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part_time_dreamer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Minor: Rape
At one point a character is almost caught by men intending to do ill towards her, the scene is a bit distressing and takes account her point of view as well as fear if the men had caught her.sulfurandbrimstone74's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
agrandreflection's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
This is not the feminine empowerment I'm looking for. This is homesteading through folk cures to appease your sex craved husband (who is only slightly less problematic than the literal murderer you may or may not have escaped from).
I get that it's a bit of a product of it's time, but geez. This is not empowering. This upholds limiting gender norms, and has a small view of what thriving looks like for men and women alike. Hell, for all the romance littered throughout, it's also got a miniscule vision of love itself. We deserve better examples than this.
One extra star for the good use of lightning as metaphor tho.
Graphic: Rape, Violence, and Murder
ce_read's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
chasingpages1's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Grief, Car accident, and Alcohol
Minor: Animal cruelty, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Stalking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail
suziem00n's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Rape, Violence, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Suicide
euphemiajo's review against another edition
2.0
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol
cocacolor's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I'd read another Hoffman before, the historical THE WORLD THAT WE KNEW, and wasn't terribly impressed by it, so I came here expecting more of the same. Here, though, Hoffman's style really does work. Though the characters are also drawn in broad brushstrokes and the romances instant, PRACTICAL MAGIC really makes it feel like more of a conscious nod to fairy tales than simply bland writing. The omniscient narrator, who sometimes switches the character being followed within the same paragraph, the doses of wisdom, and the lyricism all combine to make a great experience; Hoffman knows exactly when to dole out backstory to make the reader appreciate their increasingly more whole understanding of the Owens family and the world.
I'm of two minds, though, because the political imagination at work here isn't great. Everyone is white; everyone is heterosexual. The cure for the characters' flaws is the right man. The main characters are all neatly paired off at the end; just find your true love and you'll be fixed, Hoffman seems to say. The pre-cell phone milieu is interesting and evocative, but drives home the kind of stifling suburban whiteness that characters aspire to.
Overall, a serious and occasionally dark book about sisterhood and female family members in a magical realism milieu, where the cure for all conflict is heterosexual romance.
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Sexual content, Grief, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death, Rape, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Death of parent
funktious's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Minor: Domestic abuse and Rape
madison26_'s review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Rape, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol