Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Hearts Unbroken by Cynthia Leitich Smith

10 reviews

avisreadsandreads's review

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

3.0

I liked the main character and the story was interesting (though the romance was definitely a secondary plot point), but the writing felt a bit disjointed and I had trouble keeping all the characters straight.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cultural appropriation, Racism, Xenophobia, Bullying, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Islamophobia and Religious bigotry

Minor: Homophobia, Biphobia, and Genocide

heather667's review against another edition

challenging informative medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Islamophobia, Cultural appropriation, Misogyny, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexism, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Genocide and Bullying

Minor: Biphobia, Alcoholism, and Homophobia

courtofsmutandstuff's review

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

This book is very much in the "young person confronts racism but also falls in love" YA contemporary vein. I very much enjoyed how much her parents LOVED Lord of the Rings, and that the majority of the book's focus was on Louise being on the school newspaper. The book is also relatively short and is tight, which keeps it easy and fast to read. There are also multiple times where Louise (or another character) faces either a microaggression or just flat out racism and the chapter ends, which makes sense (Louise experiences this so frequently it is just another thing that doesn't need to be focused on). The book also discusses Louise's relationships, slut shaming (one of the stories she covers), and also shows Louise and Joey making out (and I assume more) but it's also pretty closed door/broad strokes, which I think is a comfortable way of covering sex in a YA book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

danileah07's review

medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Hate crime and Bullying

rdebner's review

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Racial slurs, and Xenophobia

readingwithkaitlyn's review

emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Cultural appropriation, Xenophobia, Misogyny, Bullying, Infidelity, and Death

Minor: Domestic abuse

Pretendians, stereotypes, ICWA, divorce, heart attack, 9/11, anti-middle easten comments, KKK, Oklahoma bombing, threats, white extremism, slurs, Nazis, tornado.

bedtimesandbooks's review

hopeful 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Xenophobia, Racial slurs, Islamophobia, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Bullying, and Classism

audreylee's review

emotional hopeful 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

4.0

A romance, yes, but one confronting racism and xenophobia. It has great pacing,emotion, and dialogue. Loved it. It still leaves the reader with the lighthearted feeling of something going right even when some things in the larger world are very wrong. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Xenophobia

Moderate: Sexism

bookbrig's review

emotional funny reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

I really enjoyed the style of this story because it flowed from one moment to the next in a way that felt almost like vignettes while not actually being vignettes, if that makes any sense. It made for a very quick and compelling read. Plus the characters were wonderful. I was hoping to bring it to our 8th graders, but there's a quick scene near the end with on-page sexy stuff that won't fly at our schools. I would definitely consider this for teens who want more like The Hate U Give and are looking for stories about teens of other ethnicities. No one is killed in this book, but it definitely touches on conversations about race between friends, peers, community members, etc. It's also sweet and funny and reads very realistic. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism

Moderate: Sexual content

ashleycmms's review against another edition

challenging emotional lighthearted reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Racial slurs

Moderate: Bullying, Hate crime, Islamophobia, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Colonisation and Genocide