Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life by Lulu Miller

68 reviews

christina_ro's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

This book ended up being nothing like I thought but everything it needed to be. It’s almost a simultaneous biography and autobiography plus numerous history and science lessons. I’m not the biggest fan of biographies generally, and I definitely thought this would be more more science, less people, but it really was a wonderful blend of both. Significantly darker at times than I ever would’ve guessed, I’d recommend looking at the trigger warnings before hand. While it isn’t graphic, it does cover some disturbing parts of American history and some harsh moments of the perspective of a very depressed person. However, most of the darker moments were wholly necessary, in my opinion. The writing is great and the tone is so engrossing for a nonfiction book. There was a distinct moment where I said out loud, “Oh this just took a turn!” And when asked if it was a good or bad one, I said, “Morally, a bad one. Entertainment wise, definitely a good one.” I have so many thoughts that I’ll wait to burden my book club with, but if I were to parabolize this story, I’d say, nothing matters and so everything matters. There is no grand scheme, so every person and creature and moment is meaningful.

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Content Warnings

Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Confinement, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Medical trauma

jillyclaire23's review against another edition

fast-paced

5.0

I’m speechless. Wow. I love the logic of this book. It’s a beautiful long essay allegedly about fish but actually about finding purpose and meaning in life. Definitely a heavy read but ultimately so realistically hopeful. It is so lush and full of facts - not just a bunch of generic motivational cliches, which I appreciate. The twists and suspenseful writing kept me intrigued. Such a rewarding read. The thesis the author comes to at the end is so beautiful it made me tear up!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Rape and Medical trauma

ren_the_hobbit's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

3.5

Having a biology degree, the revelation about fish wasn’t a surprise and I don’t think it hit the way the author was intending. I also had to keep reminding myself that it wasn’t written for people with a biology degree. But the history was fascinating and the correlation with the past and the author’s own life was also engaging. I didn’t know anything about David Starr Jordan and so everything about him was a surprise.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism

Moderate: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, and Medical trauma

Its not on the list so including here that there is a lot of discussion of eugenics and forced sterilizations. David Starr Jordan was apparently a huge proponent and financial supporter of the eugenics movement.

rubycb's review against another edition

emotional informative medium-paced

4.0

This book was a pretty hard start for me, and I almost chose not to finish it. However, the last 1/3 of this book made it well worth it. It was fascinating to connect the history of Stanford University, the American eugenics movement, Darwinism, and the scientific category of “fish”. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Infertility, Forced institutionalization, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide

Minor: Self harm

sierrabowers's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

If you like reading about science and taxonomy, this would be a good book for you. If you’re loosely interested, maybe you would as well. I am not interested in these subjects but the way the author tied the subjects into her own story about life and how the universe is not as it seems… well I was interested to know why fish don’t exist. It was good book! Definitely not what I was expecting but it was enlightening and relaxing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism

grey_jayne's review

emotional informative mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

3.75

I think the hype got to me on this one. It's good but I found it too meandering from the central premise at times. I did enjoy listening to it read by the author tho...and how she shared her queerness. Worth checking out.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Racism, Sexism, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical trauma, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Police brutality

craftysnailtail's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective fast-paced

4.5

A challenging read, but also an important one. A story that ended up being about topics that I never would've expected based on the synopsis. Many of those topics were heavy and difficult, but I appreciated the way Miller wove them together. The novel felt raw and human in a way that really stuck with me, which was especially surprising with it being non fiction. Also loved how the audiobook ended. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Panic attacks/disorders, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt

satsumaorange's review

challenging emotional hopeful medium-paced

5.0

Oh lord, this is the book I needed to read at this point in my life. Miller walks you through a journey out of hopelessness, out of meaninglessless, out of loss. The road of this journey is extensively scientific, relentlessly analytical, and reverent of the world around us. I was brought to tears many many times throughout this book, both from personal experiences with losing love, and from that near-universal human experience of wondering "What's the point of it all?" 
Miller brings scientific history, philosophy, and the remarkable life of David Starr Jordan together to restore hope in a life well-lived on this humble planet of ours. She encourages curiosity, wonder, and critical thinking as the antidote for the all-encompassing existential dread.
This was definitely one of the best books I read in 2023. It came to me exactly when I needed it. It might not be for everyone, if your brain doesn't work in the analytical way mine does, but I truly enjoyed the journey. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Medical trauma

Minor: Infidelity

Eugenics

alexandryareads's review against another edition

informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Ableism, Racism, Medical content, and Medical trauma

gmdho2023's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective fast-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Infidelity, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Medical trauma, and Suicide attempt