Reviews with content warning for Child abuse - Freshwater

Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi

104 reviews

scrunger's review

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective 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

4.5

Content Warnings

raneyak's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.75

It got a little confusing at times, but overall this book is a lyrical exploration of trauma and recovery. The main character has traits of some sort of dissociation disorder, but rather than portraying her experience through a psychological lens the book tells her story in terms of her cultural and spiritual beliefs.

The story is told in a non-linear fashion, jumping back and forth in the timeline while different characters (personalities/identities within the main character) tell stories from their perspectives. This choice worked excellently for the story being told, with story pieces being told not in order of time but instead in order of personal significance.

This book was quite explicit, though, and while the language was lyrical it still talked about self harm and suicidal ideation. Be very careful reading it if you have a history of mental health issues.

Content Warnings

bookishmillennial's review

Go to review page

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews because I don’t like leaving them. I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all. Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial

“In many ways, you see, I am not even real.”

I still can’t wrap my head around this being Akwaeke’s debut! It’s fantastic 😍 This is a character-driven novel and the concept is brilliant. Ada has multiple selves and we experience life alongside them, including some severe trauma. It was especially impressive how Akwaeke definitively fleshed out each “voice” / part of Ada.

cw: Self harm, Rape, Suicide attempt, Sexual assault, Eating disorder, Child abuse

Content Warnings

allouise's review

Go to review page

challenging mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

4.75

I will read anything akwaeke emezi rights, the fact that this is a debut is insane. Crazy good book I love the prose

Content Warnings

poubelleboi's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Veramente originale, ben scritto e interessante. "Acquadolce" di Akwaeke Emezi è un viaggio nella mente di una ragazza nigeriana col DDI (disturbo dissociativo dell'identità - se non lo conoscete, prima si chiamava qualcosa come disturbo della personalità multipla ma non è più corretto) che però non è trattato in maniera medica ma spirituale. I suoi alter sono dèi con desideri e obiettivi da dèi. Quando la protagonista si trasferisce negli Stati Uniti, loro combattono per tornare alle loro origini, in Nigeria, e dai loro fratellisorelle. Ed è troppo interessante leggere il loro punto di vista, che è allo stesso tempo esterno e interno. Veramente una lettura da dieci.

Content Warnings

lizziaha's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.75

This book is no plot, just vibes. And the vibes are good—I love Emezi’s writing style—but I was a bit confused at times. I couldn’t wrap my head around all of it. I didn’t know whether to read it literally or as a metaphor. I would highly recommend reading the author’s note at the end, though.

Content Warnings