Reviews tagging 'Fire/Fire injury'

The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak

12 reviews

mr_cain's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense slow-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 love the fig tree as a narrator!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Death, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Alcohol, Colonisation, and War

Moderate: Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Police brutality, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Alcoholism and Torture

utopiaandmelancholy's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

Stunningly written. The subject matter is difficult, but the hope shines through as well. I wasn't very aware of the history around the Cyprus civil war, which is still in very recent history, but this was a vivid and personal introduction. The fig tree sections I also thought were beautiful. I already have an interest in plant science so I did already know some of the amazing facts that are shared, but I loved the way they also support the story. A fantastic exploration of love against the odds, generational trauma, and the fracturing of a community in a troubled time.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Drug abuse, Drug use, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Colonisation

Minor: Abortion

miaaa_lenaaa's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? Yes

3.75

There were a lot of things that i really enjoyed about this book and i do think it is very good but i think because i liked it, it frustrated me more at times
Like the bits from the fig tree: super interesting idea, love that as a way to tell history! But should have been edited down way more, and sometimes it felt too non fictiony for a fiction book
Also there were several different quotes i really liked but if that because sometimes it feels like she just keeps saying the say thing until she can get it across perfectly? Idk felt like it should have been edited more
So yeah would recommend, and it was v good and with a really interesting topic that ive not read about before but also why would a bee be able to read? Y’know?

‘People assume it's a matter of personality, the difference between optimists and pessimists. But I believe it all comes down to an inability to forget. The greater your powers of retention, the slimmer your chances at optimism.’

‘when you leave your home for unknown shores, you don't simply carry on as before; a part of you dies inside so that another part can start all over again.’

‘'Because the past is a dark, distorted mirror. You look at it, you only see your own pain. There is no room in there for someone else's pain.'’

‘sometimes what you called a perpetrator was just another name for an unacknowledged victim.’

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, and War

nicolaparty's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Kidnapping

bethancy's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

I was a bit intimidated by this book at first, but once I got into the story I couldn't put it down. This books is so beautiful and is packed with powerful images, revelations, and emotion. I really loved it, and the story will remain with me for a long time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Xenophobia, Abortion, and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Mental illness, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

Minor: Rape and Fire/Fire injury

mraddd's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Mental illness, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Suicide, Islamophobia, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal death, Bullying, and Sexual content

itsheyfay's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Racism, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Suicide, Medical content, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

watermelleon's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

I need to have another cry and talk about this at book club before writing a review here.... I read a huge chunk of this today and it has been nothing but crying my eyes out with little water breaks. my library copy now has mascara smudges on it, nothing I can do about that I guess :s

in short - best book I have read in a long time. it is beautifully written, surprisingly close to home and relatable, generally so informative on topics I new nothing about (that I probably should have!). it has changed my outlook on many perspectives in my life. this is a lifechanging book that I will be recommending to everyone. there are some tough, tough topics but so much hope and nostalgia as well.

on a personal note: This book has allowed me to reflect on my own recently-uprooted family history, and has helped me reflect on that as well the now clear impact of this on my family moving down through the generations.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Drug abuse, Genocide, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Terminal illness

War Imagery throughout and discussion of death of multiple characters in detail (not graphic in terms of gore, but explains how they died). Colonisation: discussion throughout of colonisation in relation to cyprus and the effects of this, more focussed on the cultural impact than graphic/gore detail. Pregnancy and Children:

a child dies at a young age of malaria, child is assumed for a while to be an abortion.

Terminal Illness:

Main Character's grand parents died as a result of cancer- they were poisoned by asbestos from some overalls used for working in the mines

Sucide / alcohol / drug use:

the main character's mother is revealed to have killed herself, was an alcoholic and took pills to end her life

Mental Illness: many themes of mental illness throughout, especially a big theme of inheriting generational trauma (war related) and how this impacts younger generations the most. Bullying

short scene of bullying in a british school at the beginning of the book

Panic Attacks

short scene of bullying in a british school at the beginning of the book. The main character has a panic attack and screams during her class, an incident which is later discussed.

Homophobia

an interracial gay couple (two men) are kidnapped and killed within context of a war, it is suggested that their sexuality is a part of the attack as well as their conflicting cutural backgrounds

Kidnapping

an interracial gay couple are kidnapped and killed within context of a war, suggested that their sexuality is a part of the attack as well as their conflicting cutural backgrounds

ciaomara's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Hate crime, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Colonisation, and War

achingallover's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Death, Hate crime, Mental illness, Racism, Violence, Blood, Islamophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail