Reviews tagging 'Ableism'

In Memoriam by Alice Winn

4 reviews

lizziaha's review against another edition

• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

I was trying to decide, while I was reading this book, what makes boarding school stories feel so idyllic. I suppose it is the most wonderful version of life: surrounded by friends, intellectual conversations, secrets, sports, homoerotic tension. It’s not all good of course, but every time Elwood quotes a poem, I long for such an existence. But this isn’t a boarding school book exactly. It’s a war book. And it gets gory; the horrors of war are all too present in this book. But more than that, woven into every word of this book is love. There are different kinds: romantic, platonic, familial, love of life, love of country, love of poetry, but everywhere you look, there is love. And there is something captivating about love that persists against all odds. I think that is why I enjoyed the semi-epistolary nature of this book so much. It shows how these characters attempt to bundle that love up and put it into words as much as they can. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Blood, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, War, and Gore

Moderate: Alcohol, Classism, Ableism, Racism, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Antisemitism, Confinement, Homophobia, Bullying, and Sexism

Minor: Suicide, Colonisation, and Pandemic/Epidemic

bookishthots's review

adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Medical content, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Blood, Bullying, Gore, Grief, War, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Mental illness

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Homophobia, Outing, Toxic friendship, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Vomit, Suicide, Sexual violence, Self harm, Kidnapping, Sexism, Fire/Fire injury, and Bullying

Minor: Excrement, Abandonment, Ableism, and Terminal illness

luckyseven's review

dark emotional 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

5.0

Wow. Just a great book. I can’t believe this is the author’s debut novel!! It was so gut and heart wrenching, I finished it in 3 hours. The drive of the characters keeps you hooked. They can be lovable and silly, crude and cruel, they are only human after all. I highly recommend this for anyone that loves a “realistic” historical fiction book that challenges love.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Suicide, Ableism, Death, Sexual harassment, Death of parent, Violence, Blood, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Homophobia, and Alcoholism

tesslw's review against another edition

emotional sad tense

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

TW; graphic depictions of war, ableism, homophobia, injury 

I can say, in confidence, that this will be one of my favourite books of the year. It’s very rare that I find characters so raw, nuanced, and whom I feel so quickly and deeply invested in as I did with Henry Gaunt and Sidney Ellwood in this novel (even typing ‘Sidney’ almost makes me feel teary; and if you know, you know!)

In Memoriam begins in 1914, during the precipice and subsequent arrival  of World War 1; beginning with two best friends at boarding school, both hiding their deep rooted love for the other, believing it to be unrequited and fearing the societal dangers as well as potential damage to friendship of admitting such feelings. At the tender age of 18, Gaunt also has to battle with his dual heritage; being half German when the two parts of him become mortal enemies is a tough thing to reconcile.  But ultimately, his destiny is at the front; and wherever Gaunt goes, Ellwood will follow - age restrictions be damned. Despite separations across time, space, a whole continent and a literal no man’s land, the two can’t help but try and find each other. 

The beauty of this book is beyond anything I was expecting - each character is so nuanced, so fully formed and so deeply human. There is cruelty, there is love and there is fear beyond anything that I hope I will ever know. It also really served to remind me of the horrors of war, and the unfathomable truth of how young so many of the men who were died were, in the name of ‘their country’.  The way that violence and tenderness are so deeply overlayed is nothing short of masterful. There are some bonds that truly can’t be broken. 

Thank you so so much to @Viking Books for gifting me an advance copy of this - I loved it from start to finish and I can’t wait to get my hands on a finished copy now that it is published and out in the world. I can’t encourage you to do the same enough.  

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: War and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism and Homophobia