Reviews tagging 'Racial slurs'

Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

170 reviews

siomaii's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Racial slurs, and Grief

Moderate: Forced institutionalization and Death of parent

mirandalikesbooks's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

This book read like a memoir or a stream of consciousness. Like memories pieced together. It was an intimate POV of a first generation experience, of growing up black in the south, of the changing nature of faith and religion, of what it's like to see your family struggle with mental health issues and addiction. You really get to know who Gifty is and what drives her throughout this novel. 

I would recommend this if you're drawn to memoirs or particularly reflective fiction. 

My biggest qualm with this book is that I felt like I was waiting for the book to pick up a plot line that it never did. I also don't read a lot of books this tied up in Christianity, so I may have not been the perfect audience.

The hard cut at the end to her being in a relationship with Han having already experienced her mom's passing felt too sudden for me too.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Grief, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Death

nessreadsalot's review against another edition

emotional reflective 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

4.25

In Transcendent Kingdom Yaa Gyasi tells the story of Gifty and her family as they move from Ghana to Alabama hoping for a better life. 

Told from Gifty's point of view, we see how things don't go quite as they expected and how this harsh reality chips away at the families dream and then eventually the family itself. 

Gifty struggles to understand the addiction that took her brother from her and strives to better understand it through her studies and professional life. When her mother comes to stay with her Gifty learns more about the deep rooted trauma that runs through her family. 

This book was wonderfully written and while I listened to the audiobook which was narrated by the fabulous Bahni Turpin I really want to reread the physical book so that I can note some quotations and parts of the book that really stood out to me

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Racial slurs, and Racism

avacadosocks's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, Racial slurs, Racism, Grief, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Death

Minor: Death of parent

leonormsousa's review against another edition

challenging 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? It's complicated

4.5

I really liked this one. It is beautifully written, and the constant time jumps were done perfectly, which is something quite rare. It hooked me from the start, and I found myself wanting more at the end, even though I know this was the perfect size for this story.

Small note that I was pleasantly surprised by the queer representation in this one (MC is queer). 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

mrlsdevos's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Grief, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Dementia and Death of parent

skylerreads28's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful 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

3.5

This is not an easy read if you have any type of strained relationship with your mother. Or religious trauma. Luckily for me I have both! I enjoyed this read and it gave me a thought to think about as I read. I had hoped more would happen, so the ending fell flat for me, almost like the story was given up, but the ending was also fitting for the story and I was happy to see Gifty got the life she worked so hard for. All her work came full circle and in a way that was healing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse and Drug use

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Racial slurs and Racism

abitbetterbooks's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad 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? No

4.0

I really loved listening to this book, despite its heartbreaking content. The narration was excellent and I found the non-linear style of story telling very compelling and intriguing. I wish I could sit down with Yaa Gyasi for a chat about this book and ask so many questions about all the decisions made and why! 

The vision for this novel is really quite extraordinary. It’s a tiny slice of life in the present day, but an entire world of exploration as each layer of Gifty’s life gets peeled back, examined; like a bone getting broken so it can be reset and healed properly. 

Transcendent Kingdom is a masterclass in character work— we get to know Gifty, her motivations, her joys, her pains. We watch her as she moves from a shy and closed off person, unwilling to share any tender part of herself, into someone who is realizing that she can’t isolate herself forever. We understand her fears and personally, understand her questions and frustrations with the lack of concrete answers.

What spoken to me in particular was the grappling with faith and religion, and trying to reconcile the importance of that upbringing with a life & world-view that is rooted in, and dominated by, science, reason, and logic. I found many of Gifty’s questions and perspectives incredibly relatable, though I think she came to a softer conclusion about God that I have. I’m not sure if I’ve ever read a book with this kind exploration of faith before, but I have to say I felt deeply at home in it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Violence, Xenophobia, Vomit, and Abandonment

Minor: Suicide attempt

emilysummer_'s review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction and Drug abuse

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt

Minor: Racial slurs

Beautifully written exploring the relationship between religion and science. Explores complex familial relationships, loss and addiction.

siebensommer's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective 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

2.5

my need to diy my mother‘s mental health 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, and Abandonment

Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism

Minor: Medical content, Death of parent, and Pregnancy