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kat1905's review against another edition
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Toxic friendship
chylth's review against another edition
- 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
4.0
I will say that my absolute favorite part of this book was anything that had to do with Melly. She is actually so sweet and I would love to have a friend like her.
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexism
Moderate: Misogyny, Slavery, Toxic relationship, and War
Minor: Miscarriage and Pregnancy
itsanaxiom's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Child death, Death, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Sexual violence, Dementia, and Pregnancy
Minor: Alcoholism
mindysbookjourney's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Child death, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Pregnancy, and War
shanellewrites's review against another edition
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexism
elliebasta's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Rape, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Miscarriage
seapotatohowisitalrtaken'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
4.5
Graphic: Alcoholism, Bullying, Death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, Grief, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, War, and Classism
Moderate: Animal death, Body shaming, Child death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism, Abortion, and Deportation
amymegan27's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Classism
kmhst25's review against another edition
3.75
Strengths:
- Making you care about truly reprehensible people. The male and females leads are both exceedingly unlikeable, and it can be hard to make an unlikeable character compelling. Mitchell does it with ease.
- The South's perspective of the Civil War. There's a lot of emotional context for what the war was like for people in the South. The writing makes you sympathize for the characters, even though you can't sympathize for their cause.
- Sheer readability. It's so dramatic that you can read it for hours at a stretch.
Weaknesses:
- The length. The book spans 12 years and is over 900 pages long. No book needs to be that long, and this one is no exception. There are sections that drag, specifically in the years before and after the war.
- The South's perspective of Reconstruction. The racism in this section is truly off the charts and the history is one-sided at best, downright lies at worst. This is a disappointment, because the history of the Civil War section holds up.
- No neat wrap-up. Mitchell has said that the book's theme is survival, which I would agree with, but I wouldn't say that there's a definitive takeaway or clean ending. It simply ends.
Graphic: Racism, Sexism, Slavery, and War
Minor: Rape
Rape is frequently discussed/mentioned, and there are some scenes with questionable consent and/or attempted rape. There are no explicit rape scenes.malmark's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Child death, Cursing, Death, Racism, Sexism, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and War