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sahla's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
because we are told the story from letters Celie writes, first to God, and then to Nettie, by the end, there is no character we, as readers, can truly hate. she only saw the best in them, and so, all we see is that each of them was a product of their environment. and once they try to fight through it, they become so much more than that. but she's not a perfect character by any means. when she finds out about her sister's letters, she feels insurmountable levels of rage, but with the love that Shug gave her, she fights through it.
i am so glad that by the end, they all get the happiness they deserve, that Nettie and Celie do reunite. i don't know if it is unrealistic, but truly, to me, this is more impactful.
Graphic: Child abuse, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Violence, Xenophobia, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Infidelity, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, and Death of parent
Minor: Murder
bethanwx's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Death, Incest, Infidelity, Rape, Slavery, Death of parent, Colonisation, War, and Classism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Drug use, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
betag1013's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, and Classism
annieogg's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Eating disorder, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Colonisation
Minor: Body shaming, Fatphobia, and Suicidal thoughts
kia_y_k's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism
neverlandpages4's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
- From the very first page, I knew that this book would be a poignant, inspiring, and educational story. It explores racism, queer identity, friendship, family, and so much more.
- This is an epistolary book written in AAVE, the first half is written from Celie to God, and it explores Celie’s life and all the hardships she’s faced, the second half is Nettie’s letters to her older sister, Celie, and she describes what it was like becoming a missionary and traveling to Africa.
- It's also mainly literary historical fiction and it does focus on the characters more than the plot. I’m usually more of a plot person so I did find it a bit boring at the beginning but I’d say around the 30-40% mark it did get more interesting.
- Nettie’s letters made me really emotional, she talks about how due to her lack of education, she didn’t know anything about Africa and was surprised to meet other black people that were not enslaved and not working for a white family. It’s such a heartbreaking thing to read knowing that this was (and still is in some parts of the world) reality. That the color of someone’s skin determined whether or not they deserved to have basic human rights.
- I love how this book also explores misogyny and how some of the women stand up for themselves and question the “norm” that is misogyny and sexism during that time period, and fight to learn and get an education regardless of the horrible men that stand in their way.
- Celie made me laugh out loud many times, her character development was inspiring and I was so happy for her when she finally took charge of her life and started doing the things she loved.
- I’d highly recommend reading this!! Even if the genre isn’t something you usually read, it’s still an important book that explores so many difficult topics in such an honest way. There’s also a movie adaptation that I can’t wait to watch!
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Slavery
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Death, Drug use, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Classism
Minor: Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
niareads78's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Hate crime, Misogyny, Racism, and Police brutality
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
nadia's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.0
I really liked the book! I liked the letter structure and appreciated all of the themes covered. I certainly did not expect to laugh out loud at parts, especially so early on. Those who've read the book or seen one of the film adaptations might guess at what was the cause of this!
Didn't have as much of an emotional pull as I thought it would have though!
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Colonisation
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail and Classism
melist6's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Classism
Moderate: Death, Incest, Infidelity, Terminal illness, Grief, and Death of parent
znvisser's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
In advance, I was wary of its form - through letters, but it worked out surprisingly well. And I'm also becoming more and more of a sucker for stories in which the real love story is platonic. This is such a rich story, and I can’t wait to see how it translates into films.
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Incest, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, and Colonisation
Moderate: Addiction, Body shaming, Death, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Infertility, Infidelity, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, and Alcohol