Reviews tagging 'Sexual harassment'

Being Lolita: A Memoir by Alisson Wood

10 reviews

jackieyvette's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

4.0

What can I say? There are never words that can really cover the way you feel when you read something like this. 
It's raw in a way only women can be. 


Crying score: none

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Gaslighting, Suicidal thoughts, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, and Terminal illness

laurenvoice's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

5.0

Being Lolita: a memoir is brave, raw and emotional.

Giving this memoir anything less than five stars would be an insult. Alisson Wood bared her heart and soul in telling her story of power and abuse. Wood beautifully intertwined her story with Nabokov's story Lolita.

Part i was about grooming and emotional manipulation.

Part ii was about emotional and physical abuse.

Part iii was about discovering the truth, breaking the cycles and patterns of being in abusive relationships, and relearning what love is. Part iii spoke about the language used in stories to manipulate the reader, like in Lolita.

In this memoir, Wood made reference to Disney princesses: Ariel, Snow White and Sleeping Beauty; all these girls, portrayed as young and vulnerable, needing a "grown man", their prince, to save them. There were references to Alice in Alice in Wonderland, who was a child, small and vulnerable. And there were references to Lolita, Dolores Haze, a young girl, a child abused by an adult man, described as the seductress, as the one with all the power. When in fact, it was Humbert with all the power. Just like Alisson, she never had the power in her story; she was vulnerable and preyed upon; the teacher held all the power, and he used language and stories to manipulate her.

Being Lolita: a memoir is an emotional but empowering read. To understand the references made within this book, I would recommend reading Lolita by Nabokov. However, Wood does a spectacular job of speaking about the use of language used by Nabokov to manipulate the reader. Being Lolita: a memoir is an essential read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Domestic abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Emotional abuse, and Mental illness

Minor: Self harm

thebookpaiges's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Blood, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Pregnancy, Self harm, and Death

hate_crimed_at_chilis's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Rape, Pedophilia, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, and Adult/minor relationship

bookwormfr_t0's review against another edition

challenging dark sad fast-paced

5.0

Beautiful written, painfully sad. Susan Choi wrote the blurb on the front "Being Lolita is an act of redemption".  I couldn't agree more.  Her story was written for her by the teacher, and she re-wrote it in truth.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Rape, and Sexual assault

readingwithbec's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Adult/minor relationship, and Rape

marcia__amelie's review against another edition

challenging dark sad tense medium-paced

4.25

 

a raw, agonising & vulnerable exploration of abuse, consent & exploitation. this book was an emotional journey, knowing that this was a real story. that this was somebody’s life. the writing was haunting & lyrical most of the time but there were some aspects that i found a bit too vague. it was deeply uncomfortable reading how the teacher misinterprets the twisted classic “lolita,” to justify his abuse. the last third of the book genuinely made me cry. her adult voice taking over as she realised what she experienced & had to endure was not love was devastating. the scene where she was looking at the old photographs and it dawned on her that she was just a child??? crying. the way wood breaks from nabokov’s narrative structure to rewrite her own story was uplifting & memorable. the strength and courage it must have took to lay your heart bare and tell this story is remarkable. it’s a memoir i believe people should read but please look at the trigger warnings!! this is not an easy read!! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

poptina's review against another edition

challenging dark inspiring sad fast-paced

3.75

Hard to get through at times but I loved the ending.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Rape, and Pedophilia

Once you get past all of those warnings it’s good

nura_aga's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual assault, Rape, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Misogyny, Mental illness, and Gaslighting

angel_lyd's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Alisson Wood tells the story of her grooming and eventually abusive relationship with her high school english teacher, she discusses the story of lolita and how her partner happily viewed their relationship as similar to Dolores and Humbert’s. It’s a good read for anyone who has experienced grooming or abuse, I found it helpful to be able to hear a similar story to my own and know that following this she has still managed to be successful and happy. It’s a heavy, sad story and you definitely have to be in a good head space to read it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, and Violence