Reviews tagging 'Ableism'

Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin

16 reviews

skyla_shae's review against another edition

sad

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

0.5

I wanted so much to love this book. It started out telling a story I could really get behind and was hoping it would follow a similar tone as  Sayaka Muratas's Life Ceremony or Earthlings and then saw the lighthearted but dark feeling in the first few pages and really hoped it would lean a bit more towards Backman's Anxious People. I was disappointed on all accounts. There was never a more meaningful discussion of the characters issues in a literary way, nothing but an illustration of what a panic attack (for some) may feel like (sort of) with a heavy dose of self sabotage and the need for suspending my disbelief.

I actually feel the writer completely failed to capture how real anxieties are felt and expressed while also missing a chance to tell a great story by focusing so much the church setting and a obvious "murder" plot twist. Furthermore, the way the book implies that the MC getting on antidepressants was a cause for her anxious breakdown was offensive and is dangerous. 

I did find the broken chapter structure near the end a wonderful and unique way to disorient the reader.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts

Moderate: Death

Minor: Ableism

mycarefulcardinal's review against another edition

emotional funny reflective

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Dementia, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, and Lesbophobia

stripes_and_naps's review against another edition

emotional fast-paced

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

5.0

I really enjoyed this book and flew through it. I felt like the portrayal of anxiety/depression was very well written and relatable. I’m looking forward to reading more by this author in the future. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Vomit, Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Homophobia, Car accident, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Misogyny, Blood, Dementia, Mass/school shootings, and Religious bigotry

maeverose's review against another edition

This is a book I really should’ve dnfed for the sake of my mental health but for some stupid reason kept reading.

The main character, Gilda, is very mentally I’ll. Some parts of this book are really intense, and if you struggle with death ocd, anxiety, hypochondria, suicidal thoughts or alcoholism I’d be cautious about reading this. Gilda’s panic attacks are described in detail, and they’re very frequent. She also has a full on mental breakdown by the end of the book that is also described in detail and drawn out for a while. It isn’t explicitly stated at any point but she is clearly autistic/audhd coded, and it seems as if she is undiagnosed in the story, she questions why she is the way she is, and definitely doesn’t seem to be aware that she’s autistic. It was difficult reading her experiences, clearly seeing that she’s autistic but with her not knowing and struggling. It was relatable at times, but in an upsetting way more than a nice way. For me, at least. I can see how some readers would enjoy this and feel seen in the main character.

Funnily, like Gilda I feel other people’s emotions pretty strongly, so reading a book like this was probably a bad idea for me. I have similar anxiety and this was triggering for me. I nearly dnfed this several times because of it, and tbh I probably should’ve as it ended up just putting me in a bad mood. I kept reading because I really enjoyed the first half, it was still intense but in a more lighthearted dark humor kind of way (it reminded me of fleabag), but the second half is much more depressing and upsetting.

This book is a very accurate representation of ocd, anxiety, undiagnosed autism and mental illness. If you want that and can handle it, I’d recommend it, just please check content warnings first.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Stalking, Car accident, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Eating disorder, Homophobia, Self harm, Suicide, Religious bigotry, and Murder

Minor: Sexual assault, Excrement, Mass/school shootings, Cannibalism, and Abandonment

Graphic: Body dysmorphia, hypochondria, death ocd, intrusive thoughts, dissociation Moderate: medical malpractice (kind of) Minor: metaphorical cannibalism

penofpossibilities's review against another edition

fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Cursing, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, and Grief

Moderate: Alcoholism, Bullying, Confinement, Homophobia, Police brutality, Medical content, Dementia, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Murder, Lesbophobia, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Vomit and Acephobia/Arophobia

rieviolet's review against another edition

dark emotional funny 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

The book started off really strong but, as I went on reading, it lost me a bit. Maybe it's because we are firmly into the main character's headspace and I felt like it became a bit repetitive. Also, the final section 

with the police investigation and Gilda's questioning and brief detention

felt to me a bit over-the-top, it went on and on and then was solved in the blink of an eye. The ending itself wasn't so bad 

I admit that I teared up a bit when Gilda's left those voicemail messages

but it was still quite abrupt and an awful lot was left unaddressed. 

I appreciated the hard-hitting representation of mental illness, just make sure to check the content warnings and look after your own mental well-being.  
I also quite liked the humour and, as a raised-Catholic-turned-atheist, I cackled many times whenever Gilda pondered over bizarre Catholic rituals.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Lesbophobia, and Fire/Fire injury

Moderate: Ableism, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Drug abuse, Drug use, Self harm, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Mass/school shootings, Stalking, Pregnancy, Outing, and Dysphoria

oddlyghoul's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, and Medical content

Moderate: Ableism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, and Lesbophobia

Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Car accident, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

skudiklier's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective tense medium-paced

• 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

5.0

Okay I'm actually obsessed with this book. Wow.

I have anxiety and I related to Gilda a lot while reading it (though she struggles with it way more than I do, and I have a much easier time asking for help). I loved the way this was written, in genuinely every way that could be interpreted. I'm amazed by how relatable and funny this was while also being so dark and existential. I was so drawn in and cared so much about what was going to happen to everyone involved.

Honestly I have absolutely zero complaints about this book. I mean...I wish maybe we'd gotten a glimpse of Eli at the end to see what happened there? But I understand why the author may have wanted to leave some things open-ended, and I'm satisfied with what we did get to see at the end. I can't recommend this book enough.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Car accident

Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Body horror, Infidelity, Self harm, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Transphobia, Blood, Dementia, Mass/school shootings, Cannibalism, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

major cw for dissociation, depression, and anxiety

melliedm's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

“Thinking about why we exist, and how sad everything is…I keep looking at everyone and thinking, Oh my God, I just want them to smile.”

Gilda is a late 20s lesbian trapped in a painfully familiar cycle of rumination, anxiety, depression, and existential dread. I feel like saying any more than that will tarnish the experience of reading this absolutely fantastic novel, so I’ll refrain. All I’ll really say is that nothing I’ve ever read has come so close to articulating my experience of the world, and now I am a puddle of tears. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Grief

Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Homophobia, Terminal illness, Vomit, Medical trauma, Car accident, Lesbophobia, and Alcohol

Minor: Dementia and Fire/Fire injury

kayri687's review against another edition

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

4.0

was an interesting read. made me have a breakdown halfway through because of how different my experience with mental illness has been and how invisible I seem to a lot of people surrounding me. but I liked it. don't think there was any... flavor in the race area lol

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism

lots of sanism that doesn't get addressed; a brief statement framing mobility aids in a negative(?) light