Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

10 reviews

bimboliciousame's review

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

• 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

4.25

It was really good! I really liked the pacing which is rare for me. The ending felt like a plot twist but not like it was completely out of nowhere. I really liked how it was written without political claims because it leaves room for discussion while still pushing the readers’ thoughts. The narrator constantly asks questions which forces active reading onto the readers which is amazing. However,

the circumstances of Tea Cake’s death felt random although the fact that he ended up dead didn’t. I mean it could be implied that Tea Cake would die because of Janie’s past relationships. But, the fact he died via rabies by a dog in a hurricane felt so random.

But, i also believe it could’ve been an element of good being unpredictable and unstoppable. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Death, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Slavery, and Classism

Minor: Animal death and Rape

historyoftape's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-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

There are so many good things packed into this story. A rich understanding if culture and language, characters that grow or are stifled depending on their environments, social, economic and political commentary, great dialogue, captivating imagery... It's a book that had me deeply invested in the main character's goals, dreams, and growth, where I loved the side characters, and where, while I may not have made similar decisions, I could understand and even support Janies decisions because I understood that they were the right path for her. The ending was heartbreaking and real, hurt me in a good way. It's been a while since I read a book that finished this strongly.

The way Janies words were so rare in the beginning of the story, to how confident and free in speaking she is by the end was one of the most striking things to me. One of the most effective but subtle ways to show her growth I have encountered in a while. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Gun violence, Murder, Confinement, Grief, Animal cruelty, Classism, Death, Blood, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Sexism, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Abandonment, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Violence, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Addiction

anxiousbeauty96's review against another edition

emotional sad tense 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

4.0

This is a great book. This novel follows the story of Janie and her 3 marriages. All of Janie’s husbands are misogynistic but Tea Cake seem to be the one who truly loves her and loves him as well. Their story his heartwarming MOST of the time. Some of the things he did were questionable, but you can tell they loved each other. The ending made me cry.
I like that Hurston decided to to write the dialogue in Southern dialect but it did make it hard to read at first. Once I got the hang of it, it got easier. It’s a great read. I highly recommend.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Death, Misogyny, Gun violence, Slavery, Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, Violence, Sexual assault, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Terminal illness, and Racial slurs

alexandra_skl's review

emotional inspiring sad fast-paced

4.75

Such a fantastic novel that really dives into deep themes about love, race, and, sexuality

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Classism, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Death, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse

zombiezami's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Classism, Emotional abuse, Grief, Violence, Medical content, Animal death, Death, Misogyny, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, and Murder

Moderate: Body shaming, Cursing, Racism, Racial slurs, Fatphobia, and Adult/minor relationship

Minor: Death of parent, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Colonisation, Drug abuse, Rape, and Blood

Natural disasters, Colorism, Eugenics

amsswim's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective sad fast-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

4.5

As far as classics go, this has got to be one that has stuck with me more than most others. First read it in high school, really liked it then. Reading again, it was so much better than I remembered. Her writing is so vivid and truly pulls you through the story. An already short read for me went by faster because it is such a good story. Janey is a wonderful main character, and her journey to Tea Cake is incredible. I also love the author's commentary on feminism, intersectionality, and society at large. Devastatingly sweet book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Gun violence, Grief, Murder, Slavery, Sexism, Racial slurs, Bullying, Addiction, Death, Alcohol, Adult/minor relationship, Racism, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Medical trauma, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Cursing, and Classism

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Colonisation, Miscarriage, Hate crime, Infidelity, Animal death, and Pregnancy

Minor: Antisemitism

mlthomas234's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny reflective sad medium-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? No

5.0

Great read. I was surprised by the lyricism— this book is endlessly quotable and beautifully written. The plot and the characters were both fine, but the writing style really elevated everything. And actually some of the side characters did really jump off of the page.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Racism, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Grief, Racial slurs, Animal death, Death, Violence, and Murder

laura_huey's review

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-paced

• 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? It's complicated

4.25

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is a challenging, reflective look at love, marriage, and self-identity in Florida throughout the early 20th century, and offers a confronting yet affectionate glimpse of the area's African-American community at the time. 

Janie, the protagonist, has been raised by her grandmother, Nanny, and longs for a loving, equal marriage to bring her fulfilment in life. However, when Nanny catches her kissing a boy over the garden gate, she arranges what she believes will be a profitable marriage for Janie. We follow Janie throughout her life as she comes to understand what real love is, what constitutes a fulfilling life, and the sacrifices she'll make for someone she loves.

As a white Australian woman, I found this book to be a challenging read. It was beautifully written, and portions of Hurston's prose are almost poetic, but I found it took quite a while to get my head around the dialect that the novel is written in. Now that I know the story, I think I would benefit from rereading this book in the future. I'm also interested in viewing the film before revisiting the novel, as I think that may help me with the dialect also.

Overall an excellent read. I recommend approaching it with compassion for all the characters and not forming your opinions about them until the end. Everyone is complex and has layered motivations behind their choices, so it's important not to judge them too quickly.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Gun violence, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Terminal illness, and Death

Moderate: Alcohol, Blood, Body shaming, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Medical content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

Minor: Child death, Death of parent, and Dysphoria

miaaa_lenaaa's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense 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? No

4.5

Janie and Tea Cakes love story reigns supreme

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Slavery, and Terminal illness

cepbreed's review

emotional slow-paced

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

3.0

It wasn’t phenomenal, expected of a rushed AP Lit read I finished 5 minutes before a timed essay. I would say

when she shot her third husband, that was a girlboss moment.

I got a 93 on the essay though

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Death, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, Bullying, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, and Gun violence

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Sexual content