Reviews tagging 'Abandonment'

Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

72 reviews

mdavis26's review against another edition

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Racism, Suicide, Grief, and Abandonment

_izzy_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-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

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Abandonment

lauriej's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Medical content, Grief, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Abandonment

geraldineleyendo's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective fast-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

The writing of Yaa is just so special. So many of her lines in this book made my heart completely stop with how beautiful or poignant or true they felt.

This is an intense and intimate exploration of girlhood and her faith (Christian-centric) weaved so beautifully with her science, race, and family history. A fictional story about addiction that feels so true it blew my mind and made me literally cry - not because of its sadness but because of its honesty. The author made me feel the characters' losses so deeply and yet I ended the book with an enormous satisfaction of being alive.

If you are debating whether you should read it: yes yes yes yes 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death and Abandonment

vanesst's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, and Grief

Moderate: Mental illness and Suicide attempt

Minor: Animal cruelty, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, and Alcohol

kerrence30's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Through flashbacks ranging throughout the life of the protagonist we learn how her various key relationships develop, how it affects her, and eventually, at present day, how they come to conclusion. This story shines a light on the experiences of a first generation family from Ghana moving to the USA, the strong influence and contrasts of religious worship from traditional upbringing to adulthood in Alabama, and dark topics such as addiction, depression and death. 
Concise and emotional, was great to listen to, well read, authentic, heartfelt. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Mental illness, and Grief

Moderate: Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide attempt, and Abandonment

beetsbydwight's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Mental illness, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Racial slurs, Grief, and Abandonment

ollie_again's review against another edition

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Mental illness, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Death and Grief

Minor: Racial slurs, Racism, and Abandonment

leonormsousa's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective 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

4.5

I really liked this one. It is beautifully written, and the constant time jumps were done perfectly, which is something quite rare. It hooked me from the start, and I found myself wanting more at the end, even though I know this was the perfect size for this story.

Small note that I was pleasantly surprised by the queer representation in this one (MC is queer). 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

csolomon101's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective 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? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, and Abandonment