selimhannah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Pedophilia, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Murder, Child death, Classism, Death, Violence, Police brutality, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Racism, Abandonment, Incest, Body shaming, Violence, Sexual content, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Animal death, Blood, Murder, Death of parent, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Car accident, Body shaming, Colonisation, Confinement, Misogyny, Pregnancy, and Fatphobia
ppp's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Police brutality, Domestic abuse, and Child death
Moderate: Sexual content, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Abandonment, Classism, Pedophilia, and Racism
Minor: Incest
leoniefnk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Incest, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Death, Grief, Child death, Sexual violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Abandonment, Blood, Child death, Classism, Death, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Gore, Grief, Incest, Infidelity, and Police brutality
Minor: Cursing, Car accident, War, Body shaming, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Violence, Vomit, Animal death, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
tahsintries's review against another edition
Graphic: Murder, Police brutality, Sexual content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Hate crime, Incest, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Confinement, Abandonment, Death of parent, Grief, Rape, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, Vomit, Xenophobia, Classism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Minor: Infidelity
kibiiiariii's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal death, Child death, Chronic illness, Gore, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racism, Toxic relationship, Vomit, Ableism, Blood, Child abuse, Grief, Rape, Death, Mental illness, Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Sexual harassment, Fatphobia, Abandonment, Classism, Cursing, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Violence, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Murder, and Pregnancy
miaaa_lenaaa'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
4.0
Graphic: Police brutality, Rape, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Confinement, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Murder, Classism, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Death, Body horror, Colonisation, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, and Vomit
sir_ren's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
the novel has a rather simple story- the main plot. even though I could predict the general plot of the story (as the novel is written switching from the past and the present) it was still engaging and interesting thanks to the writing and the details. the construction of the novel- the unfolding of events and use of language make it satisfying and rewarding to see it all come together.
the "Kid Speak" used in the novel tends to be polarizing as far as I can tell. some people put the book down to never complete it due to the language. not that I am in a place to be telling anyone what to do with their time, but I would still seriously encourage readers to stick it out even if they are mildly irritated by the peculiarities. my experience is that I found it puzzling at first and then interesting, but the novelty wore off soon and it started to feel badly used. but this changed as I kept reading, the way Arundhati Roy built her novel and used language- the payoff was Real for me. the "quirkiness" of the language turned into a blessing as the novel went on. Intimacy is what I experienced again. in a novel all about this family- to speak their secret language and to have a few odd words and phrases evoke all the emotions and thoughts that they did was a moment of intimacy with the novel and its characters.
another point of contention tends to be the "villain", who some find to be a cartoonishly evil/bad person. in my opinion, the character was believable.
now for the parts I did not enjoy. the book describes or mentions a lot of the uglier sides of human nature/bodies/actions. I felt the number of instances was a little excessive. maybe one or two could have been cut and the book could still retain its integrity.
and I felt the Kid Speak could have been cut in a few places. but I am glad the language was what it was
Graphic: Pedophilia, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Blood, Grief, Incest, Abandonment, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, and Excrement
Minor: Alcoholism
womanwill's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Child abuse
Minor: Ableism, Rape, and Vomit
marioncromb's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Fatphobia, Grief, Pedophilia, Police brutality, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Confinement, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, and Sexual content
penofpossibilities's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Spoiler
incest,,, I knew it was coming it was heavily hinted at but pls whyThe writing in this book, however: immaculate, impeccable, lyrical but with just the right edge of uneasiness and without covering up the disgusting and horrible things. I loved the use of metaphors and repeated sentences and all the discussions about race and ideology and poverty- sublime and real and powerful. Really incredibly well done. I definitely recommend this novel.
Graphic: Blood, Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Incest, Police brutality, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexism, Racism, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, and Sexual content