Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Una educación by Tara Westover

215 reviews

summerashley's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

5.0

I wish I could rate it higher.  Honestly this was a powerful story. Recommend everyone reads once! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Injury/Injury detail

ahoyitsjoy's review against another edition

dark hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

Such a good memoir. Westover relates the most harrowing and heartbreaking events of her life with the detached perspective of a reporter. Letting these events stands on their own just makes them hit you in the gut even harder. Her skill as a writer is all the more incredible considering her upbringing.

To everyone who understands too well why the author kept going back to her family, again and again: I hope we all find our peace someday.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Pregnancy

Minor: Racism and Antisemitism

elderwoodreads's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

I was a bit hesitant to read this as I feel memoirs in this genre (person denied education receives education) can be a little one note. This is the book of the genre. Westover is an amazing writer both in her storytelling as well as her reflection. Must read. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cancer, Child death, Cursing, Drug use, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Vomit, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Medical content, Dementia, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

pugluver11's review against another edition

dark reflective sad slow-paced

4.5

This book really makes you think. It's heartbreaking, yet eye opening. It captivated me from the start. We get to see someone come to terms with the fact that the reality of their childhood was a lie. We get to see Tara slowly pick up the pieces and make something of herself. I only wish that we could've got a greater glimpse of how Tara integrated into society, but that is just personal preference. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting

tattedtrashreader's review against another edition

challenging dark informative tense slow-paced

3.0

Tara Westover is a great writer and I appreciate that her childhood and adolescence was difficult and what she has overcome. I also understand that removing yourself from abuse is excruciatingly hard and that often survivors go back because it’s familiar. She’s incredible for overcoming her situation to get a doctorate and make her life her own. To preface my review, I grew up in a home similar to, but significantly less intense than Dr. Westover and I could relate to her feelings and to the messages pushed on her as a child because I heard similar ones. 

I, however, struggled with the repeated acts of violence that were ignored, justified, and manipulated by her parents and siblings (and her a lot of times) and that her siblings that left did not support or help the others get out who wanted to. I wanted to hear more in-depth about her studies, what she discovered for the first time but that was rarely touched on. 

The repeated head injuries, car accidents, and major trauma that they each endured without seeing a medical professional is astounding to me. 

I have many of the same concerns as others who read the book and wondered where their family got the money and how her mother’s tinctures became so popular (that they became millionaires?) and why no one in their town ever said anything about the abuse and such going on, even when they “hired” the other women to work (but apparently women aren’t supposed to work) for their tincture business. I don’t understand how there were basically no witnesses ever. 

I wanted to understand how her worldview changed when she got to college and learn about how she overcame her education challenges but that’s not explored deeply in the second half of the book. It’s just parental abuse. The abuse is the main theme of the book, not getting an education. 

I found myself getting increasingly frustrated with everything her parents and Shawn did to the point where I just wanted the book to be over. Idk. About halfway through I was over it and hate-finished it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

ajnagle's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative sad tense slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

booksoversecondbreakfast's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.75

I share so much of my story with this author. We have so many shared experiences and I had never heard those experiences expressed so clearly until I read this book. She made me feel like I was there beside her throughout her life and she summarized the main points she was making very thoroughly. I really liked this book, and subtract a quarter of a star only because of how negatively she cast a light towards being uneducated. It made me feel a bit too uncomfortable how angry she was, but I remain understanding of it due to the fact that she has been through so much. There were so many quoteworthy parts to this book, however, and I expect it will be a book I come back to throughout my life. She shared so many great lessons and ways of seeing the world, and I'm really grateful for that.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Ableism, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Murder, Abandonment, and War

Minor: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Genocide, Miscarriage, Blood, Antisemitism, Death of parent, and Colonisation

em1115's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring sad medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Amazing story but very violent. Wanted to stop reading from the content but also wanted to keep reading to know how she got through it.

sary's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Cancer, Chronic illness, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Car accident, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Terminal illness

geegee98's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Car accident, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cancer, Death, Antisemitism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Terminal illness and Dementia