Reviews tagging 'Child death'

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

81 reviews

nt_johanna's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Child abuse, Child death, Racism, Murder, Hate crime, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Pedophilia

Minor: Police brutality, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Rape, and Sexual assault

lizreaderhold's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Abandonment, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Murder, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Racial slurs, Slavery, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Blood, Bullying, Classism, Colonisation, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Torture, and Xenophobia

196books's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Forced institutionalization, Child death, Physical abuse, and Racism

Moderate: Rape, Torture, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, and Bullying

Minor: Fire/Fire injury

pun1sher's review against another edition

4.25

I think I should start reading happier books

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement and Physical abuse

Moderate: Child death and Sexual assault

corporal punishment

hkesslerjones's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, and Child abuse

Moderate: Child death, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Medical trauma, Bullying, Sexism, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Torture

insomniaxsun's review against another edition

dark emotional informative 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? It's complicated

5.0

Questo è uno di quei libri che necessita di essere letto con calma, dando tempo ad ogni frase, ogni parola tempo per essere assimilata a dovere. Una lettura pesante ma necessaria. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Child abuse, Child death, Racism, Bullying, Classism, Racial slurs, Blood, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Torture, Emotional abuse, Murder, Police brutality, and Violence

mengzhenreads's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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? No

4.0

Super powerful and deeply upsetting and impactful. My only wish is that the writing delved a little more into Elwood's own internal thoughts and stuff, since the writing style held all of the character's emotions at arm's length sometimes. But overall, this packs a punch. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Child abuse, Racism, Racial slurs, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Sexual assault and Child death

mmwiseheart's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

This is a fantastic book, which feels weird to say since the content is so heavy and dark. However, it is very well written. More importantly, it tells the story of boys whose stories were largely unheard. It is based on a true story of what happened at a reform school in Florida. The only thing I didn’t like about it is that I felt it wasn’t fully resolved. Which is perhaps intentional. 

I read this for book group and was forewarned that I needed to start reading it earlier than I normally would because I’d need to take breaks from the heaviness of it. And that turned out to be the case. The only other book I’ve read that I remember having to put down and come back to this much was John Hersey’s Hiroshima. 

I recommend this to everyone. It’s a lot to handle, but it’s so important. It’s important to know about and learn to recognize the injustices that have happened, and are still happening, in our country so that we can affect change.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Child death, Bullying, Confinement, Murder, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Torture

Minor: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Abandonment, Pedophilia, Drug use, Fire/Fire injury, and Slavery

buckeyegolden's review

challenging dark emotional informative sad 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? It's complicated

4.5

Colson Whitehead is one of those authors who doesn't blow you away while you're looking at the page, but rather once you've closed the book and can't stop thinking about it. There's an unexpected element towards the end that really drops the story into meaningfulness. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, and Gaslighting

tianas_littalk's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Rape, Racism, and Sexual assault