Reviews tagging 'Medical trauma'

The Lilac Girls of Ravensbrück by Martha Hall Kelly

50 reviews

michellesaidread's review against another edition

challenging slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

That wasn't an easy read by any means, but it was the first I'd heard of the 'rabbit girls' so it was worth it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Torture, Medical trauma, and War

nichelmi3's review against another edition

slow-paced

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

3.5

I'd heard lots of good things about this book from other friends who've read this. I've been on a multi-narrative reading kick as well. It was a well-written book but I wasn't super impressed. I assumed there would be more of a wrap up with the characters, and instead it just left me feeling more-ish. It was, at least to me, an unsatisfying ending. I do think that if the book had focused more on the two European characters rather than adding the American one and keeping here a separate book would have made the book more impactful and interesting. Her narrative just took you out of focus. It wasn't a bad book, nor was it badly written, and I'd still recommend it, but it just wasn't fully my taste/style. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Physical abuse, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Death of parent

Minor: Cancer and Infertility

uselesspirateraven's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Death of parent, and War

Moderate: Confinement, Genocide, Hate crime, Infidelity, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Grief, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Mental illness, Vomit, Trafficking, and Pregnancy

aheinicke27's review against another edition

dark emotional 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? Yes

3.0

Lilac Girls was an emotional read based upon the true story of Caroline Faraday, an American woman who helped seek justice for the rabbits of Ravensbruk, polish woman who survived terrible surgical experiments conducted upon them by Nazis in WWII. The story follows three women — Caroline, Kaisa, a polish woman imprisoned in the camp and experimented upon, and Herta, the only female doctor in the camp (who was also a real person). At first, it was difficult to see how the three stories would connect for most of the book, which honestly made it tough to get into. Once I could see how the stories connected though, it got much more interesting.  I like that this book told the story of women in WWII that are often forgotten and parts of the story will stay with me, but I don’t think it is a book that I’ll necessarily recommend to everyone. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Rape

corriejn's review against another edition

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Child death, Rape, Self harm, Vomit, and Death of parent

kaylaannsreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical trauma, Murder, and War

Moderate: Terminal illness and Suicide attempt

vinzant99's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

3.25

I felt the love interest was unnecessary and the point of views felt disjointed and had a hard time staying interested. I appreciated the overall story but didn't like how the author brought it together.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, and War

Moderate: Rape and Sexual violence

kiwi2745's review against another edition

challenging dark sad

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Torture, and Murder

Moderate: Death, Genocide, Rape, Xenophobia, Antisemitism, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent

Minor: Animal death, Self harm, Medical trauma, and Injury/Injury detail

khaben31's review against another edition

challenging dark sad slow-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Genocide, Forced institutionalization, Antisemitism, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Deportation

Minor: Grief, Murder, and War

emeister3's review against another edition

dark informative inspiring sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

If you watched “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” and you still want to cry over true-story-inspired WWII trauma, then this book is for you. I can’t say that it’s for me, per se - it was my book club’s pick this month. I can say the following:

The second half of the book is much better than the first. The first 50% of the book alternates between 3 different female POVs and, as a result, I kept pinging between 3 different feelings - boredom, sadness, and shock. It had me feeling so downtrodden that I didn’t want to finish it. However…these atrocities are a part of history. They happened to real humans and, tragically, were committed by real humans. And their stories deserve to be heard, then to never happen again. As Norman Cousins wrote, “…what is told here is not a glimpse into the bowels of an imaginary hell but part of our world.”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Antisemitism, Death of parent, and War

Moderate: Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Xenophobia, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Animal death, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Murder, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail