Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

My Heavenly Favourite by Lucas Rijneveld

9 reviews

erin99's review against another edition

• Loveable characters? No

Ik ben echt niet het doelpubliek van dit boek dus ga ik het ook geen rating geven

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, and Death

clara_mai's review against another edition

5.0

Ein unfassbar aufwühlendes Leseerlebnis, das dazu zwingt dorthinzuschauen, wo es am meisten wehtut. Ein Tierarzt berichtet von seiner romantischen und sexuellen Obsession mit dem vierzehnjährigen Kind eines Farmers. Und während der Erzähler seine Taten romantisiert tut Rijneveld eben dies nicht, vielmehr eignet er sich diesen Blick, der noch immer in den Knochen unserer Gesellschaft steckt, an und entlarvt so die manipulative Art und die perfiden Mechanismen von Grooming. Trotz des heftigen Themas zeichnet der Autor seine Figuren in einer schillernden Komplexität. Ich bin selten (möglicherweise noch nie) einer Sprache begegnet, die so poetisch ist und gleichzeitig so wirkungsvoll. Es sind die langen Sätze, die eine wie die Geschichte selbst in ihren gefährlichen Bann ziehen; erbarmunglos führt Rijneveld die Leser*innen mit jedem Wort tiefer hinein. Die Atmosphäre wickelt eine ein, die Sommerhitze und das was darunter brodelt. Die schmutzige, düstere Wirklichkeit der Kuhfarm, die den Ekel spiegelt, der beim Eintauchen in die Gedankenwelt des Tierarztes hochkommt. Trotz der Erzählperspektive schafft es dieser Text auch die Realität der Vierzehnjährigen durchklingen zu lassen, zeigt wie ein junger Mensch mit der eigenen Geschlechtsidentität und zu frühen Verlusten hadert. Jedes Element des Romans spielt seine Rolle: viele aber wohl kalkulierte Popkultur Referenzen beispielsweise weisen immer wieder zusätzlich auf den Altersunterschied und das Machtgefälle hin. "Mein kleines Prachttier" ist einer der besondersten und besten Romane, die ich je lesen durfte und ich bin gespannt darauf, mich weiter in Rijnevelds Werk zu vertiefen (obwohl es mir auch jetzt schon davor graust).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, Death, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Suicide attempt, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Dysphoria, Grief, and Eating disorder

razmatesz's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Child abuse, Pedophilia, and Rape

maapestaartje's review against another edition

challenging dark tense

• 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

5.0

Jesus christus als ik dit boek ooit nog een keer lees is het te vroeg

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Child abuse, Rape, and Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Child death and Toxic relationship

seaoftranquility's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

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

4.0

I read "The discomfort of evening" in 2021 and absolutely loved it from its very first page. Having this in mind, I started this book immediately after it was gifted to me. With this one, however, it took me much more time to get into the story. I reached the point of DNFing twice, my main problem being the writing style. Although I am a huge fan of stream of consciousness and I don't mind feverish, nightmarish prose, I found that this book exhausted my brain, mainly in the first half. The sentences were way too long (I was longing for a full stop many times while reading) and the lack of paragraphs tired my eyes. I kept forgetting where the narrator started from and I caught myself wondering what this (incoherent mumbling of the narrator) had anything to do with the story. Maybe it was intentional by the writer, so as to drag the reader in this incoherent, fragmented, unreliable, sick mind. Well, they most definitely succeeded; the book was disgusting and exhausting and I know I will never touch it again. The main character of the book is not the sick pervert that holds the narration; it is the victim, this nameless girl who, already suffering from grief, abandonment and neglect, is failed by every single adult in their life. I was furious

about how she was treated, the names she was called, how she was blamed for what happened to her, how she was the one to hold the blame, the innocent, broken, underage child for f*** sake. I was so angry that so many people eventually knew about what she was going through and no-one, and I mean that, NO-ONE picked up the f***ing phone to call the police. The writer did a pretty good job portraying the child's pain of loneliness and neglect, the longing for love and freedom from pain, as well as the child rapist's petting methods and the devastating effects the sexual abuse had on the girl. It was also interesting and thought-provoking that the writer chose this age for the child and not a younger one as in Nabokov's Lolita.

Overall 4/5 stars; in spite of the book's difficulty (theme and writing style), I loved and empathized with this little bird- I wish her wings will be healed and take her away from pain. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Stalking, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Blood, Rape, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Child death, Animal death, Self harm, Abandonment, Grief, Mental illness, and Eating disorder

sophievd's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts

mmic's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Een prachtig, vreselijk, meeslepend en moeilijk boek.

De schrijfstijl is fantastisch, maar het verhaal is misselijkmakend--opzettelijk zo. Ik wilde het snel uithebben omdat de schrijfstijl erom vraagt om halsoverkop gelezen te worden, maar ik haastte ook door omdat ik wilde dat het verhaal voorbij was, omdat ik de weerzinwekkende gedachten van de hoofdpersoon niet langer aan kon. 

Absoluut geen prettig of makkelijk boek, maar wel meesterlijk gedaan. Het maakt me nieuwsgierig naar wat Rijneveld nog meer gaat schrijven. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Child abuse, Child death, Car accident, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Grief, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, and Toxic relationship

suzannehoogstraten's review against another edition

dark sad tense medium-paced

4.5

Gruwelijk, Lolita-esque en het hield mijn aandacht tot het einde vast.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Rape, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Infidelity, Eating disorder, and Death

kayleebranse's review against another edition

dark sad

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Infidelity, and Pedophilia