Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Una vita come tante by Hanya Yanagihara

3069 reviews

celery's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful sad tense 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


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nnoammoa's review against another edition

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dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense 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


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quinnlindell's review against another edition

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

2.75


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psychedelic_koala's review against another edition

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I genuinely don't know how I feel about this book. In some ways, I thought it was amazing. It was just so, so dark. 

It got too much for me while struggling with suicidal thoughts myself. I'd never recommend it, but not because it's bad. It's just as close to being emotionally traumatic as a book can get

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syonkerstalz's review against another edition

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sleepyaquarius's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Beautifully written and heartbreaking. Trigger warning for everything you can think of. I will never read this book again 👍

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abbeyrode's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-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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maketeaa's review against another edition

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emotional 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

i hestitated to pick this up because i've definitely heard some interesting opinions about it, to say the least. i've heard people say it's one of those books that are sad for no reason, that pile on the trauma just for the shock value. and, while on one hand, i can see where opinions like this come from, i can't disagree more. the sadness is there for a purpose. maybe not in a way that the characters can see, but in the way that we can see -- the purpose of showing us that no matter how much meaningless sadness, the unfairness of pain we have in our lives, the people who love us will always try to fight for us to stay alive, and, at the same time, how this fight may, at the end of the day, be for nothing, and yet it doesn't stop us from fighting. yanagihara explores friendship, love, and devotion, the decision to keep loving someone, the decision to make someone 'less sick' if they can't make them get better. heartbreaking in the futility of efforts, in the decades-lasting scars from experiences jude had no control over, in the complications in all his relationships, the people who want him to stay, and the trauma in him that makes it so hard to stay, we see that loving people isn't necessarily about how easy it is to be with them, but about how much we are willing to try.

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ethanzanemiller's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional 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

4.5

This is an astoundingly difficult book that pushes the reader deeper and deeper through layers of unimaginable suffering. So it is an exploration of how devastating abuse is to a life and yet also how resilient humans can be. It's sad sad sad. But not without moments of light that will then be darkened, mostly. It's a book filled with kmmense love. It's an exploration of male friendship.

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matilidaad's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad 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? Yes

4.75

You have to be ready before you pick this book up. There are hundreds of pages of character building which can be slow and dry to get through but it is so so so relevant and important to the ending. 

This book has slow relationship development and gives you little peeks behind the characters history curtain before you get your return on investment. 

This book quite literally had me crying on the tram in public, it is so emotionally devastating but it is also the most beautiful story of love, friendship, trust, loss and trauma. It is incredible if you can stick with it 

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