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clarabooksit's review against another edition
3.5
Noah is clever, nerdy and funny and this memoir showcases that. His love of South Africa, where he came from and his mother are apparent on every page, even as he’a cracking jokes about them. I especially enjoyed learning a lot about South Africa.
Where the book let me down is in its lack of emotional resonance. That and it was very obviously written for a U.S. American audience, which felt confining even if I’m a part of that audience.
Noah has lived a fascinating life full of sticky, incredible and awful moments, but his voice remains distant like the person at a party who tells wild and traumatic stories for laughs without registering how deeply personal they are. While there’s a great deal of reflection in the book, it all felt anecdotal to me. The format of the book also makes every story feel like a lesson and that didn’t quite work for me.
To be fair, that may be more of a reflection on me than the book. I did like it: it’s zippy, I learned a lot, it made me laugh and at the very end, it made me cry. But it didn’t thrill me. Would still recommend.
Graphic: Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Slavery, Alcoholism, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Child abuse
Moderate: Bullying, Body shaming, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Drug use, Excrement, Police brutality, and Slavery
Minor: Animal cruelty and Rape
nils_0's review against another edition
2.5
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Colonisation, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Racism, Slavery, Child abuse, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Pregnancy, Murder, and Kidnapping
asen123's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Colonisation, Domestic abuse, Classism, and Racism
Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, and Violence
kayfab's review against another edition
4.75
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Colonisation, Classism, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse
ecster's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Sexism, Violence, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Domestic abuse, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Gun violence, and Colonisation
Moderate: Bullying, Alcoholism, Alcohol, and Blood
Minor: Pregnancy, Police brutality, and Suicidal thoughts
nrogers_1030's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Violence, Alcoholism, Classism, Gun violence, Animal death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Bullying, Colonisation, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Confinement
Minor: Kidnapping, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
sabrina_d_arcy's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Xenophobia, Classism, Colonisation, Cursing, Drug use, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Injury/Injury detail, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Addiction, Blood, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Rape, Racism, Child abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Slavery, Violence, Physical abuse, and Police brutality
Minor: Abandonment, Antisemitism, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Kidnapping, Animal cruelty, Addiction, and Excrement
jht5791's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Sexism, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Blood, Racism, Misogyny, Confinement, Bullying, Gun violence, Domestic abuse, Colonisation, Racial slurs, Alcoholism, and Toxic relationship
tiakiwi's review against another edition
5.0
Minor: Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Colonisation, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Alcohol, and Misogyny
ruffian23's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Domestic abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Alcohol, Racism, Colonisation, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Classism, and Bullying
Minor: Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, War, Excrement, Rape, and Sexual assault