Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

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

46 reviews

problamoodic's review against another edition

challenging 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

5.0

There’s nothing more I can say that hasn’t been said about this book. I guess I’ll just put here that I hope this work and the others about this subject help guide people to abolition. Or at least, self reflection and reflection on how we all play a part in this system. It’s definitely done that for me.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Murder, and Sexual harassment

smileymiley550's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Racism, Self harm, Slavery, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

hspooner8's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective tense medium-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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Murder, and Classism

otakatoe3's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

joanna_banana's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative 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

I’d give this 6 stars if I could! It’s a work of genius. To wrap abolitionist principles and facts about the prison industrial complex in a novel with powerful characters you grow to love is an incredible feat. Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah paints gruesome scenes with his words that are just one step further down our current reality of extractive late stage capitalist economy and torture factories that are American prisons. The commercialization of death and the “influencer” status the Links have is not surprising but such a skewering of corporate America. The Board room scene! Ah. The contrasting relationships and chapters from different perspectives added so much. He challenges what you may think about incarcerated people. The violence made me squeamish but it’s a wake up call to realize the violence exerted on primarily BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ people every day by soldier-police and the prison system. This is a must read. 

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

xelainthevoid's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, and Murder

Moderate: Body horror and Mental illness

msawyer77's review against another edition

informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

ramossnr's review against another edition

challenging dark funny 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

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Mental illness

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. 

---

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

chughes5'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? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Death of parent