Reviews tagging 'Bullying'

Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe

5 reviews

k1ras_magic's review

challenging dark informative mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

Dua Lipa's book club for the win. I knew next to nothing of "The Troubles" and had very basic knowledge of the IRA and the whole thing. This book was so interesting, compelling & hooks you right from the beginning, it's a beautiful and horrific portrayal of what it means to be human. It really paints the picture of what it was to be a citizen in the island and how interconnected everything seems to be, and how the repercussions can still be felt today. Seriously gripping, entertainment and knowledgeable.  I don't give it five stars, mostly because it takes a long time to get through it. The names, places and  dates are very well laid out but I had to stop multiple times to  go back and check some of the notes and resources and so it took me a long time to read and process and sometimes even then I would get confused a bit, which totally makes sense because it's a complex story and also I get the stylistic choice of using an Irish accent for the audiobook but that def did not help me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder, Violence, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Addiction, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Racism, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Kidnapping, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, and War

maxmilkman's review against another edition

adventurous informative tense medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Death, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Police brutality, Medical content, and Abandonment

Minor: Gore, Pedophilia, Medical content, and Suicide attempt

bigheadcam's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

An absolutely incredible, fascinating, and perfectly paced narrative nonfiction on the Troubles. Radden Keefe is very careful to specify that this book is not "historical" nonfiction because a lot of the information in this book is derived from oral accounts. He did his best to reconcile these accounts by corroborating them with more official records and reports, but the Troubles are not well documented and were a truly chaotic time.

Radden Keefe's writing is objective and informative while also remaining gripping and maintaining an excellent storytelling tone. I was consistently impressed with how well he kept every subject covered interesting, and how he manages to switch contexts without losing the reader or making it jarring.

Thanks to John Oliver for recommending this on Hot Ones. I'd happily do the same for anyone with an interest in history, radical ideologies, revolution, and modern struggles for independence as well as the cost of said struggles.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

cassimiranda's review against another edition

dark informative tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and War

kimveach's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

3.0

If you are interested in The Troubles or the IRA during the latter half of the 20th century, then this is a well-crafted book.  By starting with the kidnapping of Jean McConnville, he has a thread to tie the book together.  However, it didn't work for me.  I don't read much non-fiction and was not interested in this particular story.   While I did learn much about the IRA and Northern Ireland, the large number of names and intertwining stories was tiring. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail