specificwonderland's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Spoiler
In a way, not too much happened in this brief novella. In another way, so much happened. To list out the plot points is novella-length, a truncated bulleted list. To describe the characters' inner workings is a much larger project. I felt for these brothers and their survival. You could see how Paps exerted his influence but the kids didn't fully shrink away or lose themselves until the final threads of the story got woven. He exerted his influence on the mom from day 1, to everyone's detriment. You could feel the helplessness of the kids being swept along with the parents' bullshit. You hope kids are well cared for by competent parents but that's not always the case. Parents can just be people, and people are imperfect to some degree. And what a cast of ancillary characters: the neighbor, the bus driver and the mom's coworker Camrade. Re: the neighbor, it's infuriating that kids could be outside bouncing a ball yelling about the abuse they were bearing and the neighbor would be like, 'Hmmm this is a perfect time to show neglected kids incest porn'. But you know that happens in small towns, big towns, rich towns, poor towns. These kids never stood a chance, but they had each other.Moderate: Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Incest, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, and Rape
sorenzs's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Homophobia, Sexual content, Forced institutionalization, Outing, Sexual harassment, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Incest, Rape, Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Pedophilia, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, and Self harm
Minor: Infidelity and Addiction
kananineko's review against another edition
- 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
3.0
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Violence, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Forced institutionalization, Incest, Abandonment, Body horror, Cursing, Homophobia, Outing, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
Minor: Infidelity, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Sexism, Racism, Alcohol, Blood, Self harm, and Bullying
librarymouse's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Violence, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual content, Outing, Sexism, Child abuse, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Alcohol, Homophobia, and Incest
Minor: Adult/minor relationship