Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

The Reformatory by Tananarive Due

16 reviews

louisforyou's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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? N/A

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Sexism

Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual violence

twobooksonenerd's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective 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

As a mother of a teenage boy, this wasn’t an easy read. I feel like all parents should read this. While based almost 100 years ago, I don’t see very much different in how minorities/poc are treated. Painfully scary without all the Hollywood glitter.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, and Classism

Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Sexism, Slavery, Violence, and Death of parent

jaedia's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense slow-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Cancer, Gore, Gun violence, Pedophilia, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Classism

elysianbud's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

One of the best books I have ever read. 

Tananarive Due writes about some of the worst human behaviour imaginable, but also some of the most beautiful depictions of bravery and friendship: a wedding photo saved, a drawing of friend, a helping hand. Both extremes will make you sob throughout this book. Chapters 32 and 33 in particular almost had me screaming in anguish--I probably would have, if not for the neighbours. 

This is a longer book than I typically read but it does not drag for a single moment. This is one of the tightest narratives I've ever read; there's not a word wasted, it's paced perfectly from beginning to end. 

I picked this up for the ghosts, so when I realised there was more then just Robert's perspective, I wondered if I would lose interest, as is often the fear with multiple perspective stories. However, Due manages to make both Robert and Grace's narrative tense and terrifying in their own ways, with or without the haints. In fact, the haints aren't even the scary part of this story. The living are the ones to fear, and Due made me shiver with fear and my heart ache in pain with their disgusting behaviour. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Cancer and Classism

torturedreadersdept's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

nineinchnails's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense 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? No

5.0

i genuinely really loved this and it feels weird to say about a book that touches on such dark topics. this felt more like historical fiction than horror at some parts which may be partly responsible for me enjoying this so much. the focus on the cruelty and abuse that occurred at gracetown school for boys (a fictional school/prison modelled after real reform schools that existed at that time, like florida’s dozier school for boys) overshadowed the traditional horror elements at play here almost to the point of obscuring them. the former felt much, much scarier. 

i don’t usually mention these, but i really recommend reading the dedication, author’s note, and acknowledgments, as they gave context that made the novel feel even more meaningful. this book gave me similar feelings to “mornings in jenin” by susan abulhawa. this was over 500 pages so it was a long read (from what i remember about horrors) but it was because it was so bleak and heavy rather than it feeling like a slog. not a sentence of this felt wasted and i highly recommend giving this a read, even if it’s not a novel you would typically gravitate towards. everyone has something to learn from this book!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Torture, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Child death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, and Antisemitism

Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual violence, Slavery, and War

Apartheid, Jim crow, and Segregation

kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense 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? Yes

4.5

Hauntingly beautiful prose yet still direct and plain enough for everyone to access. This book is equal parts historical fiction, horror, and thriller. The paranormal aspect made the story more compelling and without it, it would’ve been just another story about the Jim Crow south and the horrors that occurred there. The characters are brave and heroic and hopeful even when they have no reason to be. This book has the potential to become a classic and should be read widely. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

courtneyadh's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

5.0

I loved this book and truly could not put it down. But it is very intense. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Bullying, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Pedophilia, Rape, Vomit, and Classism

gwenswoons's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

Whew. This was an agonizing, devastating, painful read. But the storytelling and the world-building is unlike anything I’ve ever read, I think. My Dad has been obsessed with Tananarive Due for the last several months - reading absolutely every word she’s written - and I read this since it was the first one he read and started telling me about a while ago. It’s astonishing by every measure: gorgeous writing, unflinchingly  in the telling of history, a vivid point of view all the time. Every possible content warning for this - it is a novel about the Jim Crow south, and the violence and terror permeates every moment. If you have the mental space and the fortitude, it is profoundly worth reading. I listened on audio (truly excellent narration by Joniece Abbott-Pratt), and I had to take big breaks and listen to/read lighter stuff - it’s scary and deeply heavy. I kept thinking it was like if Stephen King (à la The Institute, in the most possible parallel to me) seriously knew how to write (literary fiction), had a real reason for telling the story he was telling, was actually able to inhabit other perspectives. This story is loosely based on/inspired by part of Due’s family history, which includes an uncle who was killed at a similar (real/not fictional) institution in Jim Crow Florida. Anyway - I am grateful to have finished this - emotionally wrecked - but will be thinking about it for a long time and hope you will take the time to read this novel or other works of Tananarive Due’s.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

ashtheaudiomancer's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-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

4.5

This is my first Tananarive Due book, and everything I've heard about her writing has, if anything, been underplayed.  This is about a "reform school" that is a thinly veiled death camp where boys are sent for minor and/or imagined infractions, and many never get out. It's also haunted, and young Robbie's ability to communicate with ghosts might be his only chance of escaping. Not for the faint of heart, but essential reading for understanding one of the most unforgivable avenues of racism.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Police brutality, and Abandonment

Minor: Terminal illness

Most of the content warnings you can infer from the description, but just be aware they are very much part of the story and you will not be able to skim over them.