Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

In memoriam by Alice Winn

15 reviews

jamiejanae_6's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Dysphoria, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

proudtobeabookaholic's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative 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? Yes

5.0

När första världskriget bryter ut är många av pojkarna på internatskolan Preshute College ivriga att få ta värvning. Inte Henry Gaunt, som är emot kriget. Men när hans tyska mor ber honom göra det för att skydda familjen från spionmisstankar så anser han sig inte ha mycket till val. Nu slipper han åtminstone kämpa mot sina förbjudna känslor för sin bäste vän, Sidney Ellwood. Men det dröjer inte länge innan hans skolkamrater följer efter honom till skyttegravarna - även Ellwood. 

Den här debutromanen hamnar definitivt på min lista över årets bästa böcker! Jag har läst många böcker om andra världskriget, som då oftast handlat om koncentrationslägren, men få böcker om första världskriget. Här tas vi med ned i skyttegravarna och får veta exakt hur eländigt och skrämmande det var. Den romantiska bilden många unga män hade om att ta värvning förändrades väldigt snabbt när de väl var på plats. Det är fullt begripligt att de som var med vid fronten förändrades som människor, konstigt vore det annars. Det är många gånger hjärtskärande läsning, men här finns också en hel del hopp. Kamratskapen bland soldaterna får stor betydelse och skildras på ett briljant sätt av Winn. 

Det finns likheter med "Den hemliga historien" och "Döda poeters sällskap" och gillar man stämningen i de böckerna så är jag rätt säker på att man kommer att tycka om "In memoriam". Trots det till synes tunga ämnet så är boken lättläst och faktiskt svår att lägga ifrån sig. Texten "lättas upp" av dikter (Ellwood är poet), brev och tidningsurklipp med listor på döda och sårade. Relationen mellan Gaunt och Ellwood är fascinerande att följa, särskilt som homosexualitet var olagligt på den tiden. Ändå var det inte ovanligt att pojkar "fördrev tiden" med varandra och det var på något vis acceptabelt. Så länge man inte blev påkommen...

Det är oftast svårare att sätta ord på varför man älskar en bok, för hur man än försöker så hittar man sällan rätt resonemang. När jag läser igenom det jag skrivit så vet jag inte om jag kommer att övertyga någon om att det här är en bok som inte får missas. Jag får helt enkelt hoppas att många ändå väljer att plocka upp den!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Grief, Medical trauma, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Homophobia, and Alcohol

Minor: Sexual content and Suicide

radikaliseradgroda's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense

• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

This is the best thing I've read in years.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Confinement, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, and Antisemitism

lou702's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

This is one of the most devastating books I ever read. Even with the knowledge of it being set in the first world war, I was not prepared to cry so many tears for fictional characters.

You start to love them and read about funny moments and just some word later you find out that they died.

I cried horribly and will probably never touch it again, even if it was such a good written book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Violence, Grief, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cursing, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

liesthemoontells's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

This is one of the most moving love stories I've read in fiction. Winn's descriptions of yearning and forbidden longing are so tender and raw, and the weight of the characters' situations brought me to tears several times.

The passages describing the war are brutal, visceral, and full of horror, as are the psychological torments inflicted on the men by the inhumanity they are forced to endure. 

While the ending of the book is beautiful and hopeful, I really appreciated that the romantic impossibility of Ellwood and Gaunt's reunion didn't offer a panacea for their trauma. Instead, it realistically provided them both with a glimmer of hope that eventually, a normal life could be achieved.

My only (minor) critique of this book is that occasionally the 21st century sensibilities of anti-colonial sentiment felt a little too on the nose coming out of the mouths of British public school boys, but that really is a minor nitpick. 

Despite its heavy themes, this book was readable and engrossing.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Blood, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

paulawind's review against another edition

dark 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? It's complicated

4.5

To be perfectly honest, I expected more of a

kill your gays type of a situation

, especially considering time period,

but I’m so happy I was wrong! The more I think about it, it was the happiest ending that would be realistic in this situation.

We’ll always have Brazil, fuck the Old World. 
This book was harrowing. I thought I was ready for the horrors of war after reading All Quiet on the Western Front, but this book only awoke my memories. Why do leaders decide to go to war when it is universally acknowledged that it is only bringing pain and suffering? And we do it all over again, for millennia. Maybe the Greeks got it more, when the war was more about man vs man rather than automated machines against civilians. 
Coming to characters, side from them dropping like flies every other chapter, I think the author made us care about every (or almost every) death. The character development for both MCs was absolutely breaking my heart but

I’m so glad they found each other back in the end and are learning to love each other again

An almost complete emotional flip Gaunt and Ellwood did throughout the book hit me like a whiplash, but it was done in a way that it made sense. After all

Gaunt’s prisoners of war camp chapters were the most peaceful and cheerful of the entire book, whereas Elwood was facing bloodbath every day, seeing an orchestrated massacre on a daily basis

One of my favourite moments is when Elwood is screaming poetry at Gaunt, very blatantly professing his love in all meaning but the straightforward one, and Gaunt is so deep in denial that even thought he loved him desperately too, he can’t believe it’s really happening. Those characters in a nutshell. At least for the first part of the book. Later it would be Gaunt being gentle and endlessly patient with Elwood when he struggles to say anything at all and bursting in anger, fighting his ptsd. Gosh, I love those boys so much. Going to pretend that the book ended with “And they lived happily ever after”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

lottykarottie's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Homophobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Blood, Excrement, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Outing, Alcohol, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

caitlin_123a's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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: Body horror, Child death, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Antisemitism

nadijya's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Vomit, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

msouth's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Body horror, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Grief, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism