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goemonxiii's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Death, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Alcohol, and Colonisation
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Death of parent, and War
betag1013's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Ableism, Body horror, Bullying, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail
therat8's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Forced institutionalization, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Suicide, and Colonisation
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, and War
brimclala's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Mental illness, Racial slurs, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Xenophobia and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: War
lizkocher's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Child abuse, Hate crime, Misogyny, Sexism, Dementia, Abandonment, and Alcohol
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Sexual harassment, and War
foxo_cube's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.75
I will say that it isn't perfect. It's, shall we say, a product of its time: most common-or-garden varieties of discrimination are thrown in casually here and there, and it does make me cringe a little bit at points. Personally, I try not to hold older books to the same standard I'd hold new publications in that regard, but it's worth mentioning as it is a little off-putting.
The main storyline is that of a criminal, McMurphy, entering a psychiatric ward expecting an easier life than what he was experiencing on a work farm, and discovering that he has made a terrible mistake. Being a rebel by nature, he quickly makes it his job to break down the strict and cruel Head Nurse.
The clashes between the staff and McMurphy are great - sometimes funny, sometimes shocking, sometimes devastating, often some mix of all those things - but what I love so much about the book is how the patients of the ward have real humanity to them, and the slow but sure change in atmosphere throughout the war between McMurphy and Nurse Ratched is written beautifully. McMurphy is a rough, problematic, but undeniably charming character with a gentleness to him we only see through Bromden's eyes, especially when they form a friendship.
This aspect, the platonic love story, is one of my favourite things about the book overall. The way Bromden discusses him, and their conversations, even when they're focused on boosting Bromden's confidence (usually in pretty bawdy fashion), is written with a lovely tenderness. McMurphy is a grey-area character who most definitely manipulates the hell out of a lot of the patience for money and cigarettes, but his growing care towards the people on the ward and rage at the mistreatment they face is, nonetheless, very real.
Bromden is a proudly unreliable narrator who phases in and out of the "fog", as he describes it - seemingly dissociative periods where he exists on autopilot, or flashbacks to his past, or hallucinates. He has spent his time on the ward pretending that he can neither hear nor speak, meaning he gets to be a fly on the wall during private meetings and such due to the staff often using him as a cleaner. He hates the system he's in, the state of the world, and the treatment he faces on the ward, but feels powerless to stop it, meaning that McMurphy is both a godsend and a terrifying presence to him. His character growth is fairly subtle at first, but the end scenes - which are devastating - are a powerful culmination of the book's events: when McMurphy is lobotomised, Bromden performs the most sincere expression of love and respect that he possibly could have.
I've read this book a good few times now, and it's always a total rollercoaster ride of emotions.
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Gaslighting
Moderate: Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail