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Reviews tagging 'Animal cruelty'
Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin
3 reviews
chrisljm's review against another edition
funny
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Not the most uplifting book but I did find it fascinating and a bit profound. I loved the dry humor and being able to see Gilda's thought process and, while depressing, the very unique way she views the world. I'm filled with a sad sort of empathy for Gilda and the way anxiety impacts her, but I'm also left stunned at the heartbreaking beauty that shines through Emily Austin's prose.
For example, there's one instance in the novel where Gilda recounts how through the difficulty she faces to feel happy, the only recent time she can remember being so is when she watched a movie with her girlfriend. She then proceeds to contemplate the role Catholicism plays in peoples lives, and theorizes that it's a solution to existential dread, how it's comforting to imagine we have loved ones waiting for us afterwards, that there is someone in this life who watches over us and loves us, and that perhaps it gives our lives meaning. But as someone who's queer, "it's ironic that a belief system theoretically created to help me feel safe and meaningful takes away one of the few things that makes me feel like my life is worth living at all."
Another instance occurs on Gilda's 28th birthday where she ruminates just how long she's existed: in days, in months, in the years of other parts of this planetary system. "I read once that women are born with all the eggs that they will ever produce in their life. That means the egg that formed me is as old as my mother. From that perspective, part of me is fifty-one."
Gilda is so introspective, in ways that I am not, and despite being left with this tender sadness, I appreciate that I now have this to reflect on.
For example, there's one instance in the novel where Gilda recounts how through the difficulty she faces to feel happy, the only recent time she can remember being so is when she watched a movie with her girlfriend. She then proceeds to contemplate the role Catholicism plays in peoples lives, and theorizes that it's a solution to existential dread, how it's comforting to imagine we have loved ones waiting for us afterwards, that there is someone in this life who watches over us and loves us, and that perhaps it gives our lives meaning. But as someone who's queer, "it's ironic that a belief system theoretically created to help me feel safe and meaningful takes away one of the few things that makes me feel like my life is worth living at all."
Another instance occurs on Gilda's 28th birthday where she ruminates just how long she's existed: in days, in months, in the years of other parts of this planetary system. "I read once that women are born with all the eggs that they will ever produce in their life. That means the egg that formed me is as old as my mother. From that perspective, part of me is fifty-one."
Gilda is so introspective, in ways that I am not, and despite being left with this tender sadness, I appreciate that I now have this to reflect on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Mental illness, Vomit, Alcohol, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Medical content, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Bullying, Self harm, Dementia, and Cannibalism
ivylovesbirds's review against another edition
tense
fast-paced
- 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
The “protagonist” has so many insights about existentialism and how it applies to her, other humans, and her pet. She realizes that she is an animal, and that aliens could see humans as animals and exploit them, and that animals experience deep emotion, and yet, the animals that she eats are purely inanimate objects to her that she continues to exploit nonchalantly. She thinks birds and pigs are magical and that animal lives matter in one thought and complains about how the dead bird she’s about to eat has veins in the next. It’s so uncomfortable reading about her cognitive dissonance. I was hoping her obsession with death and suffering would at least lead her to sympathize with non-human animals, but nope. She has to be the most annoying, hateable “protagonist” in any book I’ve ever read and I say this as someone who has struggled with similar mental health issues. This book felt way too millennial to me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
Moderate: Animal cruelty
Vegans may want to avoid this book.fiekesfiction's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Homophobia
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