Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

Minor Detail by Adania Shibli

200 reviews

linaherondale's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-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

 It's only 100 pages but it's a punch in the guts. It's a book I would recommend to everyone. Adania Shibli, a palestinian writer, recounts the story of a young Bedouin palestinian girl who was gang r*ped and killed by iof soldiers in 1949, a year after the Nakba. Decades later, a young woman living in Ramallah decides to look into this "minor detail" of history and crosses the borders of occupation to go after the truth. 

I've rarely read books with such skillful writing. Through a spiralling narration that felt almost out of breathe, the author encapsulates the anxiety and terror of living under occupation and the alienation of a people dispossed of their land as well as the dehumanization of the colonial project. Mostly, despite taking place decades ago, this story read as  awfully relevant to the horrors happening in Palestine right now. It's  a testimony of how the past haunts the present. 

This is a must-read!! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

Minor: Murder

brujakatt's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Islamophobia, Medical content, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

veyrith's review against another edition

challenging medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and War

bookish_afrolatina's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

This short story is split between 1949 and the present but the parallels are haunting. Shibli handles the experiences with care despite how painful a lot of the content is. While the descriptions of the events on the page don’t seem emotionally charged, I couldn’t help but empathize with the women in part 1 and part 2. This book will sit with me for a long time.

If you don’t know much about the landscape of Palestine and Israel, i.e. the checkpoints, I highly recommend you read this.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual assault, Violence, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Rape

astridmalmhester's review against another edition

dark reflective sad tense fast-paced

• 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Islamophobia, and Colonisation

Moderate: Racism, Rape, and War

maddamreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

Challenging and poetic prose. The parallels between the two sides of the story are worth exploring. I felt as though I would have enjoyed it more if I knew more about Palestinian history and was more patient. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, and Murder

manicake's review against another edition

4.0

Twisted my stomach. I almost had to put it away at a point, but I’m happy I pushed through. Free Palestine! 🇵🇸

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Murder, and War

Moderate: Rape and Grief

joymargot's review against another edition

As others have said, it somehow doesn’t feel right to give this a star rating.

An uncomfortable read, but an important one. I confess I wasn’t completely drawn in by the mundane matter-of-fact writing style, but it serves as a contrast to the ending of each chapter.

A quick read, and a valuable insight into life under occupation. Free Palestine! 🇵🇸🍉🕊️

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Genocide, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, Grief, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

alexisgarcia's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

sudden, abrupt, and utterly devastating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Genocide, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

erinjdouglass's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Violence

Moderate: Torture, Xenophobia, and War