Reviews tagging 'Ableism'

Chouette by Claire Oshetsky

30 reviews

thetomegnome's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Medical trauma

lsmith36's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective 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

“It’s a wonder that any woman ever agrees to be a mother, when the fruits of motherhood are inevitably conflict and remorse, to be followed by death and disembowelment.”

I was horrified and sad and angry the entire way through. When I finished it I had to release the breath I couldn't breathe. Spectacular. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Blood, and Pregnancy

gheddi's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism

mermaidsherbet's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional fast-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Grief, and Pregnancy

Minor: Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Abandonment

samsearle's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark slow-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, and Violence

niaaaaa's review against another edition

dark emotional funny reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, Blood, Medical trauma, Car accident, Gaslighting, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Infidelity, Excrement, Vomit, Dementia, Abortion, and Pregnancy

growplantsreadbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark sad

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.5

Not at all what I expected. The synopsis makes it seem like a charming motherhood story with elements of magical realism. I was hooked by the gorgeous prose, but stayed to unravel the disturbingly sad allegory at the core of the story. Tiny is a reluctant mother desperate for support while trying to get others to accept and love her disabled child, Chouette & the world around her will not stop trying to change, fix, cure, or kill Chouette. The only downside to this story is that it becomes what it is trying to criticize when its focus is on Tiny and not Chouette. Tiny eventually becomes a fierce advocate for Choutte, but since Chouette has no voice it is hard to say if, in the end, Tiny was the mother she needed. Poor Chouette. The author chooses to use magical realism to make Chouette's disability animalistic and savage. I can see this book being very triggering for anyone who is disabled and has been made to feel like they are a monster by society. I'll be thinking about the author's intention when writing this for a long time after putting it down. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Infidelity, Blood, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Forced institutionalization and Abortion

This book is an allegory for having a disabled child that could be extremely triggering for people with disabilities.

queenbeemimi's review against another edition

challenging

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

2.5

A very strange little book. I don’t know quite what to make of the metaphor, which is trying to achieve a lot of  complex things but can veer off into ableism at times. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Gore, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy

thistledown's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Sexual content

tualha's review against another edition

challenging dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.5

My experience of this book was odd. I completely enjoyed the concept and the themes. Who wouldn't be excited by the story of an owl baby produced by illicit lesbian owl-human-love? I was drawn to the fierceness of the depiction of motherhood, of protecting your child from forces that would seek to "fix" her, the hollowness that can result from caring for a child, let alone with needs unlike those of "dog children". Chouette doesn't really set out to give you any answers, and leaves you with a lot more questions, and a general feeling of unease for most of the book. This is generally a quality I like in books. But I felt like there was something missing for me to hold onto in this book, like a thread of music I couldn't quite catch.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Abortion