Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'

The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi

118 reviews

kylosten's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia and Incest

Moderate: Infidelity, Sexual content, Transphobia, and Violence

Minor: Animal death, Physical abuse, and Religious bigotry

kjofalltrades's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Homophobia, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Outing, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Domestic abuse

mrtrower's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Rape, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, and Outing

allindjesste's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-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

5.0

This book made me feel, deeply. It really makes me think of all of the moments of joy that we try to find, even when we are surrounded by tragedy. I am deeply fascinated by the characters and their motivations. Their moments of discovery, their moments of betrayal, their moments of joy, their moments of grief. Each of these characters carry a significant weight on their shoulder, and you can feel it in the way that they move through the world. But you can also feel how deeply they care for one another, and the lengths that they would go to protect one another. This is a deeply emotional story, but I feel like it's so relevant to the times.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Transphobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Lesbophobia

Minor: Drug use and Sexual harassment

sara_berlin's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• 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

I found this book to have a less avant-garde style than some of Akwaeke Emezi's other books, but still with their unique flair, which I always love. It also fit into my accidental reading trend of gravitating toward perspectives that I don't often hear, which definitely applies to mainstream American literature and queer Nigerians. For both of those reasons, I really enjoyed the story, despite it's clear tragedy. The Death of Vivek Oji deserves to become a classic. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Violence, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Transphobia, and Death of parent

sundayfever's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• 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

Beautiful, heartbreaking. Very well written. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Incest, Transphobia, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Deadnaming, Death, Infidelity, Sexual content, and Grief

marywahlmeierbracciano's review against another edition

challenging emotional slow-paced

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

4.0

The Death of Vivek Oji feels like an extended meditation on queerness and transness.  In a country like Nigeria, where these identities are criminalized, it’s especially true for trans people that only they know what is best for them, though this will not stop well-meaning friends and family.  Emezi’s heartbreaking parable invites readers to imagine a world in which a trans person living freely is not “dancing with death.”  A world in which trans people are recognized as otherworldly gifts.  Born on the anniversary of his grandmother’s death, Vivek Oji was destined to be different

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Infidelity and Grief

Moderate: Animal death, Death, Homophobia, Infertility, Sexual content, Transphobia, Blood, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Sexual violence, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

tea_kettle's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

4.0

amazing story, beautifully written, and one i would read again despite the heartbreak. However, the mildly (and later very graphically) incestuous themes were pretty uncomfortable to get through, and i don’t think they necessarily needed to be that way. Still, it was a great story, and i’m glad it was told, especially by a writer so skilled. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Homophobia, Incest, Sexual content, Transphobia, Grief, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Child abuse, Infertility, Rape, Sexual assault, Vomit, Pregnancy, and Deportation

angiepoggi's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• 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

The Death of Vivek Oji not only depicts mourning in a beautyful manner, but also brings us, the readers, into that mourning as well.

Vivek's death is not only about the act of not ever being able to breath anymore, it's about the death of who his family thought he was, and, as well as his birth that was accompanied by grief, about her rebirth.

It's such a carefully woven story that never let's go of the nuances of every decision and thought of It's characters, who, if you told me were real, I would've believed without sparing a doubt. 

Even thought there were some relationships that I have conflicted feelings about and believe could've been brought here in a different way, I'll still cary this story for life and think about it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Grief, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, and Fire/Fire injury

Minor: Rape

triple_m's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

A very beautiful story about the complexity of being human and exploring one’s sexual and gender identity in a repressive culture. 

Absolutely loved the writing will be checking out more from this author.

But…. Why the incest? ☹️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Homophobia

Minor: Rape and Sexual assault