Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

31 reviews

akvolcano's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gore, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Violence, Bullying, Colonisation, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Abandonment, Abortion, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Genocide, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Chronic illness, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Ableism, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Racism, Sexual harassment, and Toxic relationship

libristella's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Murder, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, Confinement, Police brutality, Forced institutionalization, Death, Dementia, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Racism, Child abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, Violence, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, and Racial slurs

bgunther's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

A must read! Excellent storytelling by an author whose lived experience shines light on the horrific nature of incarceration in America. This story broke my heart but also inspired me to become a fellow “stone catcher” to intercept the stones thrown at the most innocent and vulnerable among us. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Death, Gun violence, Grief, Sexual assault, Racism, Sexual harassment, Medical trauma, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Mental illness, Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Police brutality, Miscarriage, Rape, Hate crime, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Confinement, Child death, Slavery, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, and Colonisation

pichine's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Death

danimcthomas's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

Absolutely life-changing. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Confinement, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Gun violence, Sexual violence, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Death, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, Racism, Slavery, Suicide, Child abuse, Child death, Medical trauma, Murder, Suicide attempt, Miscarriage, Rape, Self harm, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Mental illness, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Domestic abuse, and Stalking

bookshelfmystic's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring sad medium-paced

4.5

"The death penalty is not about whether people deserve to die for the crimes they commit. The real question of capital punishment in this country is, Do we deserve to kill?"

What kind of society do we build when we delight in killing?

Just Mercy is an important book. As much as I already opposed the death penalty, this book gave me so many more reasons. Bryan Stevenson masterfully shows the reader, time and time again, that the justice system in the United States is cruel, unfair, and designed for retribution--and, very often, used as a tool for racial oppression.

There were stories I could hardly believe were true, like the totally innocent being sentenced to decades in prison--regularly--and the absolute mockery of impartiality Stevenson witnessed time and again during trials for Black defendants, especially in the South. But Stevenson is the perfect author for this subject: he's spent his life in the trenches, seeing firsthand how broken the justice system is and working within it to fix it, slowly, slowly, but with each small victory changing one more life.

I very much enjoyed the writing of the book (and the author's narration) - it was accessible and engaging throughout. My only minor complaint (and the reason for 4/5 stars) is that I felt it was a little scattered. Each chapter focuses on either the story of Walter and his wrongful conviction or on a different aspect of the justice system, usually with a whole new set of people to learn about. Each story was fascinating, but I found it a bit hard to keep track of all of the cases and the overall flow of the book. Nevertheless, this book is extremely worth reading, and Stevenson's activism and life work are courageous and inspiring.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Forced institutionalization, and Racism

Moderate: Police brutality and Miscarriage

Minor: Death of parent

xoxojaydub's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Forced institutionalization, Death, and Gun violence

Moderate: Racial slurs and Slavery

Minor: Ableism, Alcohol, Addiction, and Abortion

zoinkie's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Death, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Rape, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Murder, and Physical abuse

julybunny's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Adult/minor relationship, Toxic relationship, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Biphobia, Child death, Confinement, Death, Classism, Drug use, Alcoholism, Abandonment, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Toxic friendship, and Suicide

nicolesbookreviews's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Police brutality, Confinement, Torture, Physical abuse, Rape, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Classism, Death, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Ableism, Alcoholism, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, Grief, and Gun violence