Reviews with content warning for Religious bigotry - Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit

Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson

78 reviews

nightfell's review against another edition

challenging informative slow-paced

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

3.0

Reading about Jeanette's heavily religious upbringing was fascinating. The sort of things she would do or say or think that was so normalised within her community then seeing the disparity in her interactions at school made for an interesting narrative. I would have liked the author to have gone into more depth relating to the queer aspect of the novel, her internal thoughts and fears that come with self-discovery and her grappling with that was a missed opportunity as her 'coming out' was so abrupt. The magical realism element was at times confusing and ultimately I found it unnecessary and distracting but I'm sure it had a literary purpose, just not one that I appreciated.

Anyone with any religious trauma, queer or not, should take caution, this is a heavy one.

Content Warnings

viviandoeshaveaclue's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was a beautiful book. As someone with religious trauma and queer it was a wonderful read. In my heart all I wanted to do was to hug Jeanette and tell her that it does get a little easier for queer people in the future. It was an amazing read and I would definitely recommend.

Content Warnings

poison_frogs's review against another edition

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reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

I enjoyed this a 3 star amount but don't want to rate it 3 stars because it was well written, if a little odd.
Just not the book for me I think. If you are looking for a queer, very literary exploration of growing up and coming of age inside a church, this book is for you.

Content Warnings