Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Pet by Akwaeke Emezi

9 reviews

morebedsidebooks's review against another edition

tense

5.0

“Monster’s don’t look like anything, doux-doux. That’s the whole point. That’s the whole problem.” 

In Pet by Akwaeke Emezi after a revolution that changed so many of the terrible things to come before, Lucille is a peaceful utopian-like place. But in its success is still shadow. The same blind spots, the same even stronger disbelief. Not here. Monsters are not here, those bad things are long past, they do not happen here. But like a fairy tale or the innermost of nightmares out of a painting comes the powerful creature Pet, a hunter. Is Pet a monster or an avenging angel? What is justice? Seventeen-year-old Jam, her friend Redemption, their families, and the whole community will be challenged with questions and the remedies thought of long resolved. 

One of the most fascinating yet only touched upon aspects of this novel is the radically changed society, greatly improving the lives of the people. It’s certainly better for a selectively mute trans girl like Jam. Yet among the many shifts one was especially thought provoking. History is full of conflicts around religion. Yet, the loss of religion through conflicts or prohibitions is usually a bad sign. So, this was an early red flag that something is very wrong in the book’s world. Further in the real world it doesn’t work. People just go underground. It made me more certain about what other hidden things were going on in Lucielle, not just the monster Pet came to hunt. Also, there are differences between religion and faith or belief. Even a reader can see how concepts persist like the subject of angels, human or otherwise, in the book. Most of the issues around religion boil down as Redemption puts it to a battle for control. Power, over property, people, bodies, thoughts, religious bigotry or hate and intolerance masquerading under the guise of religious conviction. 

It’s interesting as well how much Lucille puts on librarians to assist since material on monsters, angels, holy texts etc. is in the library where one must go with such questions, not other sources. School education around some topics is minimal at best. Most adults are hesitant or uncooperative when asked. Indeed, sometimes a library is the only source available. It too makes one think about how in reality institutions like libraries, schools and their workers are under attack. Then Pet also has become a banned book. The failure of this lack of representation and education is also another part of the problem in Lucille. This is a story when being able to recognize the signs of an abuser, the abuse, and the victim comes late. Or is just ignored. Until made to. And how it affects many. 

Emezi manages to write heavy topics with subtly and sensitivity. This YA novel is well deserving of every accolade. Pet is a book that only speaks more to very real problems that must be faced. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Pedophilia, Child abuse, Blood, and Gore

Minor: Death, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Ableism, Transphobia, Slavery, Cursing, Police brutality, Racism, Classism, and Gun violence

lynxpardinus's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional reflective tense

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Child abuse, and Violence

Moderate: Police brutality, Medical content, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Panic attacks/disorders, Gaslighting, Racism, Injury/Injury detail, and Incest

Minor: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Religious bigotry, Toxic relationship, War, Mental illness, Sexual content, Abandonment, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Mass/school shootings, Ableism, Confinement, Gore, Suicide, Transphobia, and Vomit

Ableism warning is to err on the side of caution, for disability framed as a punishment near the end.

oddlyghoul's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Child abuse, Dysphoria, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, and Violence

Minor: Gun violence, Police brutality, Transphobia, Death, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Genocide, Ableism, Religious bigotry, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Antisemitism, Child abuse, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Drug abuse, Classism, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Islamophobia, Violence, and War

heydebigale's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful medium-paced

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

5.0

I read this book with my 8 yo and 11 yo and they did not want me to stop reading! 

Jam is a Black trans girl living in what seems to be a utopia now that all monsters have been removed.

Jam’s mom’s painting comes alive as Pet to help Jam find the monster in her community.

“Forgetting is dangerous. Forgetting is how the monsters come back.”

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse

Minor: Gun violence

amre23's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Gore, Body horror, Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Incest

Moderate: Body horror, Rape, Ableism, Confinement, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual violence, Gaslighting, Deadnaming, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Dysphoria, Murder, Mass/school shootings, Gun violence, Medical content, Suicide, Police brutality, Cursing, and Sexual violence

nerdysread's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Okay. But this book was such a great one. I loved it and read it in less than a day. It’s probably my fav book for this month. It’s short and so great 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Child abuse

Moderate: Pedophilia and Body horror

Minor: Gun violence and Police brutality

lapis's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful medium-paced

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

4.75

This is marketed as YA, probably because the protagonist, Jam, is around 15 or 16. Some have suggested this as Middle Grade, because Jam sounds much younger than your typical YA protagonist.

This is where it gets complicated.

This takes place in a police-less, prison-less Utopia (but I repeat myself), and different family structures are not looked at as different (one of the supporting characters comes from a PolyAm family).

Jam is trans and selectively mute, so you will see her sign a lot, which is signified in Italics, though she does talk when she's comfortable. Basically everyone in society is fine with that. Great!

The "this protagonist is immature" thing has a few aspects I suppose. 
1. If teenagers are teenagers in YA, the adults (it's usually the adult-readers) get mad that they're acting immature. 
2. We as a society do not allow black children to be children. Black girls are viewed as sexual objects much younger than white girls, and black boys are rarely if ever correctly identified by age guesstimates (by white people). 

I think it's likely both of the above fit into the complaints. I will not deny that Jam acts "younger" than I would expect a 16-year-old in YA to do (and probably more than I would expect of a black protagonist). 
But this is a view at a possible utopia, and I think the message is that "in this utopia we try to allow children to be children"

Of course what is this book but the killing of that innocence?

The premise is that all the "monsters" of the past are gone, dead and defeated by the "Angels"

But what do you do when a creature comes to life to hunt a Monster in your town that they insist exists?

Of course, the monster exists. The problem is that everyone denies its existence.

And is there a way to deal with monsters other than execution? This book argues yes. 

I think this is worth reading, but do not go in expecting a typical Young Adult title. Because it's not.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual violence, and Gun violence

talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gore, and Violence

Moderate: Child abuse, Pedophilia, Incest, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Blood, and Panic attacks/disorders

Minor: Gun violence, Police brutality, Child death, Murder, Suicide, and Hate crime

Minor warnings mostly apply to backstory/worldbuilding information provided early on. Child abuse (emotional, physical, and implied sexual) is heavily discussed and thematically relevant but not actually shown on-page, nor is it described in explicit detail.

horizonous's review against another edition

dark hopeful reflective medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, and Violence

Minor: Child abuse, Gun violence, Rape, and Sexual violence