Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

Een klein leven by Hanya Yanagihara

181 reviews

mariverse's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book absolutely destroyed me. It took me about five days to read, and I was miserable the whole time. It was so profoundly sad, because you grow to love the characters so quickly that their joy becomes your joy, their pain becomes your pain. I loved these characters and wanted them to be happy. Unfortunately, Hanya Yanagihara did not. 

Do not read this book without reading the trigger warnings! Even after knowing that it was triggering it was difficult to read. There are many graphic depictions of sensitive topics, so be careful if you ever plan on reading this. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment

marissa_lilac's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

This books is no doubt worthy five stars, only earning less than for the sheer amount of pain that ensued every time I picked it up. Despite the appearance of convolution, given its 800 page count, it would be simply incorrect to call A Little Life slow paced, for every section not only spans multiple points of view, but also decades of our character’s lives. The way Hanya uses the the backdrop of New York City and metropolitan life as not a motivation for any of the characters, but as context of their strife, beautifully exemplifies how  a setting can cradle a narrative rather than control it. The twisting and unfurling character development leaves the reader heartbroken and truly unprepared at the wrath of Hanya’s writing. Every choice the characters make, despite better moral judgement, the reader is able to rationalize and empathize with. Hanya’s depiction of gender dynamics forces the reader to regard male suffrage in a whole new way that defies the male facade of one specific cultural behavior, and depicts men as more than just perpetrators and protagonists, giving them the role of victims; to each other and to masculinity as a whole. As a reader who often find the most moving narratives through similar perspectives, A Little Life’s use of singularity and dramatic individualism has encouraged me to keep seeking out perspectives that  force ostracization and coercion to understand the transcendence of empathy over sympathy

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Car accident, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent

Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Religious bigotry, and Gaslighting

Minor: Vomit and Alcohol

Check trigger warnings before reading.

eliserjg's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

4.0

Really lovable cast of characters showing the struggle of trauma and healing, and how this affects friends and family around the person. Incredibly sad.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Religious bigotry

bruna's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

I feel like the author wanted to compile every sad thing that could happen to a person so you would get emotional. The book was way too long, it could’ve been half the size and still convey all the same messages 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment

eleanorrigby's review against another edition

emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

make sure you don't read it on your birthday, speaking from experience

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Gaslighting

Minor: Car accident

mariavuong's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Car accident, and Abandonment

Minor: Bullying and Blood

akira_outofthegravity's review against another edition

dark 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? Yes

2.0

I hate this book. I hate it with every fibre of my being. My hatred is amplified because I Ioved the first 300 or so pages. It’s beautiful, four unlikely, diverse friends trying to make a living while dealing with personal traumas and issues. It was incredible reading this deep, meaningful friendship between the four boys. But eventually it just turns into torture porn. It’s not inspirational, it’s not meaningful, it’s just violence for the sake of violence. For shock factor. It feels almost homophobic. The end is a mess. Rated 2* for the first half because that could have been an incredible story of recovery and hope- but it isn’t. Instead it’s just pain for shock factor.
Don’t read this book.

Jude’s life is full of pain, from abandonment to pedophilia to sexual assault and rape from adults he trusted. Not only that but he’s chronically ill, meaning he’s in pain a lot. Judes story could have been amazing. The argument between himself and a drugged up JB could have been an amazing lesson on forgiving but not wanting to be friends again, I thought the plot point where he’s adopted as an adult by his professor and his wife was also incredible. Adult adoption is rarely spoken about, and I thought that was so touching. 

But no. For some dumb reason Hanya Yanagihara thought “just for laughs we’ll make sure everyone Jude loves dies in very violent and horrific ways”- but what’s the reason? It’s gratuitous violence. Not to mention his relationship with (whoever it was I can’t remember) is really toxic? He can’t have sex- for obvious reasons- so his partner goes out and fucks other people? Ugh. A shitty book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment

annboooksss02's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

ny1ahsm1th's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

this is the saddest, most disturbing book i’ve ever read. it is so beautifully written. i could not look at the men i love in my life  the same way after reading this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

skorkmaz's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense 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

Would be a 5 star if it didn’t tackle such difficult content matter

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Medical trauma, and Car accident

Moderate: Addiction, Toxic relationship, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Alcohol

Minor: Child abuse, Cursing, Gore, Physical abuse, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury