Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

Educated by Tara Westover

5 reviews

katharina90's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

4.0

A harrowing memoir about a woman who broke away from an incredibly abusive family to pursue an education.

Difficult to read due to the graphic abuse, neglect and layers of trauma. I'm sure I didn't even capture all of the CWs.

I mostly found it sad and not particularly hopeful which I think just reflects where the author was in her healing journey at the time of writing. 

By the end of the book, the author has managed to separate herself from most of her family and is setting boundaries (which is a huge accomplishment!), but it doesn't seem like she's at peace as she keeps trying to pursue a relationship with her mother who both enabled and participated in the abuse and neglect.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Antisemitism, and Car accident

Minor: Addiction, Cancer, and Colonisation

booksoversecondbreakfast's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.75

I share so much of my story with this author. We have so many shared experiences and I had never heard those experiences expressed so clearly until I read this book. She made me feel like I was there beside her throughout her life and she summarized the main points she was making very thoroughly. I really liked this book, and subtract a quarter of a star only because of how negatively she cast a light towards being uneducated. It made me feel a bit too uncomfortable how angry she was, but I remain understanding of it due to the fact that she has been through so much. There were so many quoteworthy parts to this book, however, and I expect it will be a book I come back to throughout my life. She shared so many great lessons and ways of seeing the world, and I'm really grateful for that.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Ableism, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Murder, Abandonment, and War

Minor: Addiction, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Death, Genocide, Miscarriage, Blood, Antisemitism, Death of parent, and Colonisation

idkimoutofideas's review against another edition

challenging inspiring sad tense fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, and Alcohol

jspain's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.5

i like books like this cause i am nosey

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Fire/Fire injury and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Animal death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Minor: Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Blood, Antisemitism, Stalking, Car accident, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Colonisation, and Classism

toothpastefairy's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

4.5

It's a deeply reflective memoir, in which Tara details her life thus far in a way that simultaneously terrifies me and provides some hope. Family relationships and the complexity of one's loyalties to blood versus oneself is difficult to write about, but Tara examines them with nuance and clarity. The cognitive dissonance and difficulties with growing apart from a family structure built on paranoia and isolation is also expertly described - there is a gentle empathy in her reflections.

Overall fantastic book, it certainly holds sentimental and personal value to me. An excellent and needed recommendation from my sister. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Genocide, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Grief, and Murder

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Terminal illness, Police brutality, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Colonisation