Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

North Woods by Daniel Mason

6 reviews

lorenag5's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Death, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Slavery, Kidnapping, Grief, Car accident, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

fkshg8465's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

This is one of the most interesting storytelling formats I’ve ever read. Is done effectively. It’s almost like a bunch of short stories connected through time with the setting and the part characters weaved throughout to provide continuity. It was enjoyable to read and to contemplate.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Cancer, Confinement, Death, Hate crime, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail

town_scar's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious 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? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Have we not all looked at houses all around the world and pondered what history the walls may tell? What the earth might know? 

This novel is a true masterpiece. A combination of prose and poetry that embodies naturalism and spiritualism at its core.

Perhaps my only gripe is that I wish there had been a greater focus on non-White individuals. The main owners of the house are all white (with a single brief exception) and while the original inhabitants of the land are acknowledged they are not given a voice. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Homophobia, Mental illness, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Outing, and Colonisation

Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Sexual content, and Xenophobia

Minor: Cancer

ashleyjean6's review

dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Original and well written! It's genre defying: historical fiction, ghost story, thriller, academic essay, nature essay, poetry. It is also both a novel, but one made up of many short stories tied together by a place. The book starts during the 1600s and continues to modern day and beyond. Without spoiling things, I can't add much details. Only to say that while the overall tone of each story is typically a combination of sad and bizarre, it is also thought provoking and inspiring in its sheer creativity. Highly recommend. The audiobook was also very well done!! 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Animal death, Cancer, Child death, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Car accident, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

sjanke2's review against another edition

dark funny mysterious reflective medium-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? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Confinement, Death, Mental illness, Sexual content, Slavery, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Dementia, Car accident, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Outing, and Injury/Injury detail

jesselynn's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Rapturous, moving and eternal.

An incredible book. It is a true epic of life, death, nature, history, succession and reclamation. Told in many voices and styles, we follow hundreds of years of history revolving around a house deep in the woods of Massachusetts. This book haunts its reader with the voices of the past, rallies the timeless human and non-human experiences that are held in a perpetual clandestine shroud between walls, branches and soil. It is sweeping and vibrant and rich in longing and grief and nature. A truly fascinating literary joy and stellar achievement by Daniel Mason.

Thank you to John Murray Press/Hachette for the advanced reader copy.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Car accident, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and War

Moderate: Animal death, Cancer, Blood, Dementia, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Cursing, Fatphobia, Slavery, Suicide, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Alcohol