Reviews tagging 'Slavery'

Vända hem by Yaa Gyasi

549 reviews

dowleyrachel's review against another edition

challenging hopeful sad medium-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

4.25

I liked the structure of the book, staying on a single character for only a chapter before moving onto their child. The book covered a myriad of topics and fully explored blackness both in the US and for those who stayed in Africa. Some chapters were very dark but the book had a hopeful ending where the two sides of the family meet and explore their roots together.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Rape, Slavery, and Trafficking

Moderate: Drug use, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Colonisation

fionamh's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, and Trafficking

cal_sno's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

Wonderfully written and engaging book. Each generation’s story builds showing the hardships and family relationships 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, and War

jennazim's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Child death, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Violence, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation

sparklefarm's review against another edition

emotional 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

4.5

Really incredible.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, Excrement, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, and Colonisation

Moderate: Child death, Infidelity, and War

Minor: Homophobia

jessieleeh's review against another edition

challenging dark sad medium-paced

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Slavery, Violence, Excrement, and Colonisation

Moderate: Child abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Rape, and Fire/Fire injury

3littlewordz's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Slow burn at the beginning, but my goodness, once I got to Ness's story, I couldn't put it down! Such an engrossing story that explored the generational trauma that slavery inflicted. It was easy to identify the common familial thread through several generations. It was heartbreaking at times but always hopeful. I would have loved to see each generation more fleshed out for a truly epic novel - I love big books, I can't lie! I'm very ready to Yaa Gyasi's second offering. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, and War

cuartolimon's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

This is one of the best books I’ve read. Yaa Gyasi’s prose is fantastic. She managed to convey the deep wounds of the transatlantic slave trade and how they are still open to this day. I know I’ll never be able to fully understand the pain it caused and continues to cause, however this book managed to make so much of that pain resound. There were moments when I had to close the book and sit with what I had just read, moments when it made me audibly gasp, and of course it also made me cry. I am sure I’ll come back to it at some point.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Slavery, and Murder

lanna2000's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

the stories in this novel rooted in so much truth and history were both impossible to stop reading but also the most difficult read ive finished this year. i felt like i could continue reading every descendants story passed where the book ends. writing everything into 300 pages is masterful and Gyasi storytelling has me wanting to read more. I attached to each character emotionally and the ending characters connecting really tied the whole book together. i think everyone should read this! there are not enough good things to be said so just read it

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, and War

victoriaryan89's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Abandonment, Colonisation, and Classism