Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

Stoner by John Williams

17 reviews

wisewise'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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Pregnancy

qstew's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective fast-paced

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

4.75

what a beautifully tragic summation of one man's life with all its pursuits, failures, and resultant indifferences.

the book's rhythm was consistent and speedy - it reads as though it is, in its entirety, an epilogue tying off the loose ends of a series of characters with whom the reader has a long-established, familiar, and loving rapport.

very glad to have stumbled upon this book while simultaneously saddened that i hadn't heard of it sooner.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Suicide, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and War

Minor: Cancer, Chronic illness, and Terminal illness

lrosenzweig23's review against another edition

dark informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Fatphobia, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and War

jayisreading's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

4.5

I was pleasantly surprised by this novel and its quietly intense world. The novel follows the relatively mundane life of William Stoner, though Williams reveals how complicated things can get for his protagonist through a masterful demonstration of “show, don’t tell.” It was fascinating to see the ripple effects of Stoner’s choices in his personal life as well as professional, and how the two are not easily separable. Williams also presented a more accurate depiction of academia than I expected, particularly the intensity of departmental politics and the love/hate relationship that comes with being an academic.

The protagonist isn’t a likable character, in my opinion, though he isn’t the absolute worst either. If anything, Stoner is a very honest reflection of what it means to be human and contend with one’s imperfections (some more egregious than others). Relatedly, the other characters in this novel, particularly his wife, Edith, demonstrate similar levels of introspection on the complexities of being human.

Stoner is a bittersweet novel, leaning far more towards the bitter rather than sweet. It really helped set the novel up to capture an existential solitude that will potentially leave the reader thinking about their own life. I should note that this is by no means a perfect novel, and there were certainly moments when I raised my eyebrows (such as the early stages of the Stoners’ marriage), but overall, I found it to be a compelling read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Infidelity, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Rape, and War

Minor: Alcoholism and Suicide

infectedarea's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Gaslighting

maresuju's review against another edition

TLDR; Mediocre white man in the 1920s who feels entitled to other people

<CW: marital rape>

I understand that this is supposed to be a representation of the monotony/mediocrity that life can be, but I almost feel like this was the opposite. The MC is selfish, refused to make decisions or take any action, and only acts out of his own immediate interests. He essentially forces his wife to marry him despite her making it clear that she has no romantic interest in him, and he rapes her regularly (the author makes it very clear that she’s either asleep or wake up and is tense/unmoving). And then he wonders why his life is shitty, why his wife hates him and keeps her daughter from him.

Truly he is a mediocre (at best) man who feels like he’s entitled to a job, friends, a wife, a family, everything just because he’s there, but puts no effort into any of his relationships. I really tried to stick it out, and made it almost 70% of the way through, but I was just so annoyed and angered by the MC that I couldn’t find a single reason to care about what happens. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, and War

Minor: Infidelity, Racism, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

babelfish's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.5

Damn.... it's not the perfect book...but it's bloody good one. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity

Moderate: Cancer and Gaslighting

Minor: Death and Emotional abuse

frankieclc's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Medical content, and War

stuckduck's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity

Moderate: Child abuse, Death, and Emotional abuse

Minor: War

lamotte's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Pretty much a perfect novel, in terms of form and style. A thoughtful portrait of an ordinary life in all its modest disappointments and achievements, and gives particular insight into the emotionally reserved, uptight culture of early 20th century white America. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse and Rape