Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

Darius the Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram

6 reviews

traceyanderson's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad fast-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

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Islamophobia, Grief, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Classism

thebookpaiges's review against another edition

emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

• 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? Yes

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Mental illness, and Racism

Moderate: Death, Terminal illness, and Grief

Minor: Sexual content, Transphobia, and Toxic friendship

riannesdijkstra's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Death, Homophobia, Racism, Terminal illness, and Grief

queerloras's review against another edition

emotional hopeful 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Terminal illness, Grief, and Religious bigotry

anxiousnachos's review against another edition

emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

Trust Adib Khorram to write a book that makes me look like a fool - I was literally talking to someone just yesterday about how I felt like I had completely outgrown YA contemporary as a genre and then BAM, I decide to finally pick up the Darius sequel and of course it is amazing. There’s something about Khorram’s writing style and voice that I find so special and emotive, and the way he so accurately portrays what it’s like to live with depression, even when not in the midst of a depressive episode, is fantastic. Add in one of the best father/son relationships in YA, some soccer gays, and I am completely sold. 

Content warnings: depression, bullying, homophobia, Islamophobia, sexual content (including being pressured into sexual activity), terminal illness, death of a grandparent, grief  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Mental illness, and Islamophobia

Moderate: Sexual content, Terminal illness, and Grief

thewordsdevourer's review against another edition

funny hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

i actually liked this better than the first book! darius the great deserves better is a book i wish i had read when i was younger: it was comforting in its assurance of continually discovering oneself; relatable in its depiction of grief; and affirming in its portrait of living w/ depression but still being ok.

darius's growth and his changing relationships w/ those around him were sth i enjoyed seeing, particularly his family dynamics and his new, supportive friendships. the characters--even the bully loser--were surprisingly multidimensional. this book was also refreshingly--almost effortlessly--diverse, and i rly like how the author tackled racism, microaggressions, homophobia, sexuality, consent, and mental illness w/ tact, somehow managing to interweave them all into the plot w/o ever sounding preachy.

similar to the first book, however, i was often annoyed by the writing, specifically the unncessary single sentences + line breaks and repetition that sounded more dramatic than they needed to be. i also wish the ending was less rushed, and that more time were spent on certain ideas and scenes, exploring them a lil further to fully grasp them. nevertheless, i still enjoyed this book, and it's def one of my top mental illness-related books for sure.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Mental illness, and Racism

Moderate: Homophobia, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Grief, and Toxic friendship

Minor: Death