Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

Yolk, by Mary H.K. Choi

8 reviews

cerilouisereads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Racism, Sexual content, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Medical content, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Cursing, Cancer, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

Moderate: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Gaslighting, and Drug use

cady_sass's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

“This story might be emotionally expensive for you” 

That kinda says it all, doesn’t it? What a beautiful, honest piece of writing. There is a delicate balance between loving these character and hating them, and we walk it closely, but that is what makes them come alive. The realities of family and childhood trauma and what we become, and how we carry it with us even when we run far away. The reality of living in world (country) where treating illness is a luxury. It takes a bit to get into it and, admittedly, I put it down for a few days at one point but I’m so glad I picked it back up. I love this with my whole heart. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Alcohol, Cursing, Chronic illness, Excrement, Self harm, Sexual content, Cancer, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Fatphobia, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, and Grief

hels_archive's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

Review Summary : In terms of pacing, I'd likely have finished this book in a day if it didn't elicit so many emotions. As the reader, you shadow Jayne through the thick of it all: her environment, her relationships, her memories, and her self destructive choices. While the most remarkable facet of the story lies in the character development, the plot pulse is strong to carry the narrative to the end. And speaking of the ending, hands down one of my favorite book endings to date. It's a book of complicated love, for self and others, a book about growth and healing for the self, and a book of fernweh... of longing to longing for places you've never been and connections you crave.

Rating: 5/5 . Jayne's gonna stick with me for a long time and if you're young, questionably dumb, and carrying unresolved hurts I think you should give it a read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Medical content, and Grief

Moderate: Alcoholism, Alcohol, Body shaming, Cancer, and Chronic illness

Minor: Blood, Bullying, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Pregnancy, and Emotional abuse

literateilliterate's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Sexual harassment, Racism, and Medical content

woolgatherer's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

3.5

I saw a lot of praise for Yolk and, out of curiosity, decided to pick it up. I should preface that I’m really particular about YA books, one of the reasons being that I often find myself not liking the protagonists very much. Unfortunately, this was the case with Yolk, too, but my feelings for Jayne were... far more complicated than I anticipated. I understand why she acted the way she did throughout this book. It’s frustrating when you’re on the outside, knowing how so much of this could be solved with some help, but also knowing that you can’t... quite force it, either. It’s more so the case when you’ve also been in a similar position of spiraling, knowing how hard it is to get out of it. However, there’s only so much self-sabotaging you can deal with before it gets too frustrating that you start resenting the character. I think what upsets me is that you do see glimpses of positive development, especially towards the end, but it makes me wish that was occurring throughout the book.

Some things felt a bit too forced for my taste such as the whole relationship with Patrick which honestly felt random and somewhat out-of-place, or the dysfunctional elements of relationships. Regarding the latter, I think showing the messiness of it all was executed well (maybe too well), especially when it came to the relationship Jayne had with her sister, June. I think Choi could have pulled back a little to allow for some more plot development.

All in all, I think some really important topics were covered, especially about eating disorders. I think Choi really navigated this with sensitivity and grace but without sugarcoating anything. It’s rare to see a book cover this matter, despite its prevalence in society, and I appreciate that the book exists for people to feel a little less alone and understand that, like Jayne, help and support are always there. I would have loved more on the family relationships, since that was clearly important but it came and went so quickly sometimes. It wouldn’t make sense to take it out, but it didn’t feel as though there was enough either. But I’m glad that, at the very least, Choi dove deep into the sisters’ relationship that showed how complex they can get. It feels rare to see books that centers sibling relationships as much as Yolk did, and despite my complaints earlier, I appreciated the time she took to develop their relationship. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Eating disorder, Medical content, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Vomit

Moderate: Blood, Emotional abuse, Racism, Sexism, and Sexual content

Minor: Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, and Suicidal thoughts

cahpicasso's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

what an incredible read!

so much more intense than I'd expected, it felt incredibly accurate even though I never struggled like Jayne. You'll get to see complicated family dynamics, mixed feelings all the time, not knowing what to do with life and wondering if you're the only one who never figure things out.

I loved all the pop-culture references and wish I could follow these characters for a long time after finishing it. 🖤

beware of the trigger warnings at the beginning, it truly is a wild ride. (also, I think the "when the party's over" quote was straight-up brilliant). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Xenophobia, Racism, Vomit, Alcohol, Eating disorder, Body shaming, and Cancer

Moderate: Miscarriage and Abandonment

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

bubbletea's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder and Suicidal thoughts

eeviee's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Suicidal thoughts, Self harm, Racism, and Medical content