Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois, by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers

38 reviews

rustynailsfullset's review against another edition

dark emotional sad 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Slavery, Racism, Grief, Rape, Addiction, Child abuse, Death, and Incest

Moderate: Classism, Death of parent, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Suicide attempt, Torture, Child abuse, Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Genocide, Gaslighting, and Physical abuse

3littlewordz's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

 “Even in a place of sorrow, time passes. Even in a place of joy." And so passes time in the Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois by Honoree Fanonne Jeffers. 

This book was perfect. Simply incredibly perfect. I’ve seen people in the book-osphere that have mentioned wanting to be able to read a book again for the first time, and this is one of those books. I already know that this epic novel is one of my top reads of all time. Yes, I’ve already called it. 

So many themes were explored in the centuries covered in this storyline: slavery and the transatlantic slave trade, the displacement and genocide of Indigenous people, sexual assault/incest, casual racism and racial terror, colorism (including passing), distrust, family secrets, drug addiction, segregation, life at an HBCU vs. PWI, the journey through academia as a black person…so many more. Another throughline explored beautifully was the Black American’s relationship to food, and how it could be both soothing and harmful. And of course, Du Bois!! His pen is razor-sharp and I absolutely love how the quotes at the beginning of each Song were so superbly chosen for that portion of the book. Ultimately, the strong family bonds wrapped me up like a warm, cozy blanket, even when the family dealt with strife and pain. 

Now, there are SEVERAL triggers in this book, and several themes mentioned above are explored in rather explicit detail. If you haven't yet started on the path to healing for those triggers (mainly sexual assault and abuse), some parts of this story may be too heavy for you. I finished some chapters and had to close my eyes and decompress. 

Jeffers' writing style is exquisite. I particularly enjoyed the historical anchors (beyond simple dates) included throughout the novel that oriented me to time and place. It's easy to tell that she's a poet by the phrasing and descriptions used throughout. Her world-building was so expansive and wonderfully done that I blinked and devoured 50-100 pages at a time. I actually read all except the very first chapter in 8 days - I didn't mind reading all 800 pages quickly! 

Simply put, read this book. And if you’ve already read this and are equally as enamored with this type of story as I am, I strongly recommend Some Sing, Some Cry by Ntozake Shange and Ifa Bayeza. 

 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Classism, Abortion, Drug abuse, Pedophilia, Death, Genocide, Incest, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Grief, Hate crime, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Trafficking, Violence, and Slavery

Moderate: Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual harassment, Suicidal thoughts, Alcohol, Child death, Cursing, Drug use, Gaslighting, and Pregnancy

vicktorea's review against another edition

emotional reflective

• 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

4.75

wow. a literal Black epic!

this was so fantastic! i loved the deep dive into Black history and learning the deep roots of the characters! i felt so deeply connected to them - i laughed with them, grieved with them, felt their anger and frustrations and also felt moments of anger and frustration towards them.

This was looong but everything was interwoven and came together beautifully! A very memorable read!

I listened to the audio for this via Hoopla and really enjoyed the narration!

I urge to check the CWs for this - there are many! Some of the most notable being: rape, (child/domestic/physical/emotional) abuse, /pedophilia/molestation, racism, slavery. The author does not shy away from depicting the realistic historical mistreatment of Black people (particularly young, Black, female slaves).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Child abuse, Colonisation, Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, and Slavery

Moderate: Physical abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Toxic relationship, and Pedophilia

Minor: Child death

malexandriay's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective relaxing sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Addiction, Colonisation, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Adult/minor relationship, Racism, Incest, Drug abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Alcohol, Blood, Grief, and Physical abuse

d_ho16's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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

Graphic: Drug use, Physical abuse, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, and Slavery

Moderate: Abortion

booklovertamisha's review against another edition

emotional 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Death, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Rape, and Racism

radlizareads's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad slow-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Racism, Rape, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Sexual assault, and Racial slurs

Moderate: Vomit, Suicide, Drug use, Drug abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexism, and Physical abuse

Minor: Abortion

kierajane's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual content, Death, Drug abuse, Racial slurs, Self harm, Addiction, Abortion, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Racism, Slavery, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, Child abuse, Grief, and Sexual violence

celesteleila's review against another edition

emotional 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

This book is the best book I ever read. This story was one that I wish I had had all my life. As a woman descended from the South, this book song to me, angered me, and drew tears from a faraway place in my soul. Jeffers is the kind of writer that knows how to paint a visual with her words and engross the reader with story. Love Songs soared through time effortlessly, sharing stories long lost waiting to be uncovered by the curious. This book, this story, this family …. timeless. Read it prepared to think, grieve and listen.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Hate crime, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Drug abuse, Rape, Colonisation, Grief, Sexual content, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Racism

toriauricht's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Murder, Racism, Drug abuse, Violence, Slavery, Racial slurs, Rape, Child abuse, Sexual violence, Trafficking, Addiction, Pregnancy, Pedophilia, and Incest

Moderate: Sexism, Grief, Abortion, Blood, Infidelity, Death, and Death of parent

Minor: Gun violence