Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

All Boys Aren't Blue by George M. Johnson

5 reviews

the_true_monroe's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, and Violence

Moderate: Sexual content, Transphobia, Cultural appropriation, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Outing, Homophobia, Terminal illness, and Cancer

Minor: Slavery, Misogyny, Deadnaming, and Murder

deadeye's review

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Deadnaming, Grief, Racial slurs, Transphobia, Hate crime, Incest, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Death, and Homophobia

Moderate: Dysphoria

Minor: Police brutality, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Outing, Alcohol, Drug use, and Medical content

katsbooks's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative fast-paced

4.5

"We are not as different as you think, and all our stories matter and deserve to be celebrated and told."

"Navigating in a space that questions your humanity isn't really living at all. It's existing. We all deserve more than just the ability to exist."

"American history is truly the greatest fable ever written."

"Knowledge is your sharpest weapon in a world that is hell-bent on telling you stories that are simply not true."

I always feel weird rating memoirs so take my star rating with a grain of salt. The strangeness lies in giving a star rating to someone's life. Like, how can I do that? So my rating is mostly based on social content and writing style. 

I loved a lot of things about this book. I really like that it is written in a way that is accessible to teenagers. It is clear and concise in it's messaging while also being personal and impactful. It also doesn't shy away from tough topics. The author often addresses the sentiment that he wants this book to serve as an example of queer, Black human existing and thriving as a full human with a lifetime of positive and negative experiences. I especially appreciated the chapters on his school experiences. As an educator, it's always good to hear students have experienced the school system. 

My only major critique is that tone of the writing felt... immature? I'm not sure if that's the verbiage I want to use but I got the feeling sometimes that I was reading an essay from one of my high school students. That being said, though, it's meant for high school students so I can definitely understand if that was done on purpose. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria, Misogyny, Police brutality, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Violence

Moderate: Bullying, Deadnaming, Racial slurs, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Addiction, Cursing, Drug use, Outing, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Death, and Transphobia

hmatt's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

3.0

I have a feeling I will be in the minority of reviewers here, but I found this to be a challenging read because of its lack of sophistication. It felt unedited - rough transitions between chapters/phases of the author's life, unrefined phrasing, a mix of both too much and not enough detail in different areas. To me, it reads 100% as a memoir and 0% as a manifesto because of this.

From a stylistic perspective, I cannot stand memoirs that self-reference/break the fourth wall/"Dear Reader"-me. I lost count of how many chapters the author stated were "the hardest chapter to write" or similar.

When it comes to the content of the memoir: I felt uncomfortable in spots because it read as though the author has not unpacked or processed some of the trauma he describes. I understand that these were formative experiences and it would have defeated the point of the memoir to exclude them; but, as a reader, they were presented in... almost a casual way? A way that excuses or brushes off the traumatic nature of these experiences?

I also have extremely turbulent feelings about the author repeatedly, for an entire chapter, deadnaming and misgendering his cousin and then explaining it as "that was my perspective" or something equally BS.

I haven't come across anything else in my limited reading that fills this specific genre/experience, so I guess I understand the higher star ratings from that lens? Read it, if you have a few hours. But maybe don't go into it with the expectation that this is a groundbreaking literary memoir.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Cursing, Deadnaming, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Transphobia

Moderate: Cancer, Death, and Misogyny

Minor: Drug use and Grief

There is a chapter that focuses on the author's cousin, who is trans, in which the author repeatedly and intentionally deadnames and misgenders them.

theshrinkette's review

challenging informative reflective fast-paced

5.0

First 5-star read of 2021. Johnson has penned a searing, vulnerable memoir of the joys and traumas of being a young Black queer person. The essays are arranged to paint a picture gathering specific experiences that shaped them as a Black queer person, writer, and activist. A valuable book for young queer people as they navigate their identities and belongingness in the world. (Note: A young trans cousin mentioned in the book is deadnamed and misgendered in one chapter, though Johnson specifies that they were writing that chapter from the perception of their teenage self.)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Deadnaming, Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Violence