Reviews tagging 'Rape'

Blondi by Joyce Carol Oates

12 reviews

bloodypuppe's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

britanicadramatica's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

I have incredibly conflicting feelings about this book. It is incredibly well-written, yet it is very slow-paced. There were several times where I picked up the book and felt like I had been reading for hours, only to have read about 20 pages. What causes me conflict, is that it is a fictional "exploration" of the life of Marilyn Monroe - so a lot is to be taken with a grain of salt. 

However, It was reflective and provided an incredible insight on femininity. Especially, what it's like to be a woman who is sought after, never taken seriously, and increasingly objectified, no matter how hard she tries to love and be loved. I felt several moments of sadness and empathy. As a woman, a lot of the content made me feel seen. 

This book emphasizes a duality of women. How we see ourselves, how we long to know ourselves, how we long to share ourselves with others; and the juxtaposition of how we are perceived by others, especially men. Over and over again in this book, we see Norma Jean/Marilyn Monroe treated much better by women than men. Additionally, how she internalizes the horrific things that are said and done to her, and how they crop up throughout her life. 

I truly appreciated the introduction by Elaine Showalter. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Miscarriage, Rape, and Abortion

fkshg8465's review against another edition

emotional informative sad medium-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? Yes

2.0

The whole time I was reading this book, I kept wondering why I was reading it and why it was written and how or why it was nominated for a Pulitzer. Of course Marilyn Monroe is forever an icon, but if any of what was written here was true, then it was a very sad life she had. That’s all I can say about the book. It wasn’t fun to read or enriching to my life. It was much less than I expected of her, based on her other works.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and War

rtthalia's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Excrement, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, and War

clevergirl216's review against another edition

Started off pretty good, but as I got further it seemed to be more and more of the same thing, only with worse language and more sex.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cursing, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent

avery_hutchinson's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative slow-paced

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

1.25

While the content was interesting, the book was exceedingly slow, and the way that the characters were handled seemed almost clinical

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Moderate: Drug use and Rape

Minor: War

dwellordream's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness and Sexual violence

Moderate: Child abuse and Rape

courtneyhollyy's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Abortion

Moderate: Child abuse, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Antisemitism, and Pregnancy

racheybakey's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional slow-paced

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

4.0

About 400 pages of Blonde were 5 star passages of literature. The remaining 300 were nonsense and fodder. 

Oates has achieved something amazing here, by taking an icon and a context and developing it into a genuis, beautifully written meditation on fame and the toxicity of modern media. However, the second half of the book becomes repetitive and I skimmed a lot of it. 

The first half of the book uses amazing language around the setting of Los Angeles to evoke why it was easy to go mad in the town. In these sections Norma Jeane's voice is strong and emotive, but her voice fades as Oates explores the deteoriation of her mental health. This leaves the narrative messy and even annoying at tim am 

The theme of the 'Dark Prince' throughout feels hammy at first, but comes to a stunning conclusion, presenting a daring perspective on her death while upholding the notion that Norma Jeane was always under threat by the patriarchy. 

Overall, I both loved and hated this book, and will think about it for a very long time. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape and Suicide

catherineneeds's review against another edition

dark emotional sad medium-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? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Rape