Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

10 Minutes 38 Seconds in This Strange World by Elif Shafak

12 reviews

cnannery19's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Transphobia, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

shadysands's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional 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? It's complicated

5.0

Loved everything about this book- from the way it was written in such a poetic and beautiful way, the depth of the characters, the exploration of trauma and how culture and religion can impact on this to the friendship of adversity and resilience. The trauma made me feel uncomfortable and triggered, but I felt the depth was a necessary part of her story. I also appreciated at the end showing that some parts of the story were derived from real things. Very real and sad story. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Incest, Rape, Grief, Murder, and Abandonment

daniellekat's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad slow-paced

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

3.75

I loved part one (Mind) and thought this was on its way to 5 stars, but parts 2 (Body) and 3 (Soul) lost me. Shafak is a masterful writer and her descriptive style perfectly suits the novel's time and setting. My main criticism with this is the same for my last Shafak read (The Island of Missing Trees) - too much information is given to the reader. Especially in Part 2, there were too many perspectives and explicit details that I thought would have been more powerful left untold. I loved the found family aspect of this book and the way their grief manifested among them. I wish we were given more time with each of the friends but overall this was another well balanced blend of history and fiction. I highly recommend checking the content warnings on this one.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Misogyny, Self harm, Transphobia, Trafficking, Religious bigotry, and Abandonment

Minor: Addiction, Bullying, Child death, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

annanas's review

challenging dark reflective tense 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? It's complicated

3.75

This was a book chosen for the book club I'm in. I wanted to quit reading many times since it was very triggering and made me cry several times. I sincerely reccomand checking the trigger warnings, and maybe skip this book if graphic descriptions of sexual assult is too much for you.

Other than that I'm glad I finished the book. I fell in love with many of the characters who in a world where they are left out and marginlized, they found each other and created their own chosen family. I felt very isnpired by the main character who against all odds were the most genuine and caring person towards her friends, and it was very beautiful how they wanted to honor her memory. There is something very healing about stories about people who don't fit into the norm, but they form genuine connections with each other, without judgement, and instead they just enjoy each others company.

What I also enjoyed about the book was that it discusses cultural differences and attitudes when it comes to family, relationships and death. And it was also interesting to learn about Turkey, and Istanbul when it comes to their food, their clothes and other cultural expressions. I met up with my book club at a Turkish restaurant where we tried food inspired from the book. We had many interesting discussions as well as many different opnions, so overall I'm very grateful for being able to have that experience.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Trafficking

Moderate: Ableism, Transphobia, and Abandonment

lynnersk's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative 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

4.5

I wish I hadn’t read this book so that I can ho back and read it again for the first time. 
It’s beautifully sad. A fictional story but with truths that anyone and everyone should be aware of.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, and Abandonment

daisyfont's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Homophobia, Incest, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Vomit, Police brutality, Grief, Medical trauma, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

mariaminthebooks's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Grief, and Abandonment

ollie_again's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Trafficking, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Miscarriage, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Abandonment, and Alcohol

Minor: Ableism, Drug abuse, Torture, Police brutality, and Sexual harassment

bookaholic_kp's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny sad tense 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Medical trauma, Abortion, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

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