Reviews tagging 'Fatphobia'

10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak

3 reviews

matmatmatty's review against another edition

emotional hopeful sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

This is the story of Leila, a sex worker in Istanbul, who while dying is remembering her life and the moments that led up to her death.

This is a very emotional story, with Leila going through a lot on her childhood and a lot as an adult. Through the story, we learn about her closest friends she met along the way and all the characters felt so real and so complex.

Spoiler:

The second part of the story follows Leila's friends deciding to give her a proper burial and did feel a bit like a different story. I think it could've flowed a bit better but I am glad that we got a happy end. Once we hear about Leila's story, the book could have ended there and it would have been a sad story.  But with this, we know she is a peace and everyone is a little closer because of that.

Overall, I really loved this story, it was very emotional at times and I felt for Leila at every point. Beautiful story ❤️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Rape, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Child death, Fatphobia, Incest, Self harm, Sexual violence, and Transphobia

hanami_sui's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• 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: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Body horror, Body shaming, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Self harm, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, and Mass/school shootings

Minor: Fatphobia, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

milliminal's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad fast-paced

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

3.75

What I liked:
The concept, the narrative, the cast of diverse characters and stories, the vivid and immersive descriptions of Istanbul

What I disliked:
The sheer amount of trauma, which almost started feeling like sensationalism, especially when accompanied with little to no reflection on it. (I wish I had read the trigger warnings before hand.) How much the first part slogged in comparison to the second and third parts. 

It was a good read but does not make me motivated to read other works by Shafak.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Deadnaming, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Gore, Homophobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Transphobia, Police brutality, Medical content, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Stalking, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Outing, Abandonment, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail