.0

This book was really well done, which maybe should surprise no one given that it won the Pulitzer Prize, but often I do not end up loving the prize winners. In this case, though, I think it is warranted.  Initially, the writing felt a bit stiff for me given the setting and characters of the book, but over time I didn't notice that anymore and fell into the story. 

For those of you who don't know, this is a work of fiction but it is based on a real "school" for juvenile delinquents that existed called the Dozier Boys School.  I guess it was in the news a few years ago but it was a first-heard-about for me, although sadly I was unsurprised by the conditions and injustices faced by Elwood and his fellow students. It's so sad how someone like Elwood, with so much promise and a future that indicated he was going to get OUT of there, ended up as a result of racial profiling (he committed no crime!) and the ineptitude of anyone caring about the boys at the school.  Of course, Elwood's exact situation was fictional -- who knows if there really was such a promising boy who ended up there on such crap charges? -- but sadly it is fully believable that it absolutely could have happened.

When the book flipped back to section 3, I didn't love it.  After the intro section in the present day, I thought we would only return to find him going to visit and call it good.  But then it was going on, with his relationship and his job and the guy he ran into on the street and I just ... it was hard for me to find it in me to care about these kind of crappy adults, aside from feeling bad that they ended up this way through no real fault of their own.  I wanted to get back and hear about the kids, come to a resolution!  But of course, I kept reading, and it all became clear.  I'm not sure all that's really possible this day and age but I like the idea of it.  And maybe it is, given the circumstances and timing of when it all went down. 

Overall, good book, although not five stars for me.  I enjoyed it and was invested in Elwood and Turner and their situation.  I went back and forth on the formality of the writing style given the setting. And I kind of felt like he tried to cram *too* much in... I'm sure all these things happened in one way or another, but probably not all to the same person.  Or maybe they did.  But I suppose it makes for a better novel to be able to throw it all in.  It did inspire me to add We Carry Their Bones: The Search for Justice at the Dozier School for Boys to my TBR.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Child abuse

Moderate: Violence

Minor: Sexual violence

nt_johanna's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Child death, Racism, Murder, Hate crime, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Pedophilia

Minor: Police brutality, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Rape, and Sexual assault

lizreaderhold's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense 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: Confinement, Abandonment, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Murder, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Slavery, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Torture, and Xenophobia

kjovertherainbow's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Sexual violence, and Physical abuse

stella_petit's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Racial slurs, Racism, and Child abuse

Moderate: Blood, Police brutality, Rape, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder

Minor: Gun violence

davianareads's review against another edition

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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual content, Murder, Rape, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Racism, Death of parent, Death, Blood, Abandonment, Child abuse, Racial slurs, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Drug abuse, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, Hate crime, Bullying, and Addiction

jupton720's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad fast-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Child abuse, Murder, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Child death, and Racial slurs

jessalex610's review against another edition

dark sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated

4.5

Apparently this only took me two days to finish, but it felt so much longer than that. This is a hard hard read. Whitehead has such a good way with words and Griff’s story will always stick with me. There’s just something about the way he painted the scene, described the surroundings, the desperation for a second chance. Oh i’m gonna cry again.  It’s a fictional story, but the inspiration is all too real. The Dozier School, the horrid, putrid racism of Jim Crow, the corrupt predators in power who help keep each other in power. To think that similar stories actually exist in real life…it’s almost too much to think about. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Grief, and Death

Moderate: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, and Sexual assault

annabulkowski's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Physical abuse, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Forced institutionalization, Child abuse, Child death, Violence, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, Torture, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Racism, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Slavery, Rape, Racial slurs, Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, Suicide attempt, Police brutality, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Hate crime, Gun violence, Death, Confinement, Classism, and Alcohol

jaychaff's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Child abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Sexual violence