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hellocath's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Confinement, Death, Vomit, Stalking, and Death of parent
emilyandthewhippet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Grief, Cannibalism, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Mental illness, Misogyny, Pregnancy, and Toxic friendship
el219's review against another edition
5.0
soo many people saying this is so imaginative & weird/disturbing & funny when all of this (minus the last 30ish pages) happens so often & is so sad :(
this book was so incredibly sad - natsuki’s dissociative tendencies & coping strategies were described in such a subtle and casual(?) way that made me sob, & unlike some reviews I’ve read, the characters don’t become hard to empathize with in their adult lives,, the way their childhoods affected the rest of their lives felt realistic rather than “disturbing” or “unnecessarily weird.” the relief and comfort they felt in identifying as aliens was v realistic too idc!! (don’t get me wrong their actions at the end of the novel were insane LOL but I hope u get my point) i felt increasingly more sad as the story went on and felt relieved for them when they all started to unmask and heal,, natsuki & tomoya’s marriage proved how being with “your own kind” or simply with someone accommodating can be completely freeing,, reading about them being happy living non-conforming lives was sooo validating too ~
my only question is is ms murata okay bcause some of these descriptions felt a little too real and concerningly relatable,, i luv her little asd coded characters even when they are a lil crazy ฅ(•ㅅ•)ฅ
Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Murder
Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Blood
Minor: Vomit and Stalking
cuteling's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
TW FOR THIS BOOK: pedophilia, domestic abuse, rape, incest, cannibalism, murder
The story is about a little girl named Natsuki, who is 11 at the beginning of the book and who is verbally and sometimes physically abused by her own mother and sister, and overlooked by her father.
As the story unravels, we are presented with pedophilia, incest, domestic abuse, murder, cannibalism but also the delusion of a little girl unable to cope with everything coming her way. Because of this, Natsuki seems to be under the impression that her plush hedgehog Piyyut, that she's bought with her own money when she was only 6 years old, is an alien from a planet called Popinbopibia, talking to her and giving her magical items that help her deal with feelings so great they don't fit inside her fragile little body.
Piyyut tells her that she's the only one who can save the Earth and that's why she has to do certain things (to avoid spoilers i won't elaborate any further), but in reality she's taking desperate measures in order to save herself.
Deeper into the story we follow Natsukis desperate journey to be, once again just as in the other two books, accepted by the "Factory" (that is what she calls the society) until the very end of her sanity.
Overall I recommend this book just would suggest reading it third with the order being
Life Ceremony (it gives you the best idea of what kind of a writer Sayaka Murata is, in my opinion)
-> Convenience Store Woman (shorter, milder compared to the other two, cleanses your pallet)
-> Earthlings (the most disturbing and strange of the three, HUGE TW for: pedophilia, incest, cannibalism, rape, domestic abuse, murder).
The book is very well written and never had me bored and i was surprised at just how explicitly described some of the scenes were.
I give it 4.5/5 ★, making it my favorite of the three.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
kibiiiariii's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Vomit, Kidnapping, Grief, Cannibalism, Stalking, Death of parent, Acephobia/Arophobia, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
leenutbutter's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Cannibalism, Stalking, Murder, and Sexual harassment
dilfpercyshelley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
i think, perhaps, the aspect that the negative reviewers are missing from their experience is the whole point of the story. sure, it touches on everything revolting you could conjure and, subsequently, that may make it an uncomfortable read. However, you simply have to read it as if you are also not human. I thoroughly enjoyed detaching myself from society for a few days to relish in the disgust and revolt, and i think that’s why i loved it so much.
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Cannibalism, and Murder
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Suicide
Minor: Vomit and Stalking
jelian_casapao's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Cannibalism, Stalking, and Gaslighting
hilarylouise's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Grief, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, and Pregnancy
Minor: Stalking
Victim blamingclemeslibrary's review against another edition
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Incest, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Cannibalism, and Murder
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Stalking