Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

35 reviews

zombiezami's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

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

4.5

I like this more than Yaa Gyasi's first book, Homegoing. I like the way that the plot and the characterization get uncovered a little bit at a time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Addiction, Racial slurs, Racism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Child death, Mental illness, Medical content, Grief, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Abandonment, Cursing, Sexism, Colonisation, Bullying, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Infidelity, Vomit, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, and Pregnancy

gracecooper's review against another edition

emotional 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? Yes

4.5

Wonderful. Had to stay up all night to finish

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Death, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, and Abandonment

Moderate: Racism

Minor: Suicide attempt and Racial slurs

teo_rodas's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Racism, and Sexism

Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Misogyny, and Religious bigotry

stayathomereader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Self harm, Racial slurs, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Mental illness, Racism, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Infertility

Animal testing/experimentation

ruthcg's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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? It's complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Child death, and Addiction

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Mental illness, and Suicide attempt

leah_alexandra's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful sad fast-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

4.0

This was very good. I enjoyed engaging with the big questions about humanity, and how religious and scientific approaches to those questions can diverge and overlap. It didn't quite have the 5-star quality to blow me away, but I'm really glad I read it, and I think I'll be thinking about this one for a while. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide attempt, Racial slurs, Drug abuse, Drug use, Addiction, Medical content, and Mental illness

Moderate: Child death and Forced institutionalization

amressing's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, and Racism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death, and Forced institutionalization

kerrygetsliterary's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Pregnancy, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt

allisoncc's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Religious bigotry, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Medical content, Grief, Racial slurs, Racism, and Child abuse

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death of parent, Xenophobia, Toxic relationship, Terminal illness, Suicide attempt, Sexism, Physical abuse, Vomit, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, and Animal cruelty

Minor: Misogyny and Sexual content

hollyd19's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

This affecting novel follows Gifty, an Alabaman daughter of Ghanaian immigrants, who is pursuing a PhD in neuroscience. Her passion stems in part from her brother's death as a teenager due to an overdose. 

The story is slow-moving, reflective, and tenderly poignant. Gifty spends much of her time attempting to find a bearable balance of her faith and her profession. She struggles with the questions that plague her — first as a girl in youth group, implacable by platitudes but desperately eager to be good, then as a scientist, guarded yet drawn to the beautiful, comforting mystery of belief. 

Part of what makes this book so good is that it is simultaneously simple and extraordinarily perceptive. There is no major driving plot. You know most of what will happen before it does. And yet, ultimately, Gyasi found a way to engrossingly bring us along on the introspective journey of an earnest, thoughtful, brilliant woman sorting through her pain and grasping at hope. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief and Drug abuse

Moderate: Addiction, Death, Mental illness, Suicide attempt, Animal cruelty, Self harm, and Racism

Minor: Medical content and Forced institutionalization