Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Real Life by Brandon Taylor

36 reviews

orireading's review against another edition

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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

tesshersh's review against another edition

challenging reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.25

it’s like nothing happens and also so much happens I feel crazy!!!!! heartbreaking

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

raoulalexander's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Racism, Rape, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, and Death of parent

Minor: Drug abuse, Infidelity, and Vomit

jen_again's review

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Eating disorder, Fatphobia, and Pedophilia

Minor: Animal death and Body shaming

voidboi's review

challenging dark emotional reflective 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

4.75

What can I even say about this book? I ached as I read, submerged in gorgeous and brutal writing, feeling both deep connection and intense alienation as I was let into Wallace's head/body. 

In Real Life, the complexities of grief, memory, identity, and relationships converge over a weekend of experimental setbacks, socializing with friends, walks through a midwestern city, and a burgeoning sexual and toxic connection. The story is grounded in Wallace's internal experience, playing with the stark border between the self and others, as the othered. I was especially impressed by the way Taylor masterfully evokes the existential crisis that is academia, different from my experience in humanities and social sciences, but still painfully familiar with far-reaching impacts. Throughout this book, the world is honestly rendered in both condemnation and empathy. It hurts. I'll carry this one with me for a long time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Infidelity, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Gaslighting

Minor: Alcoholism, Eating disorder, and Vomit

nenesuxz's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

So so deeply sad, I loved the emotions, I was obsessed with the writing, but I feel as if the plot was a little lost… 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Grief, and Death of parent

Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Gaslighting, and Alcohol

sophieduncan's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Sexual assault

Moderate: Eating disorder, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Violence, and Death of parent

Minor: Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

hannahmayreads'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

4.5

 This is a beautiful book, but hauntingly so.

I read a decent number of campus novels as part of my degree, but none were like this. It feels modern and relevant in ways the ones on my reading lists never were while maintaining that essential rarefication of academic life. Taylor however brings 'real life' to this cosseted world.

It is written with nuance and sensitivity to the complexities and contradictions of the characters, and nothing is just for the shock of it. The tone is precise and observant, the narrative is detail orientated. That description also sums up Wallace rather well. Despite this precision, it feels like the novel (and Wallace) could slip away at any moment - it is fragile, almost liquid (as the Guardian observed). I felt like we got to know Wallace intimately - we are after all privy to his innermost thoughts and the workings of his mind. And yet for all the intimacy remains entirely unknowable, an enigma.

To put it succinctly, this is the book I wanted A Little Life to be. Taylor has written a novel that is deeply intimate but is balanced where A Little Life wasn't by its clinical narrative. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

talvinovels's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

beautiful & immersive writing, complex characters and relationships, important social commentary. the book succeeds in making everything feel painfully real, not only because these are real experiences people go through, but also because of the writing. the characters are frustrating at best and downright horrible at worst. there's wallace's depression, his traumatic past, the everyday racism he faces, getting severely mistreated and misunderstood on a daily basis...not a happy reading experience, but an important one.

this is definitely very character-driven. the events that happen are mostly there to fuel the characters' interactions with each other, if that makes sense? things happen, but there's no single event that the story is centered around. I think it was done really well, it worked to bring attention to the characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Homophobia and Death of parent

oliverlang's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense 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

3.0

I'm not sure what I expected from this book to begin with but as it went on I found myself compelled to read more in the hopes that the resolutions I wanted from it would come to fruition.

There's a lot of friend group drama going on throughout this book with a lot of dark/serious themes. 

I feel like I wanted this book to be more than it was. It had the opportunity to provide strong character development and show a bisexual identity and it just didn't give me that. 

Although the book only documents the events over one weekend, the ending felt unfinished and the final chapter came out of the blue with a flash back to the friends meeting for the first time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent

Moderate: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Eating disorder, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicidal thoughts