Reviews tagging 'Torture'

The Beekeeper of Aleppo by Christy Lefteri

5 reviews

kalyaniwarrier's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

A fictionalised story, told in a narrative that sounds so close to reality, mentions of grave events in real life that makes one realise the horrors taking place around the world.

The Beekeeper of Aleppo is a brilliant piece of work that is heavily regarded in temporal distortion as the timelines shift after every chapter. But unlike other works where such skipping of timelines makes the plot difficult to visualise and piece together, Christy Lefteri has done an incredible job in the pacing and sequencing the plot, readers can be gratified by following the plot without having to give thought to the timelines despite the lack of linearity. 

Apart from the various sensitive topics discussed, what one could find most appealing about the novel is the characterisation of Nuri, the protagonist and narrator and his mental health struggles. After losing his son to war, Nuri suffers with PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) as he tries to distance himself from the trauma he has suffered by making illusions of various sorts to cope with the distress. 

I could not point out flaws as the plot and characterisation of the novel does a wonderful job at portraying the tragedies of violence in an apolitical manner. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Grief, Violence, Child death, Torture, Confinement, and War

Moderate: Murder, Physical abuse, Mental illness, Rape, and Police brutality

Minor: Xenophobia and Child abuse

maevebm's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.25

A beautiful story of hope, survival, loss, and grief. And a good reminder to save the bees!
 Nuri and Afra’s experiences were both so tragic and shared, but manifested in completely different ways. I loved the alternating time lines, as it provided a stark contrast to what their lives were versus what they became. I also found this to be an important reminder that there are ongoing refugee and humanitarian crises, caused by civil war, extremism, and climate change.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Grief, Child death, and Death

Moderate: Rape, Violence, and Murder

Minor: Torture

miekss's review against another edition

Very emotionally challenging and vivid read. Will pick this back up again when I have more emotional capacity for it. It is a very sad detailed fiction story that’s reflective on the reality of loss, tragedy and severe life-altering circumstances in war. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, War, Physical abuse, Violence, and Torture

melisayasilem's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

Definitely helps you see stuff from a different perspective. I was interested in this book mainly because I wanted to be informed of the struggles of immigrants and people who are forced to flee their country for safety despite their love for it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Murder, Blood, Confinement, and Police brutality

Moderate: Child death, Forced institutionalization, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Death, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, and Gun violence

Minor: Xenophobia, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, and Self harm

jrdnmanon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Violence, Torture, Physical abuse, and Death