Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Earthlings by Sayaka Murata

406 reviews

mellbutrin's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

"Magical powers. I have to summon my magical powers. The power of darkness, the power of wind--any magical power will do, but I need something. I have to use my magical powers on my whole body before my heart feels anything."

Murata tells a horrifying, yet beautifully written, story of Natsuki, an elementary school student, experiencing sexual abuse from her teacher and emotional and physical abuse from her close family. To cope with this abuse, Natsuki creates a magical system and imagines herself as an alien wizard, distinct from the "Earthlings" around her. 

As a grown woman, Natsuki's belief that she is an alien only intensifies, a consequence of her husband believing in both her fantasies and her description of society as a "Factory" for reproducing and working. This folie à deux encourages the couple to perform despicable acts in order to escape the "Factory" and distinguish themselves from "Earthlings."

Natsuki is vividly brought out as a character. She is compellingly sympathetic, and though Natsuki's actions frequently go against social taboos, Murata’s careful exploration of Natsuki’s philosophy and psychology makes it easy to understand why she performs them. 

I cannot recommend this book to anyone. However, for those who can endure painfully explicit scenes of sexual and physical abuse, suicidal ideation, incest, and cannibalism, this book offers a worthwhile portrayal of self-discovery and survival, along with decent social commentary.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Gore, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Blood, Cannibalism, Incest, Rape, Murder, Violence, and Acephobia/Arophobia

Minor: Suicide

dnvrdnvr's review

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Gaslighting, and Sexual assault

loudonuts's review

dark funny mysterious reflective fast-paced

• 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

3.25

as expected of murata san, loads of intense existential issues that i could really relate to. in the last hour it all got kind of insane, which was also expected. this was definitely not for the faint of heart. unfortunately i did not feel as attached to the characters and story as i did in CONVENIENCE STORE WOMAN, but it was still a wild read that will stick with me for a while.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Murder, Cannibalism, Gore, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Sexual harassment

xyvo's review

dark medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Cannibalism, and Incest

Moderate: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Murder

Minor: Misogyny, Death, and Bullying

ccate's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Child abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Incest, Pedophilia, Suicide attempt, Acephobia/Arophobia, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Murder, Physical abuse, Blood, and Suicide

grrrlbrarian's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark reflective slow-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? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Violence, Murder, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Incest, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Body horror, Vomit, Blood, Death, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse

Minor: Alcohol

crimsonjoy's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cannibalism, Pedophilia, Murder, Incest, Violence, Physical abuse, and Gore

Moderate: Acephobia/Arophobia

Minor: Vomit

wrenjuniper's review

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

• 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

5.0

I read this all in one day, its very graphic and extremely hard to get through

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest, Bullying, Mental illness, Cannibalism, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Child abuse, Sexual assault, Rape, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Vomit

katyamarcelle's review

challenging dark sad tense

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Cannibalism, Physical abuse, and Child abuse

Moderate: Incest and Acephobia/Arophobia

Minor: Confinement and Suicide

spooky_coochie's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Pedophilia, Incest, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, and Murder

Moderate: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Violence, Misogyny, Sexism, and Acephobia/Arophobia

Minor: Vomit, Suicide, and Eating disorder