Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

21 reviews

agnesg's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Addiction, Death, Drug use, Grief, Racism, Mental illness, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Suicide and Suicide attempt

Minor: Alcohol, Death of parent, Excrement, and Injury/Injury detail

grboph's review against another edition

challenging dark informative 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

5.0

This was one of the best books I have ever read, and certainly my favorite that I've read so far this year. I was initially intrigued by the neuroscience and religion aspects of it, but then the characters and story completely pulled me in and kept me invested until the very end. It was definitely a very sad story and doesn't have a happy ending per se, but it is still very hopeful (as the main plot revolves around Gifty's desire to fix the issues that afflicted her mother and her brother). As a sort-of nerd, I also loved all of the musings on the brain and a lot of them beautifully captured the reasons behind why I also want to study neuroscience. I am also very fascinated by religion and the impacts it can leave on people, so I loved reading about the way this affected Gifty as well as her family members' experiences with addiction and mental illness. I also liked that much of the story was just Gifty's stream of consciousness - that is not something I typically like, but Gyasi is such a wonderful writer that this aspect added to the depth of the story in this case. Overall, this was a very impactful story that I will remember reading for a very long time. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in neuroscience or religion, or just anyone who is looking for a good emotional, character-driven book to read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Suicide attempt, Drug use, Grief, Mental illness, and Addiction

Moderate: Abandonment, Classism, Cursing, Death of parent, Infertility, Racial slurs, Racism, Medical content, Religious bigotry, and Violence

Minor: Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Animal death

The two main plot points driving this book are the main character's older brother becoming addicted to painkillers and then dying of a heroin overdose and the main character's mother becoming depressed and attempting suicide as a result.

jaynovara's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Mental illness, Death, and Grief

Moderate: Animal death, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Drug abuse, Child death, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Death of parent, Drug use, Racial slurs, Racism, and Suicide

Minor: Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Physical abuse

reddeddy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Forced institutionalization, Religious bigotry, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Addiction, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Medical content, Suicide attempt, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Body shaming, Sexual content, Cursing, Pregnancy, Violence, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Classism, Dysphoria, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Bullying, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Animal death, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Gaslighting, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Blood, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship

madradstarchild's review against another edition

emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Addiction, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Suicide attempt and Death

Minor: Racial slurs, Alcohol, Racism, and Religious bigotry

storykath's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

Transcendent Kingdom tells the story of Gifty and her family, alternating between her childhood in Alabama and her present-day life as a PhD student in California. As her brother faces drug addiction, her mother mental illness, Gifty deals with their effects on her life while also growing up with complex views on religion, race, and love.

While much of the subject matter in this book was heavy, it never felt like a burden to read. Gifty's narration, both as a child and as an adult, is engaging, raw, and immersive. Her inner world is complex, flawed, and wholly believable, and there is similar nuanced characterization given to all the other characters in Gifty's life. The world of the story, including Gifty's neuroscience lab, Ghanaian culture, and evangelical Christianity, are all described in fascinating detail, and are just as well thought-out as the characters.

I found the alternating timeline to be refreshing and ideal for the pacing of the book. Key childhood moments occurred in conjunction with relevant parallels in Gifty's adult life. The switches also provided some relief and variety when one storyline would get particularly dark. At some points, the switches weren't perfectly chronological, and it would be briefly unclear what time period we were in, but this was a minor inconvenience at most.

Altogether, the stunning care and attention to detail in Transcendent Kingdom made it an unforgettable read, at times relatable, at times eye-opening, and always heart-wrenchingly real.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Grief, Drug use, Suicide attempt, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, and Racism

Moderate: Self harm, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Medical content, and Xenophobia

rory1387's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective relaxing sad slow-paced

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

4.0

Yaa Gyazi's follow-up to Homecoming, Transcendent Kingdom is a masterpiece in its own right. Jumping between past and present, Gifty tells her story. Though we know the ending (or rather, the middle) from the beginning, Gyazi's immersive, almost poetic prose still manages to shock the reader at every turn. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, and Addiction

Moderate: Suicide attempt and Abandonment

Minor: Pregnancy, Racism, Alcohol, and Racial slurs

amyford's review against another edition

emotional 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

Moderate: Drug abuse, Mental illness, Drug use, Grief, Animal death, Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Death

Minor: Racial slurs and Racism

ntvenessa's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? No

4.75

I'm not sure I've ever read anything quite like this. It was gorgeous but gritty, and oh, my heart swelled when it did not outright burst. As an agnostic scientist myself who grew up surrounded by religion, this novel explores brilliantly that intersection that which is often seen as an unbridgeable divide. I am still unsure, but I am moved.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Colonisation, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Mental illness, Racism, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Vomit, and Child death

Minor: Abortion, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts

mirireads's review against another edition

challenging reflective 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Grief, Suicide attempt, Religious bigotry, Racism, and Medical content

Minor: Alcohol, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Sexual content