Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

Kindred by Octavia E. Butler

47 reviews

purple_crayon's review against another edition

adventurous 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? It's complicated

5.0

This was a great book. Definitely had moments that were difficult to read because of the subject matter but you get immersed in a different way. I appreciate the care Butler put into this book and into the characters. They are complex and you get to know them in deep ways. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Violence, Racism, Racial slurs, Police brutality, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

Minor: Vomit

mcchristofoletti's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5361633531

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, Colonisation, and Hate crime

Minor: Child death, Alcoholism, Death, Sexism, Misogyny, Medical trauma, Ableism, and Murder

steveatwaywords's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

For a work so early in Butler's career, this is a remarkably stunning read. No need, really, to touch upon the now oft-described plot: Butler's aim is the experience--both graphically physical but more psychological: it works its way through our time-traveling narrator and her white husband; it impacts their relationship (alas, not as thoroughly explored as it might have been); but it is one of the first books I've read to explore the nuance of living in a culture of slavery rather than merely stating or claiming the complex challenges.

Butler's liberated (at least for the 1970s) narrator discovers how sinuous the workings of plantation life might well have been, how insidious the rationalizations of submission to authority. And while the book is tightly-written and highly suspenseful, her handling of dialogue and subtler action reveals the various pulls of power humans have over one another, because of and in spite of the power dynamics between them. 

There are no apologies, justifications, or qualifications for slavery and its adherents here. But we instead experience a kind of subjugation and oppression which moves far deeper than the given physicality of this institution. (Now to go see how Hulu has handled it . . . )

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Violence, Slavery, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Rape, Trafficking, Grief, Sexual violence, Infidelity, Vomit, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Medical trauma, Domestic abuse, Death, and Blood

This work directly shows several scenes of nearly every kind of inhumanity from the institution of slavery, though the descriptions fall short of body horror or gore.

kriee's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Vomit, Grief, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, and Self harm

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Miscarriage, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Blood, Body horror, Child death, and Medical trauma

Minor: Abandonment

sup3r_xn0va_maya's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

💬:“Strength. Endurance. To survive, my ancestors had to put up with more than I ever could. Much more. You know what I mean.”

Butler, Octavia. Kindred (p. 51). Beacon Press. Kindle Edition. 

📖Genres: fantasy, historical fiction, science fiction, classics, time travel, fiction

📚Page Count: 264

🎧Audiobook Length: 10hrs 55mins

👩🏾‍🏫My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 5/5

Kindred is largely regarded as Octavia E. Butler's magnum opus, or in other words, her most famous and important book. This book is harrowing and it always keeps me on the edge of my seat. This book is about a Black woman from the 1970's be thrusted back in time to the antebellum south, around 1815.

Kindred was an entire experience for me. As a Black woman, this book was terrifying, the thought of going back to the antebellum south, in an era where we as Black people had no rights to speak of. Dana went through so much in this book because Octavia E Butler does not shy away from putting her characters through the wringer to prove several points. 

This book was just phenomenal! It's so hard to believe that this was written in 1979. It could have as easily been written in 1980 or 2015. I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️  
5/5

I listened to this audiobook on [Libro.fm]

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Child abuse, Child death, Body horror, Self harm, Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Slavery, Violence, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Death of parent, Grief, Sexual assault, Blood, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Torture, Vomit, Death, Cursing, and Sexism

hilwithonel's review against another edition

dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racial slurs, Slavery, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, and Torture

Moderate: Medical trauma

Minor: Gun violence and Xenophobia

use of r-word

bootsmom3's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative 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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child death, Gaslighting, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Torture, Vomit, Blood, Physical abuse, Violence, Gore, Medical content, Rape, Toxic relationship, Racism, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt

jenmcreads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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

This is one of those books that is so good you lose any access to words trying to describe it. The word that comes up most for me is visceral. The experience of reading this book was so visceral for me. I think this does an incredible job of showing both individual responsibility in the midst of horrifying injustices (in this case, slavery, so among the very worst imaginable), however also emphasizing the way individuals can get swept up in such a large system. The narration was clear that individuals (such as Rufus) were not solely responsible for the overwhelming brutality and injustice of the system, but it also did not exonerate the characters for the acts they were responsible for. Something about this book more than anything I have ever read really drove home the relentless and lifelong brutality of life for those who were enslaved in the antebellum South, and while horrifying, this was a truly remarkable read. I feel so dumb trying to write about this book, just read it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Alcohol, Body horror, Child abuse, Colonisation, Pregnancy, Racism, Violence, Medical content, Misogyny, Self harm, Classism, Emotional abuse, Medical trauma, Rape, Alcoholism, Child death, Sexual assault, Bullying, Cursing, Gun violence, Incest, Gaslighting, Gore, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Murder, Death of parent, Sexism, Blood, Hate crime, and Racial slurs

books4escaping's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful medium-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

4.25

Really liked - The story kept me fully engaged and I really enjoyed the story, but something bugged me or was missing to award a 5-star rating.  Well worth the read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Slavery, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Racial slurs, and Violence

Moderate: Sexual assault, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Blood

sddavis13's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense fast-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Suicide attempt, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Colonisation, Blood, and Cultural appropriation