tigger89'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
I went back and forth on how well I thought Vern's time in the woods was handled. There were a few scenes in particular where I felt like she wouldn't have left her children, yet for plot-related reasons, she did. Ultimately, I've concluded that it was in character, by virtue of the fact that she was a teenager at the time. A teenager with great responsibilities, yes, but still a teenager, with all the risk-taking behavior and poor judgement that entails. The book is written to guide us to forget this, but Vern begins the story as a child and has barely entered adulthood by the climax.
This story contains LGBTQ and disability representation. For the latter, in addition to Vern having albinism and a vision impairment, the progression of her transformation is treated like a chronic illness that affects her ability to perform some tasks. I also caught a vibe that Vern might be neurodivergent, but due to her upbringing the character lacks the vocabulary to think of herself that way so there was no clear confirmation of such. Similarly, she speaks around her gender and sexual identities — I'm unclear if she claims something like a nonbinary gender identity or not — but readers alert for such will be able to spot that something is there, even if the details are elusive.
Graphic: Chronic illness, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Violence and Death
clare072'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
3.0
Moderate: Lesbophobia, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Violence, Gore, Chronic illness, and Body horror
Minor: Confinement, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Addiction, Alcohol, Animal death, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Child abuse, Colonisation, and Child death
mjadeh's review against another edition
4.75
Graphic: Misogyny, Racism, Murder, Violence, Blood, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Medical content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Self harm, Sexism, Stalking, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Gore, and Physical abuse
maksipad's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Torture, Stalking, Racism, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Suicide, Addiction, Child death, Murder, Body horror, Homophobia, Xenophobia, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Colonisation, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Self harm, and Slavery
mixtercharlie'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: Chronic illness, Ableism, Confinement, Death, Rape, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Torture, Car accident, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Animal death, Child death, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Lesbophobia, Mental illness, Death of parent, Genocide, Blood, Murder, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racism, Body horror, Religious bigotry, Classism, Suicidal thoughts, Colonisation, Fire/Fire injury, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Grief, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, and Self harm
cookiecat73'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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, Racism, Stalking, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Cannibalism, Child death, Chronic illness, Classism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Murder, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Blood, Kidnapping, Lesbophobia, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Self harm, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Medical content, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Abandonment, Colonisation, Rape, Sexual assault, Drug use, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Excrement, Racial slurs, and Slavery
d0505's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Body horror, Murder, and Misogyny
Moderate: Animal death, Adult/minor relationship, Stalking, and Child death
Minor: Suicide, Chronic illness, and Pregnancy
sup3r_xn0va_maya's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Spoiler
This story is about the medical horrors that Black folks have gone through at the hands of the United States government.I think the horror elements of this book were mainly based on body horror and psychological horror, and generational trauma and those worked well within the book. This was a beautifully told story, I love the way the author writes. This story was also really unique so I want to give the author props for that.
Overall I enjoyed this read, though because of the slowness, I don't see myself reading this again.
I give this a 3.5 out of 5 stars
Graphic: Self harm, Stalking, Forced institutionalization, Misogyny, Chronic illness, Rape, Emotional abuse, Grief, Police brutality, Body horror, Car accident, Gore, Sexual content, Child death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Adult/minor relationship, Suicide, Animal death, Child abuse, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, and Religious bigotry
dazzle_spider_reader_1212'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? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Death, Self harm, Blood, Child abuse, Animal cruelty, Gore, Sexual content, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Pregnancy, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Mental illness, Murder, Child death, Physical abuse, Chronic illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Cannibalism, Gun violence, Cursing, Confinement, and Domestic abuse
dustghosts'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
4.0
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Medical trauma, Torture, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Blood, Chronic illness, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Colonisation, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Body horror, Child death, Child abuse, Lesbophobia, Sexism, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Confinement, Murder, Torture, Mass/school shootings, Medical content, Racism, Addiction, Cancer, Cannibalism, Car accident, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Transphobia, Gun violence, and Suicide