wellreadsyd 's review for:

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

5.0

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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This book completely wrecked me. In less than 300 pages, the author packs in an unimaginable amount of heartbreak, trauma, and injustice. The reformatory school, based on the real Dozier School, was nothing short of a torture chamber for the boys sent there. I wanted to weep for Elwood—so full of hope and goodness—who ended up at Nickel Academy simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The abuse these boys endured was horrifying—beatings, sexual assault, forced labor, and the ever-present weight of racism and segregation. And that ending? I did not see it coming. Haunting, powerful, and necessary. A gut-punch of a book. 5 stars, no question.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Rape, Sexual violence, Blood