Reviews tagging 'Abortion'

Beautiful World, Where Are You by Sally Rooney

53 reviews

jayisreading's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

2.25

I think this might be the last time I’m reading a Sally Rooney novel. I’m not too surprised that I didn’t enjoy this, considering that I had lukewarm opinions about Normal People. However, I thought Normal People was interesting enough that reading Beautiful World, Where Are You would be worthwhile.

Reader, I liked BWWAY even less than Normal People. It felt less focused and lacked a particular depth (more on this).

To focus on one positive, I have to commend Rooney for nailing the general vibe of a very specific group of people (in my head, this was primarily college-educated white Millennials) and the way they talk about one’s moral values, the state of culture and society (and how it’s essentially collapsing), relationships, etc. I think it’s fair to say that these existential questions and conversations are bound to happen within such circles, and I won’t critique that. Rooney knows how to write incredibly flawed, imperfect characters that reveal something very human about them through these conversations they have amongst themselves, and it’s done in such a way that suits her writing style.

However, there was something really grating about the four characters in BWWAY that made me roll my eyes every other page. Maybe it was because they almost never talked about anything mundane. Maybe it was all the sex scenes that felt excessive and really didn’t do it for me (and this was an issue I had with Normal People). Maybe it was just the way Rooney presented them at an arm’s distance that, to me, made it harder to connect (to an extent) with the characters because. I think on this line of thought, my issue was that there wasn’t much depth in any of these characters, which is a bit strange, considering how deeply philosophical their conversations get and this book is by no means driven by a plot (because… there isn’t really one). There was something emotionally lacking in these characters that, ultimately, made them come off as pretentious and nothing more. For me, whenever an issue or desire or anything was presented, I would just think, “… okay then,” and expect some exploration of that. That rarely happens, though, and I think this book would have been so much richer and interesting with those details.

I also found the relationships between Simon/Eileen and Alice/Felix really unhealthy and problematic, which… I don’t know, maybe that was the intention, to continue showing the flaws of people. Even the friendship between Eileen and Alice felt really unbalanced at times, which, to Rooney’s credit, there was a brief(ish) acknowledgment and exploring why. Again, it would have been nice to see a deeper exploration that would make all the ruminating in BWWAY more poignant.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Mental illness

Minor: Abortion, Death of parent, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts

samvansam's review against another edition

reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Death of parent, Abortion, Alcoholism, Bullying, Chronic illness, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, and Pregnancy

saphirabloom's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Toxic friendship, Sexual content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death of parent, Drug use, Mental illness, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Abortion, Pregnancy, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Sexual violence, and Panic attacks/disorders

lenaduchateau's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness

Minor: Abortion

amandamreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Self harm and Mental illness

Minor: Abortion

alp_books's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Mental illness, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Abortion, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Infidelity, Pregnancy, and Toxic relationship

evakane's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Abortion

kb_sherman's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Alcohol

Minor: Abortion, Drug use, and Pregnancy

tigerkind's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.5

I really like Sally Rooney's books and this was no exception. Anyone interested in modern relationships will surely enjoy this. The book touches on many topics that are relevant right now – even the pandemic is mentioned, even though it rather felt like an afterthought. However, it seems Rooney is now well aware of the expectations her readers have going in and consciously caters to them. While the previous books felt rather raw and thought-provoking, this sometimes was almost "prêt-à-penser". 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Toxic friendship and Toxic relationship

Minor: Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Drug use, Grief, Infertility, Panic attacks/disorders, Pregnancy, Self harm, Sexism, and Suicidal thoughts

katieamelia's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Sexual content

Moderate: Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Sexual assault

Minor: Adult/minor relationship