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Reviews tagging 'Religious bigotry'
10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak
19 reviews
meadhbh's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I used to think that I didn't like historical fiction. It seemed boring and stuffy to me, and I could never really get into it.
I mostly still feel the same, but a series of non-Western modern history books have been slowly warming me to it. The Seven Moons of Mali Almeida and Mexican Gothic are two other recent reads I have loved.
This book is mostly about Leila and her friends, but it's also about Istanbul. It's about communism, and Islam, and sex work, while also not really being about any of those things. Read it.
Graphic: Death, Incest, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Transphobia, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Chronic illness, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Self harm, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Blood, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Murder, and Alcohol
Minor: Genocide
irenemarie's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Pedophilia, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Self harm, Sexism, Transphobia, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Ableism, Child death, Miscarriage, Rape, Suicide, Police brutality, Trafficking, and Pregnancy
moonchildjuli's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Child death, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
thewordsdevourer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
aided by an interesting, intriguing structure, the novel's first part reads like snapshots from the main character leila's life. while initially very slow going - the pace making me actually put down the book for 2 weeks - things start to pick up once we get out of leila's hometown, leila thrusted into the wider world - for better and for worse - while also gradually learning abt the five friends she so treasures.
i rly enjoy reading abt istanbul thru the POVs of characters marginalized by society, seeing the city thru a different, less sanitized perspective, yet a sense of love for the city, interestingly, still pervades. shafak spotlights those rarely seen or heard in the mainstream, let alone humanely, in this novel, be it those who are turkish and arent, esp the more recent and pressing refugees. the book's period of upheaval also serves as a revealing, rollicking - though at times painful - historical archive.
what i love most abt this book is perhaps the relationship between leila and her 5 friends, both individually and as a group. theirs is a bond deeper and closer than those of their respectively wretched families, and it's surprisingly touching. in a society that shuns them and wrongs go unpunished, they band tgt to survive, find joy and stand up for themselves.
this is an enjoyable book thats as much abt the characters as the city of istanbul they live in, in all its glory and misery. though i personally think there's too much exposition, some parts could be trimmed, and the initial pace too slow, i dont merely feel but also learn a lot from this book, and thats always a good reading experience in my book.
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Sexism, Transphobia, Police brutality, Grief, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Trafficking, and Murder
Minor: Infidelity and Miscarriage
milliminal's review against another edition
- 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
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.
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
bethnash's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Child abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Incest, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Police brutality, Medical content, Religious bigotry, and Murder
Minor: Addiction, Animal death, Child death, Cursing, Self harm, Trafficking, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Alcohol
alexhaydon's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Rape, Religious bigotry, and Murder
annimsal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Trafficking, and Mass/school shootings
Moderate: Child abuse, Deadnaming, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Transphobia, Violence, and Religious bigotry
creepycrawlybookworm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Hate crime, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Child death, Death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, and Grief
Minor: Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, Trafficking, and Religious bigotry