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viporras's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Death, Abandonment, Child abuse, Child death, Gun violence, Infertility, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Miscarriage, Blood, Confinement, Kidnapping, War, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Hate crime, Self harm, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Vomit, Alcoholism, Sexism, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Rape, Sexual content, Suicide, Violence, and Sexual harassment
literaryinluv's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Racism, Rape, Death, Child death, Grief, Sexual assault, and Slavery
Moderate: Abandonment and Physical abuse
Minor: Domestic abuse, Chronic illness, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Body horror, Cursing, Abortion, and Blood
definitely_bs's review against another edition
Minor: Blood, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Violence, Child death, Suicidal thoughts, Racism, Pregnancy, War, Rape, Slavery, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, and Death
katsbooks's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.0
"...we got more yesterday than anybody. We need some kind of tomorrow.”
“Freeing yourself was one thing, claiming ownership of that freed self was another.”
“You are your best thing”
I don't even know how to formulate my thoughts on this novel but I'm going to try. If you are a faster reader, like me, my best advice when reading this book is to slow down. This book is not meant to be inhaled in 1-2 sittings. The writing is gorgeous, obviously. Morrison won a Nobel for this book for a reason. However, there is so much symbolism and allegory that takes a hot minute to unpack. I am not ashamed to admit that I had to look up the SparkNotes for this book to understand some of the underlying symbolism. I'm incredibly glad I did because when I finished the book, I honestly felt let down. I felt confused and unsure of what I had read. I often found myself questioning whether certain passages were meant to be taken seriously. What would have helped me going in was understanding that there are two timelines. The one that begins when Paul D arrives at 124 ("present time") and the timeline told through flashbacks. There are two significant climaxes, one for each timeline. After the first one, I was really confused about where the rest of the novel could possibly be going just to get when the final climax occurred. I also wished I would have looked up some of the themes so I could have made more connections as I read. As soon as I understood how one of the major themes is how slavery destroys identity, so many things clicked for me. (And to be completely transparent, the fact that that theme didn't click for me until I saw it written out explicitly says a lot about my own privilege.) I completely understand why this novel receives as many accolades as it does. It is truly impactful but I don't think it's the type of book you can go into blind unless you have a really fundamental understanding of race and the generational trauma of enslavement. As a history teacher, I thought I "got it" but I think what I appreciate about this novel is how personal it made the history. It reminded me that it's not enough to sit around and intellectualize about the impacts of the horrors of history. This novel really makes you feel the very real personal implications of it and that is absolutely awe-inducing to me.
Graphic: Abandonment, Body horror, Colonisation, Grief, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, War, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Gaslighting, Gore, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Child death, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Murder, Rape, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexism, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
patterson_cj's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Racism, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Slavery, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Violence
orlagal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Ableism, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Violence, Toxic relationship, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Slavery, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Rape, Racism, Racial slurs, Pregnancy, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, and Murder