Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu

10 reviews

erebus53's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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

Welp... (gets off rollercoaster) that was certainly a trip!!
I picked up this book as a buddy read from book club. As an audiobook it differed from so many books in English with many Japanese names and words by having narrators who were of Japanese descent and who could actually pronounce Japanese.. SUCH a relief! Being able to understand what people are saying is really hard when they are approximating and getting half the words so mangled it's inaudible.

This is a deeply emotional book, that I think you can only get the most out of if you invest in it. Each section of the book is from a different view point (stitched together like short stories) and they are all subtly connected which makes it really rewarding when you realise what those connections are. Each personal viewpoint deals with grief. The world depicted is stricken by a plague that is bigger and weirder than anything humanity has yet experienced. It takes our current experiences and racks the intensity to 11.

In a world that develops fun ways to enjoy euthanasia *wince*, and novel traditions for remembering and celebrating the lives of those we have lost, this story spans centuries. In so doing it deals with the loss and displacement caused by illness, ecological instability, and human affected climate change - wildfires, flooding, mass extinction... and the hopes that humanity has for colonising space in ways that will not displace indigenous life out there.

Some of the science is .. unlikely but not completely outside the bounds of possibility. You have to strap on those Suspenders of Disbelief (+4) to embrace some of the ideas about Roswell, and cryptids - but some of the heroic characters are steeped more in the idea of believing that things might be true until they can be falsified... which allows them to believe things that seem improbable.

Major themes involve the focus on family, on long-term planning and, the things that are so important that we can't be there for our children. Unlike adventure stories of the past where fathers are absent seeking glory, this deals a lot with mothers who have to step away from family obligations for a Greater Purpose, and the grief and strife that causes.

Honestly.. I am the right agegroup that most of the music talked about in this story is familiar to me. That anchors the story emotionally. There is a lot of painting and art in the narrative as well.. which highlights the creativity of humanity, and the ways that we process grief and nostalgia, and how we chronicle our history. I bawled my eyes out in many different chapters. I found this really beautiful fiction and though not all the science was airtight I will borrow the saying from Amanda Tapping "that's why they call it sci - FI". The emotional resonance makes it highly enjoyable so I'll give it a 5.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Murder, Mental illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, Terminal illness, Medical trauma, Grief, Drug use, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Abandonment and Colonisation

Minor: Sexual content and Stalking

arlaubscher's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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: Grief, Blood, Cancer, Child death, Death, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, Pandemic/Epidemic, Animal death, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Body horror, Medical content, and Suicide

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Classism, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cursing, Medical trauma, Miscarriage, Dementia, Confinement, Mental illness, Gore, and Infertility

lpdx's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death of parent, Grief, Mental illness, Classism, Confinement, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Suicidal thoughts, Chronic illness, Suicide, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Animal cruelty and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Abandonment, Colonisation, Excrement, Pregnancy, and Vomit

anni_swanilda's review

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Child death, Chronic illness, Grief, Death of parent, Death, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Medical content, Mental illness, Suicide, and Animal death

Minor: Cancer and Sexual content

emmonsannae's review

challenging dark hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

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

3.75

Not sure whether to give this book a 2 or a 5—it’s brilliant and I largely did not enjoy it. The main theme (and the one from which the novel gets its name) is the lengths to which humans are able to stretch to form community and help each other, and the ways all living things are interrelated over time and space. The main subject matter is inherently distressing, though, resulting in a beautiful book that is phenomenally executed and which I hope I never have to read again.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Animal death, Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Death of parent, Medical content, Chronic illness, Death, Grief, Abandonment, and Animal cruelty

Moderate: Drug use, Alcohol, Blood, Mental illness, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

shoshin's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

5.0

I cried, I was constantly surprised and unprepared, I thought and felt deeply. A trip and a half. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Medical content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Death, Death of parent, Child death, and Grief

Moderate: Cancer, Abandonment, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Vomit, Violence, Dementia, Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, and War

If you like to be warned about disturbing content:

There is euthanasia of children in large numbers. There is also a sentient pig who chooses to die rather than suffer a painful death or be studied by the government. These are both pretty graphic descriptions, and aren't really captured by the content warnings. It's an intense book.

clea's review

dark emotional sad fast-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? No

4.0

This collection of short stories is filled with some very interesting ideas! I really liked how we got small vignettes into the lives of different people through time, as they are trying to make sense of the deaths surrounding them. How humanity evolves and invents new places (like the theme park or the hotel) and objects to find new ways to grieve and move on, is really interesting to read. But also very dark and emotional. 
I found the first three stories captivating. The ones in the middle were not so outstanding and I found myself drifting off quite a lot during the middle part (There were a little too many stories, talking about the same thing, without really bringing a new aspect to it. That is why I did not enjoy them as much.). But the last few stories spiked my interest again and I ended the book with a satisfied feeling (I really like how the last story ties everything together neatly!). 
I liked how the different stories were intertwined and that some characters would sometimes reappear in another chapter. The book is well structured and the writing is beautiful! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness and Child death

Moderate: Mental illness

bethboo's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

I have mixed feelings about this book. It was recommended to me, similar to Cloud Cuckoo Land. I don't know how true that is, since I have never read CCL. This book didn't have a main character. It was a collection of stories from different peoples points of view. Each narrative had certain details that ran through them all or references to past stories. Each one had something to do with human nature in the face of a death focused world. It was interesting and it felt like there was some weight to it because of the pandemic. 
It had a few stories that were just plain weird. Not dark or edgy or different. Just fucking weird, that made me make a face and wish that their narrative would end ASAP. Those kind of took the magic out of the book for me. Like the pig one or the copycat Eternals moment at the end. 
I really enjoyed the story of the guy who worked at the amusement park and fell in love with the mom. I enjoyed the painter's story. The one with the guy working at the print house was sad.
My stars are given for my level of enjoyment, not the inherent worth of the book. So, while the book was very well written with a cast of characters trying to piece their humanity, culture, and image of death together was a wonderful subplot, I found myself bored at moments and a little unattached to certain characters. I'm glad I read it, but it will not be a reread option for me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Animal death, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Child death, Suicide, Death, Grief, and Mental illness

Moderate: Medical content and Medical trauma

tifcochran'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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Animal death, Suicide, Child death, Mental illness, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Death of parent, and Death

readwithserena's review

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This book is so beautifully written. Each chapter is a snapshot of a story that evokes so much emotion and reflection. It reminds me of the aspects I loved of The Overstory- stories that overlap slightly, but could also stand alone.
I think this book is particularly difficult because it sits so closely to our current reality. Like Black Mirror, sometimes the most terrifying stories are the ones that we can truly imagine happening. 
I want to send this to my Environmental literature professors and my philosophy professors so that I can discuss it with them. I also want all my friends and coworkers to read this and discuss it with me too. Honestly, everyone should read this book and then have a worldwide discussion to process.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Terminal illness, Chronic illness, Mental illness, Animal death, Death of parent, Medical content, and Suicide

Minor: Abandonment, Classism, Drug use, Infidelity, Sexual content, and Religious bigotry