Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

Women Talking by Miriam Toews

66 reviews

cait's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Classism

Minor: Alcoholism and Alcohol

mtehan7's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

cassie7e's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

I picked this up after a neighbor highly recommended the film. This book was hard for me given the subject matter of the inciting incident, but had much questioning and discussion that I found enriching and important to think about. I loved the characterizations of each woman and girl, how their ages and personalities played into their behaviors and dialogue. Some people dislike that it's women talking in circles but (as per the title) that is the point; the story witnesses women taking control, thinking and talking for themselves, challenging each other, and this is how decision making happens. It felt real and not at all superficial. So don't read this if you need books to have concrete plot.

Some may also dislike that it's narrated by a man, and that the "minutes" are more of a transcript. 

I'm surprised that so many reviews disliked the religious focus of the discussions when it's clearly about Mennonite women, people in an explicitly religious colony separated from the rest of the world. Of course religious questions will be of primary concern for these women! And I did not see them as cold and inadequately outraged - they are seriously discussing actions that defy their entire social structure as a result of the atrocity they experienced, and as many trauma victims, are detaching themselves from the feelings so they can make decisions without shutting down and losing their opportunity to make a choice at all.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Child abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Pregnancy

Minor: Death, Miscarriage, and Vomit

marahasenstaub's review against another edition

emotional funny informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, and Religious bigotry

isabellalinares's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

3.5

Chilling and very upsetting this is actually based on a true event. 

Written thoughtfully & heartbreakingly 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

lucyhcurtis's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.75

Phenomenal. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, and Sexual violence

sydapel's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

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

3.5

 For me, this is an issue of form rather than subject matter. Perhaps because I was reading this knowing it would become a movie, but I struggled heavily with how limited this feels textually, particularly as it's through a male perspective. Which I know is part of the point, and I would have fun arguing about that in an English classroom. 

If you're looking for an really profound philosophical debate about faith, forgiveness, guilt, anger and difficult choices that women living in deeply patriarchal societies face, this excels. It's hard to digest, especially knowing it's based on reality, so please do check trigger warnings. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Religious bigotry, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Death, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Blood and Excrement

ptolemystoned's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, and Pregnancy

danidimuzio's review against another edition

funny inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

After seeing the reviews I was a bit nervous to read this book, but I’m glad I did anyway. The writing is very stylized, conversational and wandering, and every once in a while, shocking. I thought the way the author imagined the decision-making process of the women was beautiful and showed a spectrum of female strength. It’s definitely an interesting choice to tell this story from the perspective of a man but I think it highlighted that toxic masculinity is taught and learned, not something that is inherent in men. This is a great book for book clubs and I would even go so far as to say it could be assigned reading for feminist literature or sociology courses.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide

the_beatific_bluestocking's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-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? No

4.0

📖 Book Review + Spoilers 📖

Snow in the spring and we're all quite grouchy. We pump our bike tires, pack away our sweaters, rejoice in the sunshine to every soul we meet, even though we know, we KNOW this happens. ❄️

What a trip to read this book while my little corner of the world erupts in a second round of seasonal affective disorder. 

Women Talking is the somewhat true story of a Bolivian Mennonite community in the early 2000s. For years the women believed they were being visited by ghosts, demons, even the devil in the night or made to believe the violence they experienced in their sleep was a figment of their wild imaginations. When the truth is revealed, more than 300 cases of rape over four years, the women have 48 hours to decide what they will make of their lives in the aftermath.

This book is dialogue heavy without a single quotation mark. Toews brilliantly blurs the lines of opinion, emotion, and description with this strategy. I often forgot I was reading a fictional account and got quite involved in their debates questioning love, faith, loyalty, forgiveness, and liberation in a completely unknown world. Suddenly, shoveling snow doesn't seem so bad.

Here's the spoiler‼️

In reality, the women never left the colony, they never fought for a new way forward, today several women are attempting to recant their testimony and free the imprisoned men. I feel my whole body react to this. I shovel snow and wonder how they can be saved, do I go to Bolivia myself, do they want to be saved, they must, this is unreal, this is real, this is happening, right now.

Women Talking pulled me outside of my own protected rural bubble, to feel the sharp pain of a stranger's experience, to feel, feel, feel...to remember this is why I read and this is what really good books are made of.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Death of parent