Reviews tagging 'Kidnapping'

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

101 reviews

nerp's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-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

5.0

WOW. The hype is not wrong. This isn’t a traditional story with plot and character development and what have you—it’s a family epic spanning generations and countries to paint a picture of African and American Blackness. This is a book about pain and intergenerational trauma, but it’s also a book about intergenerational survival and contentment, about the knowledge and stories held in blood and ancestry. This book is about the realities and legacies of colonialism—but more than that. This is a book worth studying for craft, as the storytelling structure and the feeling of the story being told in circles so neatly works with its thematic concerns.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Addiction, Violence, Religious bigotry, and War

rizky's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional inspiring reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Hate crime, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Xenophobia, Excrement, Kidnapping, Grief, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

frida_epilogo's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• 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: Racism, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, Colonisation, and War

Moderate: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and War

entropyseeker's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

5.0

I really enjoyed this book, but much like history, it wasn't exactly fun. The story traces the family line of two sisters over 20+ people and 300 years. Starting in Africa and ending in America. I loved that each of the characters felt so distinct. That each person had their own arcs and struggles, but we're still somehow rather short. Some lives were absolutely tragic and some were hopeful. I don't think I could re-read this, but great book nonetheless. Read the content warnings tho

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Classism

kollieollie's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

To me, this book is a must read. It is a highly reflective book on the inter generational trauma of the Atlantic Slave trade as shown through different generations of two connected families. The emotions make it a challenging book to read, and I found that I read these chapters much slower than normal with far more breaks than I would usually take. That said, I thought this book was so well done. I particularly appreciated seeing the parallels of the impact of the Slave trade not just in the US, but in Western Africa as well.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, and Colonisation

Moderate: Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Pregnancy

karkeyheadrest's review against another edition

emotional 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? N/A

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Slavery, and Kidnapping

baearles's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking, and Grief

Moderate: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Blood, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Colonisation, and Classism

Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Genocide, Mental illness, Rape, Excrement, Kidnapping, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

sparklefarm's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

Really incredible.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Excrement, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation

Moderate: Child death, Infidelity, and War

Minor: Homophobia

minnow's review against another edition

challenging 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? It's complicated

4.75

A stunning, heartbreaking book. This book follows two branches of a family throughout generations, telling heartbreaking story after heartbreaking story. We see slavery at its peak from the viewpoints of both the slaves and the African slavers, and then we follow the echoes of those experiences through multiple generations. The story is lush and vivid, graphic scenes are delivered with an edge but never go too far. 

I deducted a partial star only because there is one storyline that was paced too slowly, in my opinion. I found myself caring a little less about that character and the story dragged in that part. All other storylines were perfectly paced and engaging.

The ending of this story is beautiful, and very satisfying. All in all, a masterpiece of a book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Infidelity, Misogyny, Vomit, and Abandonment

Minor: Bullying

thursdd4y's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Excrement, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail