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Reviews tagging 'Antisemitism'
Magic Lessons: The Prequel to Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
8 reviews
loonysaurus'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
4.5
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Chronic illness, Religious bigotry, Grief, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Animal death, Blood, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, Sexism, Misogyny, Murder, and Self harm
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Addiction, Stalking, Antisemitism, Colonisation, Hate crime, Slavery, Violence, Racism, and Abandonment
Minor: Classism and Sexual content
chasingpages1's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Kidnapping, and Death
Moderate: Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Medical content, Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Stalking, Confinement, and Infidelity
Minor: Chronic illness, Colonisation, Medical trauma, Infertility, Slavery, Sexual content, and Dementia
vistacanas's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
“Tell a witch to go, and she’ll plant her feet on the ground and stay exactly where she is. Instead of doing as she’s told, she’ll take a knife to her arm and let her blood drip onto the ground, and in that way she will claim the earth for herself and for her daughters and for all the daughters who follow her. It is the future she’s claiming, the right to be a woman who can do as she pleases.“
With every book I read about witches, I feel more and more connected to a tribe. Definitely not a typical one. This tribe isn’t restricted by the boundaries of time and place. It’s filled with countless generations of strong women who were/are deeply connected to nature and use its gifts to heal. They refused to follow the herd and be stifled by the patriarchy. They are my sisters.
This book is the prequel to Practical Magic…I have the full series and chose to read them in chronological order. It is the story of the matriarch of the Owen witches that takes place in the late 1600s in England, Curaçao, Salem, and New York.
Although it’s magical realism, you learn a lot about history…of each place and the plight of those women who chose to live on the edges.
The plot was formulaic, thus predictable…it was the characters that kept me turning the pages. Alice Hoffman has a gift for character development.
The two biggest detractions for me were the magical realism and Hoffman’s diversions into Jewish history. My personal preference is for more realistic fiction, so that’s totally on me. I think more readers would agree with me that the breaks from the story to educate us on the plight and contributions of Jews were overindulgent, wholly unnecessary and mild to moderately irritating.
Looking forward to reading Practical Magic, which I’ve heard is very different than the movie.
Graphic: Abandonment, Death, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Forced institutionalization, Misogyny, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death of parent, and Infertility
Minor: Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Abortion, Antisemitism, Colonisation, Torture, and Slavery
saholland's review against another edition
- 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
2.75
Graphic: Animal cruelty
Moderate: Religious bigotry, Antisemitism, Animal death, Infidelity, and Kidnapping
waytoomanybooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
A recurring line is that what you put out into the world will come back threefold. And I love that it really makes you reflect on your own choices, on your own energy. The book also repeats the line that what has been done cannot be undone. How are you living your life? What can you change?
I love that it made me think and hit me right in the chest with insights and self-reflection right along with the characters. I constantly had a highlighter handy because there was so much that stood out to me that I wanted to go back to. I went back a few times throughout the novel and sayw deliciously perfect morsels of foreshadowing, which makes it perfect book to reread and get something new out of it or notice something that you missed the first time.
I highly recommend this book!
Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, Torture, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Confinement, Adult/minor relationship, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, Violence, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Slavery, Abandonment, Antisemitism, Death, and Emotional abuse
kathleencoughlin's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Graphic: Animal death and Blood
Moderate: Kidnapping, Confinement, Religious bigotry, Torture, Murder, and Gun violence
Minor: Antisemitism, Colonisation, Gore, Grief, and Slavery
maia_ep's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
- a lovely magical story, exactly the witchy read i was looking for this autumn
- hoffman's insistence on sexualizing her pre-teen characters was off-putting
- i felt maria was sometimes inconsistently characterized & made it hard to understand her choices
- i adored faith and loved her journey so much
Moderate: Animal death and Misogyny
Minor: Antisemitism and Sexual violence
primavera's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Grief, and Kidnapping
Minor: Antisemitism, Blood, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Murder