Scan barcode
Reviews tagging 'Racism'
A Phoenix First Must Burn: Sixteen Stories of Black Girl Magic, Resistance, and Hope by
8 reviews
caprivoyant's review
One of the best short story collections I've ever read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, and Death of parent
Unfortunately, I lost my personal notes when cataloging the content for this book, so I'm sure I'm missing some. đ© I'm so sorry. Please refer to other reviews for more detailed content warnings.booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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
3.5
A PHOENIX FIRST MUST BURN celebrates Black Girl Magic in a literal and metaphorical sense. I like a few of the stories, but the overall collection was uneven. Several end abruptly in a way that feels like they needed more space to develop. There were a few standouts which make the collection worth perusing. âWhen Life Hands You A Lemon Fruitbombâ is the collectionâs opener. I love it, if the whole anthology had been like it Iâd be raving over it. âA Hagiography of Starlightâ is one where it felt complete but I want there to be more, itâs a fantastic world which I want to explore. âMelieâ inverts several "chosen one" tropes in some cool ways, with an irreverent feeling. âLetting The Right One Inâ is marred only by referencing books by an author who wasnât widely known to suck when this collection was written (though itâs not the only one to do so). "Sequence" is a good choice for ending the anthology, it's excellently written and well-placed in the collection.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Homophobia, Mental illness, and Xenophobia
"When Life Hands You a Lemon Fruitbomb" - CW for confinement, torture, war, death. "Gilded" - CW for pregnancy, blood, injury detail, slavery, parental death, death. "Wherein Abigail Fields Recalls Her First Death and, Subsequently, Her Best Life" - CW for racism, gun violence, injury detail, murder, death. "The Rules of the Land" - CW for vomit, alcohol, alcoholism, domestic abuse, pregnancy, parental death. Minor CW for xenophobia, sexual content, animal death, war. "A Hagiography of Starlight" - CW for adult/minor relationship. Minor CW for sexual content. "Melie" - CW for blood, violence, war, death. Minor CW for body shaming, self harm, murder. "The Goddess Provides" - CW for grief, sexism, religious bigotry, confinement, excrement, fire/fire injury, gore, blood, violence, injury detail, self harm, torture, murder, parental death, death. "Hearts Turned to Ash" - CW for grief, toxic relationship. "Letting the Right One In" - CW for abandonment. Minor CW for sexual content, mental illness, racism, homophobia. Brief Harry Potter reference. "Tender-Headed" - CW for toxic relationship, toxic friendship. "Kiss the Sun" - CW for colorism, racism, ableism, bullying, infidelity, fire, colonization "The Actress" - Minor CW for sexual content, racism. Brief Harry Potter reference. "The Curse of Love" - CW for parental death, death. "All the Time in the World" - CW for racism. Minor CW for sexual content, war, death. "The Witch's Skin" - CW for sexism, abandonment, sexual content, grief, pregnancy, blood, gore, murder, war, parental death, child death, death. "Sequence" - No major CWs.dragongirl271's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Racism, and Slavery
Minor: Body horror
mariebrunelm's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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? Yes
4.5
This collection of short stories is subtitled "Stories of black girl magic, resistance and hope" and it's exactly that, which makes it a real pleasure to read. There is a whole host of genres represented here from science-fiction to myth-inspired fantasy to urban fantasy, with the common theme being young black women taking charge of their destiny. It felt really good to read hopeful stories so deeply rooted in black experiences, and I can imagine how even more wonderful this collection feels to black readers.
Collections like this one are great to discover new-to-you writers or enjoy short fiction from beloved voices.
In here are stories by Elizabeth Acevedo, Amerie, Patrice Caldwell, Dhonielle Clayton, J. Marcelle Corrie, Somaiya Daud, Charlotte Davis, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Justina Ireland, Danny Lore, L.L. McKinney, Danielle Paige, Rebecca Roanhorse, Karen Strong, Ashley Woodfolk, and Ibi Zoboi.
CW : I'm not sure how helpful it would be to list content warnings when the stories are so different. On the whole, it deals heavily with racism, some stories with slavery, some with sexism, etc. There is one mention of HP.
Collections like this one are great to discover new-to-you writers or enjoy short fiction from beloved voices.
In here are stories by Elizabeth Acevedo, Amerie, Patrice Caldwell, Dhonielle Clayton, J. Marcelle Corrie, Somaiya Daud, Charlotte Davis, Alaya Dawn Johnson, Justina Ireland, Danny Lore, L.L. McKinney, Danielle Paige, Rebecca Roanhorse, Karen Strong, Ashley Woodfolk, and Ibi Zoboi.
CW : I'm not sure how helpful it would be to list content warnings when the stories are so different. On the whole, it deals heavily with racism, some stories with slavery, some with sexism, etc. There is one mention of HP.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism, Sexism, and Slavery
talonsontypewriters's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Slavery, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, Blood, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and War
Minor: Fatphobia, Infidelity, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Torture
"When Life Hands You a Lemon Fruitbomb" contains war, death, violence, and mentions of torture. "Gilded" contains slavery, racism, injury, violence, confinement, body horror, and death. "Wherein Abigail Fields Recalls Her First Death And, Subsequently, Her Best Life" contains gun violence, racism, death, murder, and body horror. "The Rules of the Land" contains domestic/child abuse, violence, alcoholism, and fire. "A Hagiography of Starlight" contains confinement and a relationship between a teenager and an immortal being, which is implied to be deceitful on the latter's end but romanticized from the former's perspective. "Melie" contains animal death, violence, fire, and mentions of xenophobia and fatphobia. "The Goddess Provides" contains death, religious bigotry, fire, violence, gore, implied misogyny, unsanitary, confinement, suicidal ideation, and mention of ritualistic self-harm/bloodletting. "Hearts Turned to Ash" contains body horror, gore, blood, implied sexual content, and smoking. "Letting the Right One In" contains depression, blood, injury, and mentioned suicide and homophobia. "Tender-Headed" contains toxic friendship, tense family dynamics, and spiders. "Kiss the Sun" contains colorism, body horror, fire, violence, sexual comments, and mentions of infidelity and sexual assault/rape. "The Actress" contains fire, racism, injury in a flashback, and mentions of cancer, gun violence, and alcoholism in the context of in-universe fiction. "All the Time in the World" contains racism, deliberate pollution, and mentions of gun violence, death, and police brutality. "The Witch's Skin" contains racism, death, murder, grief, pregnancy, body horror, gore, and implied sexual content.nyoom's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
0.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Fatphobia, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Cancer, Chronic illness, and Infidelity
kelseyland's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
A fantastic collection of short stories inspired by a combination of folklore, myths, and real-world events. This was a great introduction to a lot of authors I was unfamiliar with and will definitely look out for now.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Body horror, Homophobia, Racism, and Slavery
Minor: Bullying, Death, Misogyny, Rape, and Sexual assault
herk's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Slavery
Minor: Death
Pregnancy