Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

174 reviews

jayisreading's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

4.0

Based on the real story of the Dozier School for Boys in Florida during the Jim Crow era, The Nickel Boys was heartbreaking to read, considering the horrors that Black boys faced. Something I really appreciate about Whitehead’s writings is how he shows the lasting reverberations of anti-Blackness in the United States by focusing closely on a specific aspect of the country’s history. Despite the horrors that exist in these pages (and in United States history), I was surprised by the amount of love and resilience that came through. It really made the ending all the more gut-wrenching, especially as you grow a particular fondness for Elwood.

Not that there’s ever a really good headspace to be in when reading such a devastating novel, but I think I could have appreciated this novel more if I had less on my plate while reading it. I felt that I read this in a rush and didn’t get the chance to fully appreciate Whitehead’s efforts. Considering this, I really would like to revisit this novel when I can really put more care into what’s happening.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Death, Violence, Child abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, and Murder

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Alcoholism and Domestic abuse

carlycompton22's review against another edition

dark reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.5

Poignant look at the perpetration of racism in America through the lens of a boys reform school in Florida during the Jim Crow era. The striking account of the horrors suffered at the school against the backdrop of the Civil Rights movement and precisely placed MLK quotes create a vivid picture of how ideals crash into reality like oil and vinegar. Slightly lower rating because I listened on audiobook and couldn't get used to the narrator's speaking style or keep track of all the characters well so I think I lost some of the impact of the book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Racism, and Racial slurs

orizenda's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes

4.0

The ending hit me like a truck. Like even though you’re somewhat expecting it… you’re not expecting that. at least i wasn’t. knowing nothing about the dozier school other than essentially the fictionalized account of it in the reformatory by tananarive due, my heart was breaking reading this and being forced to realize that the fiction may not be that far from the truth these boys had to live. it’s horrific that this is not so far in our history

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Confinement, Child abuse, and Child death

sabrinalefebvre's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Death

Minor: Rape

parenthesis_enjoyer's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Racial slurs, Racism, Child death, Physical abuse, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Torture, and Child abuse

Moderate: Ableism, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Bullying, and Medical content

Minor: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Alcohol

jennswan's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Violence, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Racism, Racial slurs, Forced institutionalization, Rape, Grief, Murder, Sexual assault, and Physical abuse

jlfields925's review against another edition

sad medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Child abuse, Child death, Violence, Death, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Gun violence

penhaligon's review against another edition

dark reflective sad tense 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

Having also read Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad, going in I knew it’d be intense, and I knew it’d be worth it.

First, I found the writing style very interesting in The Nickel Boys. Much like the environment and happenings in the book, the writing style was not flowery or flowing. At times it was curt, it was precise, it would cut a sentence into two or three short ones. Very contrary to what I normally read and enjoy, it really made me stop, literally, multiple times to make me focus on the “why” of the styling chosen, which I think made things more impactful for me; at times I even reread to see if there was a hidden meaning of intent. It wasn’t so much that it was difficult or confusing, but more so gave me pause.

The tale itself is sad: full stop. Sure there are moments of positivity, of hope and optimism. But ultimately, it is a tragic, yet necessary, fictional telling of the worst of humanity. And being fiction, it is easy to understand and digest. I will say the ending threw me - I guessed it a bit before the Epilogue, but not early enough that it spoiled anything. And honestly it makes me want to reread it to see if I can pick out the context clues which were sprinkled along the way.

Can definitely understand why this won a Pulitzer. Definitely recommend. I finished it in ~6 hours over two days.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Racism, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Homophobia, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, Rape, Torture, Adult/minor relationship, and Bullying

agavemonster's review against another edition

dark reflective sad fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

"When he was little, he kept lookout on the dining room of the Richmond Hotel. It had been closed to his race and one day it would open. He waited and waited. In the dark cell, he reconsidered his vigil. The recognition he sought went beyond brown skin—he was looking for someone who looked like him, for someone to claim as kin. For others to claim him as kin, those who saw the same future approaching, slow as it may be and overfond of back roads and secret hardscrabble paths, attuned to the deeper music in the speeches and hand-painted signs of protest. Those ready to commit their weight to the great lever and move the world. They never appeared. In the dining room or anywhere else."

A sober, cynical, heartbreaking work written in the long dark shadow cast by true history. As in the great American novels, each character serves to symbolize a social role or system, but is starkly and truthfully etched in the details of their own specific existence as well. Elwood and Turner could be perceived as ciphers of the two survival strategies of Black Americans pre-civil rights—standing up straight in a shirt and tie to demand your dignity like Elwood's hero MLK, and doing what needs to be done to run the "obstacle course" in which Turner has lived his whole life—but they're also two young boys who are caught in the crosshairs of this Jim Crow-era torture house, and you can't forget it. The daily degradations are inescapable, and the horrors you don't see are sketched in light pencil contour, just enough to wrench your gut as you fill in the rest of the picture. This happens again and again. The intimately depicted evil of the white superintendents and staff runs the gamut from complicity to sadism. "The sons held the old ways close." Griff and Chet's boxing match really killed me. Finally, I should have seen the well-foreshadowed turn near the end, but it still blew me apart: brilliance and tragedy. One of my best books of the year.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Pedophilia, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Murder, Racism, Racial slurs, Confinement, Child abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Torture

ominous_emu'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? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Physical abuse, Racism, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Child death, and Confinement

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Rape, Classism, Pedophilia, Abandonment, and Cursing