Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Carry by Toni Jensen

22 reviews

melodys_library's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence and Colonisation

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Mental illness, and Physical abuse

Minor: Dementia, Trafficking, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

katharina90's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective slow-paced

5.0

This memoir is so, so beautifully written. 

The content is sometimes difficult to stomach, as one would expect, but the lyrical writing kept me glued to this book.

The essays are tied together by an interesting assortment of thematic and stylistic threads, incl. gun violence, birds, the importance of language, and the oft-repeated phrase "in this, our America". 

"It’s okay, I’ve learned, to love the things that make you, even if they also are the things that unmake you."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Drug abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Mental illness, Racism, Police brutality, Trafficking, Mass/school shootings, and Colonisation

Minor: Rape, Suicide, Kidnapping, and Murder

snowiceblackfruit77's review against another edition

dark emotional informative medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Pandemic/Epidemic

mirandaleighhhh's review

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Racism, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Grief

cuddlygryphon's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Dementia, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Cancer, Child abuse, Genocide, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Suicide, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, and Sexual harassment

callielseaman's review against another edition

dark informative reflective sad slow-paced

2.5

 really liked so much about this book: relevant political topics, indigenous representation, heart wrenching stories about what it’s like to live in America today. What I struggled with was the structure. There was enough information and story here to have been a beautiful chronological memoir, but instead it was a collection of essays in a confusing order. This took me so much longer to read than similar length books because I was getting consumed about where we were and who the people were (ex: a new boyfriend or the later husband, mom or stepmom?, does dad have a girlfriend?). I do think this memoir has some great, valuable perspective; I just really wish the story had been in order.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

cbeghuin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Gun violence, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Alcoholism

amandacssingh's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Gun violence, Sexual assault, and Violence

Minor: Rape

jessicablehman's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Domestic abuse

jayisreading's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

4.25

Carry is moving and heartbreaking, written from the perspective of a Métis woman who also happens to be white-passing. I really appreciate how Jensen presented her insights with this in mind and its relations to the various topics she covers ranging from gun violence to domestic abuse. She doesn’t shy away from sensitive topics but never sensationalizes them. There’s a lot of care that went into each chapter, especially as Jensen considered the impact various circumstances and issues had on her own life.

I would say it’d be more accurate to describe this book as a collection of essays tinged with personal anecdotes as opposed to a memoir due to its structure. Not that this is a bad thing, since I still enjoyed this memoir (of sorts). Something I really appreciate about Carry is Jensen’s unique voice and writing style. It was very clear that she found her rhythm, which allowed each chapter to come together as beautifully as they did.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, and Mass/school shootings

Moderate: Racism, Trafficking, and Classism

Minor: Genocide, Rape, and Suicide