Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston

203 reviews

mchampl01's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective 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? Yes

4.0

Written incredibly well, Hurston is brilliant at painting a picture with words. I particularly enjoyed the visualization of the vultures. The way she writes paints detailed pictures, especially with connotation to guide the reader's feelings.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Body shaming, Terminal illness, and Alcohol

k8lynn's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

kellpy's review

challenging emotional 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

I read this book for an English Literature class 8 years ago and it still haunts me to this day. It is one of the most beautifully written books you can read from that time period, and being from Florida myself, the depiction of suffering through a hurricane is genius. No one else could have written this besides ZNH.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Abandonment, and Classism

themdash's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

melancholymegs's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective 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: Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Medical content, and Grief

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, and Gun violence

Minor: Rape, Slavery, and Abandonment

sdfallin's review

adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad tense slow-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexism

Moderate: Gun violence

Minor: Homophobia

jkpotteryu's review

emotional reflective fast-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

4.0

I had to read this novel for school and WOW it did kit disappoint. Written in a mix vernacular dialogue and gorgeous prose full of rich language, “Their Eyes Were Watching God” is a fabulous novel in both writing and story. Zora Neale Hurston tells the rich story of a woman named Janie as she goes through three marriages. 

However, it is much more than that. This novel is packed full of motifs, symbols, and metaphors that are positively DELIGHTFUL to take apart. Trust me when I say that some of the margins of my copy are packed FULL of notes. There is just so much to be had in this book. I don’t want to spoil anything for those wishing to read this, but I believe even when told the plot of the novel, it doesn’t take away from the beauty.

Zora Neale Hurston was an important part of the Harlem Renaissance and this novel is both historically significant for that time, but also extremely modern in its message. 

This is a timeless novel that I believe is incredibly important for our modern world. Here are some of my favorite quotes:

“If you kin see de light at daybreak, you don’t keer if you die at dusk. It’s so many people never seen de light at all. Ah wuz fumblin’ round and God opened de door”(159)

“Love is lak de sea. It’s uh moving’ thing, but still and all, it takes its shape from de shore it meets, and it’s different with every shore.” (191)

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Domestic abuse

Minor: Rape

ittybittybookshelf's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective 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

4.75

Zora Neale Hurston truly knew how to write stories that stay with you. Her prose is beautiful, and her insights into the life of a black woman in the early 20th century occupied my thoughts long after I closed the book. Their Eyes Were Watching God is a must-read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Death and Gun violence

Minor: Animal death, Rape, and Slavery

e_neu's review

emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, and Violence

Minor: Gun violence

amalas_bookstop's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring tense medium-paced

• 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? Yes

5.0

This really is a work of art! It was refreshing to read an African American classic that focuses on the struggle to find love as a black woman. Zora Neal Hurston tackles so much in this book from colorism and even the struggles between male and females in the black race. I really enjoyed reading this.

It was really helpful to read this immersively with the audiobook. It really helped make the dialogue pop. Zora Neal Hurston does a fantastic job of writing African American southern dialect, that hearing it read to me sounded like a movie.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Grief, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism