Reviews tagging 'Police brutality'

The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin

49 reviews

edurnehaeon's review against another edition

challenging inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

immm going crazy i would give this 6 stars out of 5 if i could... this definitely makes le guin one of my favorite authors. this book made me think so much, and want to write too, but also think that i could never write anything as good as this. life changing. i kept thinking about it in the moments i couldn't read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality and Classism

Moderate: Sexism and Pregnancy

serena_hien's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative medium-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Violence, Xenophobia, Vomit, Police brutality, Pregnancy, War, and Classism

Minor: Miscarriage and Misogyny

sabrinazj's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing tense medium-paced

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

4.75

A mind-stretcher! I learned a lot reading this. Immense worldbuilding. I don't have the knowledge set to judge the fictional physics, however.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Death, Sexism, Violence, and Police brutality

Famine

autistic_dragon's review against another edition

challenging hopeful informative inspiring reflective slow-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Pregnancy, and Classism

Moderate: Death

Minor: Miscarriage

outerscout's review against another edition

adventurous reflective slow-paced

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

3.75

found it quite slow / hard to get into but got far more invested in the last ~100 pages. not sure how much the politics resonated with me overall but i appreciated the nuance

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Police brutality

Moderate: Confinement, Gun violence, Sexism, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

kylieqrada's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional reflective 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? Yes

5.0

Ursula K. LeGuin can do no wrong, IMO. I swear I highlighted half of this book. “An ambiguous uptopia” really sums it up. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual assault, and Police brutality

Moderate: Death, Violence, and Classism

Minor: Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, and War

waqupi's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Police brutality

Moderate: Bullying, Death, Sexism, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, and War

manatad's review against another edition

adventurous challenging reflective 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Police brutality

Moderate: Confinement

Minor: Child death, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail

pandemonicbaby's review against another edition

reflective slow-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? Yes

3.25

Still don't know what exactly to say about this book, but it was an interesting exploration of the implications of how different societies both shape and are shaped by the people who participate in them.
I'm gonna ruminate on it for a little bit and then later do a more thorough review.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Misogyny, Rape, Sexual content, Police brutality, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Confinement, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Excrement, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Miscarriage, Vomit, Death of parent, and Alcohol

There is an explicit rape scene in this book.

the protagonist drunkenly rapes someone.

storyorc's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

A little slow in parts but was any other work of fiction in the 70s making an honest effort to imagine an anarchist society like this? Equal parts optimistim and realism, The Dispossessed explores how we might try to set up such a society and the pitfalls of human nature we would have to overcome. 

Flashbacks to our main character, Shevek's life on his anarchic moon are as touching as they are fascinating, filled with imperfect but quite human characters who are really trying. Reading constantly that they work because they want to and that everything they do, they choose it, has the curious effect of making the reader feel they are in a dark little box watching the lid crack open bit by bit. In seeing our anarchists sacrifice for their society, we understand how they can trust that the same society will sacrifice them. The capitalist notion of freedom - "financial freedom", aka "fuck you money" - pales in comparison to a model of freedom where you can trust that you will be able to take what you need.  By the end of the book, you've absorbed enough of their outlook to feel sickened by the capitalist planet Shevek visits instead of relieved by the familiar. 

The anarchists still struggle with the power of peer pressure and environmental hardships from living on a barren moon. It is said repeatedly that anarchism is a process, not a destination - a constant vigilance and revolution against power. Their moon is no oasis yet you yearn to return along with Shevek. 

(Not sure how this ties in yet but another motto of their movement's leader was that there is no journey without return. Thought it runs counter to the spirit of exploration we're used to, it is effective in instilling that yearning as well as presenting an interesting challenge to the ego of the explorer - why explore? Selfishly, or for home?)

 Check content warnings of this review if sexual assault is a trigger.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Police brutality

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail

Shevek gets drunk and sexually assaults a woman at about 3/4 of the way through. Possibly to show how much the capitalist planet is affecting him? She is more annoyed than distressed but to avoid, just skip ahead to the next chapter when you read him getting drunk and accompanying a woman to her bedroom. All you need to know plotwise is that he got drunk, assaulted her in private, then threw up in public and was taken home.