Reviews tagging 'Sexism'

Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

47 reviews

kaitlinreads17's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

I rate this book a 6

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

christinesmith205's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gore, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, and Murder

Minor: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Slavery, and Classism

jwjames's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Violence, and Murder

Moderate: Racism and Sexism

embel's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

amelianotthepilot's review against another edition

5.0

In a near future dystopia, America has now monetized 'hard action sports' wherein incarcerated people participate in battle royal style murdering to be released from their sentences early. It intersperses real historical facts against this jarring dystopian world of societal failure. The absurdity of society in this book highlights how truly not far off we are from it. In this world, Americans watch and cheer on their favorite incarcerated competitors as they murder each other in sports stadiums broadcasted on TV behind a paywall. It highlights how many people in prisons could be in there for something as simple as having weed, to a mistaken sentence, to murdering their rapist but they are all treated equally horribly in the eyes of the prison. It shows how the prison reform system is not helping communities or addressing route problems but instead tears apart families and essentially exploits incarcerated people for forced labor.

This book should be a must-read for everyone, not only is it extremely well written and truly leaves you feeling a large range of emotions while exploring different perspectives but it is also educational and thought-provoking. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Murder, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

flugels's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective medium-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Murder

glammster's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• 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: Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

jalexpulliamkepler's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense 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? Yes

4.75

An absolute gut punch of a novel with possibly the best ending I’ve ever read. Loses just a smidge for some craft issues that are more than understandable given that this is Adjei-Brenyah’s debut novel.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gore, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Car accident, Lesbophobia, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Chronic illness

wooblatoober's review against another edition

adventurous dark informative reflective sad tense fast-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? Yes

4.75

Incredibly informative and real, strengthened my hatred for America’s prison system. Also a commentary on racism and capitalism in general, both of which Adjei-Brenyah shows run rampant in his fictional American prison system and in America’s real one that’s not so far off. I gave it a 4.75 instead of 5 because Adjei-Brenyah’s writing does more telling instead of showing at times, and there are sometimes long monologues in the character’s heads that could be shaved down or even cut. I had read this right after taking a creative writing class, so that stuff might have stood out to me more than it would normally. Otherwise, incredible book. I highly recommend it

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment

buer's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny 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? Yes

5.0

This book is a masterpiece. Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah has penned an incisive commentary of the American justice system. Chain-Gang All Stars unpacks a dystopian reality in which "hard action sports" are the must-see pay-per-view television. "Hard action sports" are a modernized gladiator style athletic competition involving gruesome fights to the death between people who opted for this life of state sponsored violence over their lives in prison.  Adjei-Brenyah softens the brutality of the story by centering a queer couple who are revolutionizing their corner of the game by finding true love in each other and by trying to build a kinder corner of the games in their chain gang.

Adjei-Brenyah grounded this piece of fiction in the facts of how these systems operate today and has several secondary plot-lines (a scientist whose work is manipulated to achieve the opposite of what she set out to do, a couple who are able to rekindle their romance by watching hard action sports together, a TV broadcaster who throws her dreams away to do the right thing, etc.) that illustrate how one system can permeate more than just the lives of those directly involved in the games.

A masterclass in inclusion,  Adjei-Brenyah easily fits people of all kinds of identities in his story, from race to sexuality to gender identity and more. His ability to show such a robust tapestry of humanity in such a specific story is incredible.

I recommend this book for those who believe in prison abolition, restorative justice, those who are interested in gritty futurism and - weirdly - anyone who enjoys a beautiful love story set against a horrifying backdrop.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness, Suicide, and Police brutality

Minor: Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment