Reviews tagging 'Sexual violence'

Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood

31 reviews

allie_fawn's review

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Trafficking, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

Why is there no trigger warning for child pornography and child sexual abuse??? Absolutely despicable. There are details of little children being forced to do child pornography. A ton of scenes of young boys watching animal cruelty and porn. I do not know how books like this are legal, I truly don't. Shameful.

aaryn83's review

Never have I faced a book that had more of my icks than this.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Medical trauma, Gore, Emotional abuse, and Sexual violence

julesram's review

dark mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

3.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Pedophilia, and Sexual violence

aislinn_mcd_harrison's review against another edition

dark mysterious slow-paced

3.5

This was an intriguing book, deeply disturbing in parts. I think some of the explorations here were quite Surface level and I found it a very slow burn. My least favourite Atwood but I would consider reading the sequels.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Death, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Murder, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Slavery, Trafficking, Death of parent, and Excrement

bethanharcourt's review

adventurous dark medium-paced

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

3.25

I wasn't really expecting a lot of the things Jimmy got up to as a teenager. I felt quite confused about that section of the book, can see how it was a plot point, but still. The way the story was told narrative wise I enjoyed, and a glimpse into a possible future was an interesting perspective too. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual violence, Suicide, Animal cruelty, Pedophilia, and Rape

greenglass67's review

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This book is easily one of my favorites. It’s such a unique story. Snowman’s journey and his reflections upon his life as Jimmy are deeply human. He exhibits so much passion for some things and so much apathy for others. The range of his experiences and emotions is wild, but it all works together cohesively. The world Margaret Atwood creates is a very chilling commentary on technology and science, and she pushes us to question how far advanced we can get without it being too far. The ending is remarkable. There are little hints and clues laced throughout the entire book that you don’t realize until the ending ties them all together, all the pieces fit into place, and it all suddenly makes sense. It answers all the questions you have, and leaves you asking several questions more. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Body horror, Child abuse, Genocide, Trafficking, Abandonment, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Alcohol, Animal death, Blood, Medical content, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Death, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Pedophilia

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Classism, Colonisation, Drug use, and Murder

curlymango's review

dark mysterious reflective

4.0

Oryx and Crake is a miserable, disturbing, but also witty and darkly funny vision of the future where technological utilitarianism  triumphs. A slow burner at first, the flashback storyline became more fleshed out and rewarding as I read on. I felt at the beginning that Snowman as a narrator might lack depth, but you get to see his struggles with existentialism, love, shame, etc. and his ruminations on what corrupts human society.

Atwood’s writing can be exaggerated and absurd:
“‘…you’d be surprised how many people would like a very beautiful, smart baby that eats nothing but grass. The vegans are highly interested in that little item.’”

But also tragically poetic:
“Everything in his life was temporary, ungrounded. Language itself had lost its solidity; it had become thin, slippery, a viscid film on which he was sliding around like an eyeball on a plate.”

A really morbid ode to the arts.

---

Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Sexual violence, and Pedophilia

cait's review

challenging mysterious sad slow-paced

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

2.75

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Drug use, Drug abuse, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Ableism, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Classism, Death of parent, Dysphoria, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Genocide, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, Body shaming, Confinement, Sexual content, Slavery, Gore, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Blood, Pedophilia, Violence, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Cursing, Death, Kidnapping, and Vomit

hannahbailey's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

Unsure how to feel on this one. Atwood is such a good writer that I was pulled into the narrative and the world she'd built despite my immediate dislike for the protagonist. There are some interesting themes with a lot of 'what ifs' but my god, this was so bleak and depressing. Glad I made it to the end to see a bit of hope but it was quite the trudge and not at all what I was expecting!

Very reminiscent of 1984 and A Clockwork Orange in terms of its violence, intensity and reflections on the darker side of humanity. Fans of these novels (I was not a fan of either one) will almost definitely enjoy Oryx and Crake.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Gun violence, Trafficking, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Cursing, Rape, Blood, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Alcoholism, Animal death, Drug use, Genocide, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic friendship, War, Animal cruelty, Addiction, Death, Grief, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Violence, Child death, and Infidelity

thedinosaurkid's review

adventurous dark emotional funny reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Great book.
If you don't like exposition I would not reccomend this to you. Over half of the book is spent remembering the past, but in the context of the world and situation it makes sense. 
Jimmy/Snowman is a fairly accurate depiction of a dude and how a dudes mind works. Oryx and Crake are fleshed out very well and Snowman's memories are played out well. The most interesting part to me is the way that Oryx and Crake have been deity-ifed (not a word but you get my point) by Snowman and The Children of Crake. 
The symbolism is very interesting. 
The ending is ambiguous, on purpose, and gives very vague answers. It's of course frustrating to not have that satisfying ending that answers all your questions but that is the point of the book. The future remains uncertain.
Overall a good book.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic friendship, Child abuse, Rape, Mental illness, Excrement, Alcoholism, Trafficking, Sexual violence, Injury/Injury detail, Pedophilia, Animal cruelty, Drug use, Alcohol, Gore, and Animal death