Reviews tagging 'Domestic abuse'

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

2181 reviews

acgarci2's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense 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: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

iveyrenee's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.0

I lost track of how many times I cried reading this book so many emotions so sad so frustrated just so much only not 5 starts because I have to reread multiple parts because the random pov shifts caught me off guard sometimes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

emmabellex's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Car accident, and Suicide attempt

ayeshacincina's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

victaphone's review against another edition

dark sad tense slow-paced

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

0.25

Every accusation of this being unnecessary trauma porn is true. It claims to be about the lives and friendships of 4 men, but not even half way through the book it's made very clear that this is all about Jude and all the awful situations the authour revels in putting him through. The heavy-handedness when it comes to Judes suffering takes away a lot of whatever impact the authour thought she was making. The few moments Jude *isn't* being abused are way more interesting, as we actually get a hint of his actual personality (what little there is of it), rather than being Yanagiharas punching bag. Jude is clearly written to be the main character, but the author doesn't give him much character to begin with, so all talk about him being "post racial" just feels like lack of commitment, rather than whatever radical thing the authour thought she was doing with that. Don't even get me started on the horrible representation of gay men, this is *not* "the great gay novel" and whoever said that needs their head checked (although they'd probably share Yanagiharas views on how therapy doesn't work). Overall, this was a waste of over 700 pages. Even though queer representation in books could be better, a book written by a straight woman where most if not all of the gay sex is rape and most of the "gay men" are just pedos should not be met with this much acclaim.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Ableism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Kidnapping, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent

Minor: Addiction, Cursing, Eating disorder, Terminal illness, Dementia, Car accident, and Acephobia/Arophobia

tarasamson's review against another edition

emotional sad slow-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

2.5

I'm 50/50  about this book. As much as it made me feel for the characters, it was a long read. Sometimes it felt too good to be true, other times it felt too made up. I liked it and I also didn't.

I was sad, angry, frustrated, confused, and hopeful,

but in the end, it broke my heart. It's haunting to think there are things you cannot recover from.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual violence, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Suicide

lael96's review against another edition

challenging dark 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

I have never read a book so nuanced, so balanced, so true to the reality of life. This is a heavy boo, it deals with intense trauma, codependency, love, friendship, abuse, pain, fear, coping, joy, and happiness. It's a picture of life and death and the small intricacies of the relationships we all have. It's not a glorified love story, its a flawed one. This was probably one of the best books I've ever read. I also thought the author did a phenomenal job handling trauma and abuse in a way that did not feel exploitative or as a grab for attention. She wrote with a gravity and sensitivity while also not sugarcoating the reality of the situation. I appreciated that immensely 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Self harm, and Sexual assault

ophi_dprt's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-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? Yes

5.0

Where do I start?
I feel overwhelmed with emotions. I feel like I went through four, five, six different lifetimes. Jude’s, Willem’s, JB’s, Malcom’s, Harold’s, Andy’s…
I never felt as strong emotions as I felt while reading. And I felt everything. Happiness, sadness, exhaustion, despair, anxiety. Yanagihara managed to put the reader in the shoes of the characters and we FEEL for them, with them, as them.
Beautiful doesn’t begin to describe this book. It’s a metaphor of life. If it’s cruel sides but the beautiful ones as well. Of love, it’s complexities, but its greater beauty. Of loss, the pain far greater than anyone could imagine, no matter how they prepare for it. Of happiness, which blinds you and tricks you until life strikes again and you find yourself stranded, lost, back to a place you foolishly forgot.
This book taught me of the beauty of life, of love. It will stay with me, for a very, very, very long time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

wyabook234's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad 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

When it comes to A Little Life by Hanya Yangihara, some people called this book a masterpiece, while others have been giving it a reputation as being "trauma porn". While I rated this book to be about four stars, it almost came to three because, at the late beginning, I was considering my thoughts about this book.

The book meanders initially with a simple plot other than snippets of Jude's troubled past at the monastery and the gang's interactions with each other. It was when the book got to the aftermath of a dangerously abusive relationship within the Axiom of Equality that Jude finally finds a semblance of romance and comfort with a romantic partner who is willing to share his life with him. That is when the narrative got me invested in the lives of these New Yorkers, how Jude's coping mechanisms are affecting all of them, and how they bring emotional destruction instead of peace within their relationships. Speaking of trauma, it does give a depressive insight into how trauma can last with a person and pertain them with wrong ideas on how to deal with that trauma when they get older. Even if it feels like the traumatic experiences that happened to Jude throughout the narrative are overdone, it can be argued that they further played up the emotional manipulation. This type of manipulative enticing for the reader's sentiments is one of the accusations that the book is accused of pushing within it's writing, even when the literary execution is well-written and enriched. When looking at these strong male bonds and how they, unfortunately, deteriorate when traversing from young adulthood to late fifties, it will be tough to see how they all disintegrate when you feel like the feelings of love and friendship have dried up by the end. 

A Little Life has issues concerning its pacing, and the inclusion of the more disturbing abusive and medical events makes it feel like they are doing too much with detail in expressing how much a person can take. However, the book can be applauded for showing how a person can be so "broken" by their past and how it can take a toll on other people's emotional states, especially William, who's constantly pushed to his breaking point through the later half of the book. Whether you believe the story itself or Jude is enveloping or scheming to trigger you into tears, it's still a novel that unfolds much effort to let you see the enormity of their anguished lives. 

A Little Life is good but it's not better in my eyes.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, and Self harm

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, and Car accident

Minor: Child death and Vomit

breekehler's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

4.5

Took me a year and a half to finish this book. An Incredibly heart breaking read 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Trafficking, Grief, Suicide attempt, Fire/Fire injury, and Abandonment