Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

Behind You Is the Sea by Susan Muaddi Darraj

4 reviews

themoostconfused's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense fast-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? Yes

5.0

i pre-ordered when i first hear about it and it took about 6 months to eventually end up in my hands. it was worth the wait in every single aspect of it.

i read the entire book within a single day and didn't want it to end. i loved the interwoven paths of the characters and how their lives are connected with each other even in ways they might not even realize themselves.

it touches on the experiences of being an immigrant/a child of immigrants and all the everyday struggles, racism and generational trauma that entails.

the fight for freedom for palestine is on-going and the colonial powers are still not being stopped on a big enough scale. from the river to the sea, palestine will be free.

after reading the lines...

"'you're our rock,' everyone told her, but that reputation did,'t feel like a compliment anymore. it felt like neglect"

...i had to take a quick break because that sums up so many experiences into one and made me feel seen in such a painful but freeing way.

this book is a work of art and i will treasure it forever.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, Dementia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Gun violence, Rape, Violence, Abortion, and War

Minor: Torture

juliana_reads's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-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? Yes

4.5

Wow. A beautiful collection of interconnected short stories. Each one made my heart ache for one reason or another. I think The Hashtag, Gyroscopes, Cleaning Lentils, and Worry Beads were my favorite. In just a few pages, each of these stories somehow felt complete (though I of course wanted more!) which is a testament to the author’s skill. My only challenge was that there were a few time jumps that were tricky to figure out along with the changing POV. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Eating disorder and Colonisation

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Sexism, Violence, Islamophobia, and Death of parent

Minor: Sexual content and Abortion

sydapel's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Holy wow this was such a good set of interconnected stories. I often have trouble connecting to or feeling invested in short stories because the characters don't feel fleshed out enough, but Muaddi Durraj managed to create entire worlds within paragraphs. If you're looking to support Palestinian authors, or just read something that will make you cry a little, I cannot recommend this enough. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Adult/minor relationship

robinks's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

This was such a beautiful collection of interwoven, nuanced stories. I loved getting to see the characters from different perspectives. Escorting the Body was a powerful way to end the book.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Islamophobia, Dementia, Cultural appropriation, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Colonisation

Minor: Addiction, Cancer, Infertility, Miscarriage, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Police brutality, Abortion, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy