Reviews tagging 'Sexual assault'

A Woman Is No Man by Etaf Rum

120 reviews

frogggirl2's review against another edition

dark sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

It's really hard to cope with this particular brand of misogyny which wraps itself in a false flag of religiosity.  It doesn't matter what religion it is - using any religion as an excuse to belittle, dehumanize, sell, rape, beat and murder women is unequivocally inexcusable, disgusting and pathetic. 

Every character in this book serves the same purpose - every character is one note and serves to hammer on the theme of oppression.  It's unrelenting and it's hard to bear.

This book just has no nuance at all.  The way it portrays the men and the way it betrays the women is the same  they are equally culpable in the abuse of women.  

I don't think there's really anything to learn here.  All this does is subjugate the characters.  I honestly wish I wouldn't have subjected myself to this book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy

jessiejonesbentley's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense fast-paced

• 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? N/A

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Classism

akia_nanashi's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I don't know what I feel . But as a woman now I know what to do next. And I'll thanks this book for that. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, and Gaslighting

disasterdump's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

careinthelibrary's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

5.0

I finished this yesterday and I'm sure it will stay with me. A very powerful, intergenerational story of Palestinian-American women's lives. Multiple perspectives delving into abuse, motherhood, gender roles, education, and family secrets and lies. I was kept hooked by the mystery elements and the ending lingers in my mind.  

Help Amira save her husband Muhammad from Gaza 👉 https://www.gofundme.com/f/from-dreams-to-ruins-help-my-family-survive

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Confinement, Hate crime, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Blood, Islamophobia, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Child death and Abortion

wrengates's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

• 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

5.0

This book is a must read for everyone, regardless of race, culture, religion, sex, or age. It is eye-opening, inspiring and beautiful. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse

Moderate: Mental illness, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Violence

mekowaletti's review against another edition

challenging emotional tense medium-paced

• 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

Told from multiple generations about the personal trauma that flows through decisions made by those not thinking about individual impact. Just deep and raw and I loved the alternation from mother to daughter. You can't help but feel deeply for these characters and know that all decisions were based on what they thought was best.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Genocide, Misogyny, Sexism, Toxic relationship, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Pregnancy, and Alcohol

the_reading_italian's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad 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? Yes

4.75

I love this book. It's amazing and it really shows what purity culture and religion can do to women over the course of multiple generations. I think it is a very good example of how domestic violence and abuse is hidden (almost encouraged) in certain cultures because of beliefs and values. It was a hard read, but I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys feminist literature or is interested in multigenerational historical fiction.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Death, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Abortion, Death of parent, and Murder

jkreads's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was breathtaking. So thought-provoking, challenging, dark, hopeful, and gut-churning. The prose was lush and emotive without being overly flowery - to me this was a great example of “showing not telling”. This book didn’t need to tell me how to feel because the plot did that all on its own. The climax of this book felt inevitable, it was very obvious where it was going almost from the start, and yet somehow when it was revealed it still managed to feel like a gut punch. Incredible, incredible writing. Etaf Rum has cemented herself as a must-read author for me.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Genocide, and War

nat_montego's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Pregnancy