Reviews tagging 'Sexual content'

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

146 reviews

a_library_lion's review

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring 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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent

Moderate: Addiction, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Sexual content, Grief, and Suicide attempt

katy_heath's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I really loved reading this book for the educational aspect, having never been near the Appalachian region of the US. 

It was beautifully written but occasionally a bit full on.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Sexual content

Moderate: Alcoholism and Violence

Minor: Sexual assault

angorarabbit's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful 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? Yes

5.0

Context: I have tried but never finished Charles Dickens’ David Copperfield. I have no intention in trying again. I did have to skim two chapters of Demon Copperhead (the one with the truck stop and one with U-Haul). 

 

TLDR: The fact that I could read this is a testament to the writing skill of Ms Kingsolver, I am in awe. 

 

I want to spend a little time on the foster care system as described in the novel. DSS is in about half of Demon’s life officially and spreads into the rest of his life. All of it is true to reality. Older children (especially boys) do have a harder time finding placement in foster homes. According to the Children’s Bureau at the Administration for Children and Families (a division of the USDHHS), there were 407,000 children in foster care in the US in 2020. By the age of 17 over 50% of those children will have encounters with law enforcement. The foster care to juevie pipeline is a real phenomenon. The novel also delves into the emotional toll the death of parents and foster care takes on a child through out their lives in the narrative of the main character that I relate to. 

 

That said, Demon was incredibly lucky. He actually has better foster homes than many kids in his first two foster homes and his third is hitting the jackpot. He also is told he gets his survivor benefits  when he turns 18. My experience is that any SS money goes to the agency handling the foster care which uses it to pay the foster parents and administrative costs. The child times out with a few clothes and perhaps a half-way house to move into an adult life they are usually ill prepared for. 

 

I also vibed with how much the characters loved their home. Not the house but everything, the creek, the mountains, the wildlife, the friends, the family. And how hard it is to leave that behind to find work or escape addictions. Hiraeth is not just for Wales. 

 

My only criticism; lack of depth in the slime ball characters U-Haul, Fast Forward, Stoner and truck stop woman. In particular U-Haul is given no backstory even though he is a major plot point in the second half. Why does he stay as the coach’s lackey hauling his kids around? I get that he has the hots for Angus but he waits almost 20 years to act. He’s just slimy because some one has to be Uriah Heep I guess. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Child death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Gun violence, Forced institutionalization, and Car accident

child neglect, child labor, the foster care system, snakes, sex work, rats, unsanitary conditions

squintyfarmer's review

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Classism

stellahadz's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

The Pulitzer prize for this book was well-deserved. The writing is immersive and descriptive, plunging the reader into a world that may not be familiar to them (it certainly wasn't for me). I loved the descriptions of family life and Demon's desire to have somewhere to fit in. I was captivated by his journey and constantly rooting for him to find his home. The other characters were great, too - my personal favorite was Mr. Armstrong. The story is equal parts funny and heartbreaking, and it's definitely long, but absolutely worth it. The scene where

Demon drives away from Lee County and hikes into the mountains

made me tear up. It's the kind of book that I feel almost sad to have finished.

Spoilers ahead:

I know some people aren't fans of the "everything gets tied up neatly" type of ending, but I personally love it, and if anyone deserves it, it's Demon. Also, if I HAD to choose a complaint about this book, it would be that he may or may not end up dating his foster sister...

but the rest of the book is so incredible that I stand by the 5-star rating. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Death of parent

Moderate: Confinement, Miscarriage, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Gun violence, Racism, Suicide, Medical content, and Abortion

carrigoitia's review against another edition

challenging dark funny tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Truly one of the most incredible books I’ve ever read. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Chronic illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Blood, Vomit, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Cancer, Pedophilia, Racism, Self harm, Suicide, Medical content, Car accident, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, and Colonisation

dany_oche's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Vomit, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

lisettemarie's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Miscarriage, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

puffinthedog's review

emotional 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

5.0

An achingly sad but beautifully written novel that touches on the effects of generational trauma, substance use disorders, domestic violence, poverty, and grief. Kingsolver handles difficult and often incredibly stigmatized issues with honesty and respect. Her characters are multi dimensional and handled with care. As someone with almost a decade in recovery from an opiate use disorder, this book brought me back to the fear and bodily sensations that so often accompany active addiction in a way that no other book has. Realistic and devastating but without being trauma or inspiration porn. 

It was a book that I was sad to finish and maybe for that reason I do wish she had spent more time covering the pain of early recovery and realizing all of what you had been numbing, but this book is such a masterpiece as it is that maybe adding anything else would have only lessened the work. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Moderate: Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Cursing, Homophobia, Misogyny, Suicide, Terminal illness, Medical content, Abortion, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Fatphobia, Homophobia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Medical content, Abortion, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

amybartoli29's review

challenging funny 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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Classism

Minor: Sexual content, Suicide, and Abortion