A review by rosiejode
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring lighthearted sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

Wow. Easily the most beautiful but most harrowing thing I’ve ever read. This book took me just under a month to read and I’m glad I spread it out over the month. It was so sad I can’t even express and I somewhat agree with the label ‘trauma porn’ that it’s been given by other people. I feel like this book will live with me for a while and I will miss all of the characters. I’d like to read it again over a shorter period of time, maybe next time I’m ready to weep uncontrollably 😢 read with caution ⚠️

9 days later - I still feel empty and can’t stop thinking about this book 😭

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail