Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

East of Eden by John Steinbeck

25 reviews

emilymean's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

deeply moving. contrary to what a lot of reviews (especially at its time of release) seem to say, I found this to be a very nuanced character study with a complex  approach to moral philosophy. belongs in the canon of great american novels  

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent, Abortion, Grief, Death, Misogyny, Murder, Infidelity, Chronic illness, Medical content, Racism, Child abuse, and Racial slurs

dizzzybrook's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Death of parent, Gun violence, Abandonment, Body shaming, Suicide, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Infidelity, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Violence

irenelpynn's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring 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: Violence, Murder, Death of parent, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Suicide

Minor: War

hailhex's review against another edition

slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Violence and Racism

Minor: Death of parent

josiew's review against another edition

inspiring reflective sad 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Infidelity, Abandonment, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Death of parent and Addiction

lief_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, War, Racial slurs, Death, Murder, Abortion, Colonisation, Death of parent, and Racism

Moderate: Infidelity

zworlund's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark hopeful reflective sad 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: Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Emotional abuse, Cursing, Death of parent, Rape, Suicide attempt, Death, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, War, and Xenophobia

ventenne's review against another edition

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

i think i’ll come back and reread east of eden at some point because of how it got me thinking, but it wasn’t something that fundamentally changed my worldview…

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, War, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Grief

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Racism, Drug abuse, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, and Racial slurs

junglejelly's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

4.25

Wanting a challenge and a classic, I picked up Steinbeck's East of Eden and got both.

The writing style is so easy to read and follow which helps with the slow pace of the novel.

The characters are the best part of the novel, I became very emotionally invested in them whether it was happiness or anger. These sets of families will not leave me for a long time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship and Racism

Moderate: Death of parent, Suicide, Murder, Death, and Violence

Minor: War and Abortion

clemrain's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.25

A story paced with characters, and yet none of them are neglected. The careful, slow developments of plot beside characters is rewarding from part to part. I felt like I was listening to a family member trace back a fascinating part of the family history. Or just town gossip told by a stranger.

The first three parts of the story were strong and I was eager to continue reading them. The fourth part is slow and, in my opinion, didn’t pay off well at a first glance. It’s because I just wanted to know the ending, and as it approached it just wasn’t what I wanted. However, I think in this book, that’s sort of the point.

The one major flaw of the story is

Cathy’s suicide. Just doesn’t line up with her character. She had too much ambition and plan. I’m not sure why the pressures and her son’s outburst could’ve led her to that.

The depth of the novel is fun to sit on and think about. I don’t see a strong agenda in the writing. Just a few different perspectives. At the end of the day, no matter what we believe we’re all just gonna die. Good point. 

Maybe some takes in this books might be sour to some. Like comparing the church to brothels. But nothing felt too outrageous to me.

I’m not sure why every female character had to have her chest detailed so much. Nevertheless, those female characters are strong and complicated. And I enjoyed their writing. None of the female characters were too alike which sometimes is a huge problem in classics. 

The biblical analogies are really strong. And I enjoyed the conversations characters had regarding them.

Overall, a long read but an accessible one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion and Animal death

Moderate: Hate crime, Medical content, Mental illness, Alcoholism, Bullying, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Self harm, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Religious bigotry, Alcohol, Classism, Gaslighting, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Sexual content, War, and Xenophobia