Reviews tagging 'Transphobia'

The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi

512 reviews

richy_qu33r_readzz's review against another edition

dark emotional 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

4.5

Akwaeke (A-quake-ay they/them) is a beautiful writer with so many turns of phrase that made me pause and chew on, that made me feel seen. They have a brilliant way of describing a situation and linking it to a more general philosophy or way of being “My mother, who felt like a hammer instead of a person” will haunt me for a while as many other passages are still churning inside me. I learned a lot about immigrant life in Nigeria, saw more Igbo reincarnation, and witnessed how life changes a person and how a person changed pushes people away with religion, with secrets, with holding on too tight.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Incest, Sexism, Transphobia, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Bullying, Violence, and Vomit

Favourite quotes:

“If nobody sees you, are you still there?”P.38 “some people can’t see softness without wanting to hurt it.” P.113 “I would say it was too late, but time has stopped meaning what it used to. I don’t mind anymore. I see how things work now, from this side. I was born and I died. I will come back. Somewhere, you see, in the river of time, I am already alive.” P.245

vobots's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

i cried during the last chapter. it had all come together so beautifully.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Transphobia

sosopablo's review against another edition

While the book is beautiful and tragic, I simply couldn't get into it. After a hundred pages, I gave up.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Incest

Moderate: Misogyny and Transphobia

mattyvreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful mysterious sad fast-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? It's complicated

5.0

Heartbreaking and beautiful. I devoured every word. If all of Akwaeke Emezi's books are like this, she must be one of the greatest writers of all time. One of my favorite books that I have ever read. Incredible.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Transphobia, and Violence

Moderate: Hate crime and Incest

hunni_reads's review against another edition

emotional 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Incest, and Transphobia

jmiles758's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Outing, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

marmoo's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.25

There’s no escaping the tragedy right there in the title. The novel is at its strongest when charting the ripples of grief set off by that death, tracking with rawness and sensitivity how the loss reverberates through a family and community. 

The stylistic choice to reveal Vivek primarily through others’ eyes with only brief POV snippets was an effective way of exploring the impact of his loss, but it also left me wanting to know more about our titular character. Instead, he remained more of a cipher than I might have preferred, leaving me wondering about some fateful decisions late in the novel. Still, with strong dialogue and compelling characterizations, the emotional beats very much land. And despite the heaviness of the subject matter, the prose flies by.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Incest, and Transphobia

cnord's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Beautifully written and the audio book narrators were some of the best I’ve ever heard. I’ve been thinking about how to process the fact that

Vivek and Osita were cousins and also had a sexual relationship. I’m not sure if the author wanted us to feel uncomfortable with that information or not. I feel like they could have been childhood best friends or life-long next door neighbors and the plot still would have been as compelling.

Despite that I thought it was a very nuanced reflection on identity, grief, and the restrictions culture/family put on you. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Incest, and Transphobia

Minor: Animal death

allypricee's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

gave this a 4 initially but can’t stop thinking about it so it’s a 5 for me. cried on the airplane reading it 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Transphobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Dysphoria

clariast7's review against another edition

challenging emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Homophobia, Transphobia, Violence, Blood, and Grief