Reviews tagging 'Violence'

How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair

6 reviews

znvisser's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.25

Beautiful memoir that taught me a lot while drawing a picture of the authors life: Safiya Sinclair manages to interweave personal memories seamlessly with Jamaican and Rastafarian history, making her story a whole. Her childhood memories are detailed and lively, drawn poetically with childlike wonder, shamelessness and parental worship, after which you feel complexity grow and doubts creeping in as she gets older. Sinclair is so proficient with language and I loved taking this in through audio as well, because her voice is gorgeous and she had great melody to her storytelling.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Misogyny, Violence, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Racism, Infertility, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Colonisation, Pregnancy, and Blood

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Miscarriage, Drug use, Racial slurs, Body shaming, and Cancer

djames17's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

This book was simply amazing. Safiya Sinclair is an amazing poet, and reading/listening to her book will literally transport you into her life experiences. I felt seen in so many ways as a Jamaican daughter myself, but I find that any daughter can see herself in this book in some way. You will not be disappointed with this book. In addition, the Jamaican dialect is sprinkled throughout, and the history of Rastafari is imppecable. Thank you for writing your story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Violence, Child abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Misogyny

shay43geek's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Violence, Sexism, and Child abuse

Moderate: Religious bigotry, Confinement, Body shaming, and Infidelity

Minor: Abandonment

serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

 How to Say Babylon is a memoir about the author growing up in a Rastafarian family in Jamaica, suffering at the hands of an increasingly abusive father, and then finally figuring out who she is, developing her own voice, and finding a way out. The story was interesting, particularly the insights into Rastafarianism which is a belief system I know little about, and has some obvious parallels to Educated. Definitely a hard read in places with physical and emotional abuse, controlling behaviour and gaslighting. What really stood out though was the writing which was phenomenal - lush, lyrical and evocative. I went into this book blind but within the first paragraph it was obvious that that author was a poet. The audio, narrated by her, was also excellent with the rhythm of the language really coming through. The book was a real pleasure to listen to but it also left me with plenty to think about - things like the intersections between religion and men trying to control women, the difficulty of escaping a traumatic upbringing, the factors that enable some people to succeed in a world that they’d been led to belief was evil, the ability to forgive, and the healing power of writing and of poetry. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Violence, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Gaslighting

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

d0505's review against another edition

adventurous challenging hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Violence

Moderate: Bullying, Self harm, Sexual assault, Misogyny, and Animal death

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

sierraburrell's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective tense slow-paced

5.0

Safiya's story is powerful and her writing is expansive. It feels unique and familiar at the same time. While her familial lived experienced is far from mine, I can still relate to the obstacles, barriers, and encounters she had. It's wild how similar the world can treat Black girls that have vastly different home lives and origin stories, but it makes me feel closer to her. This book was delightfully dense. It forced me to slow down and savor the words. I couldn't rush through this story. I am thankful that Safiya shared her world with me. She painted an intense picture that had me questioning how I interact with those around me, especially children. Her memoir is vivid, heart wrenching, and hopeful. I'm looking forward to reading her poetry and following her story moving forward.  Thank you to Safiya Sinclair, Simon & Schuster, and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy of this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Domestic abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Child abuse and Sexism