Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Prelude to Bruise by Saeed Jones

9 reviews

robinks's review

dark emotional reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

I appreciate Jones’s poetic style and vivid imagery, and I was particularly drawn to the last two sections which read more like prose.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Hate crime, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Racism, Sexism, and Violence

Moderate: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal death and Car accident

snowydaze's review

dark emotional sad slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, Grief, and Outing

khakipantsofsex's review

challenging dark reflective

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Death, Domestic abuse, and Gun violence

Minor: Animal death, Drug use, and Terminal illness

avisreadsandreads's review

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Gun violence and Homophobia

Minor: Drug use

drraytay's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, and Slavery

becksusername's review

dark emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

5.0

I love Saeed Jones so much. I wanna be a poet like Saeed is a poet

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Content Warnings

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug use, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Grief, and Death of parent

courtneyfalling's review

dark emotional tense fast-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

4.0

This is a haunting, tense collection, with really consistent imagery and storytelling. The poems all felt about equally strong, with a tight, focused narrative. I'm glad I finally read this, mostly because I really want to read How We Fight for Our Lives soon, with more knowledge of Jones's poetry, too. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Homophobia, and Racism

Moderate: Child abuse, Domestic abuse, and Gun violence

softgalaxy's review

challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

A haunting poetry collection about Blackness and queerness. History according to boy was a chilling poem, possibly one of the best poems I’ve read recently.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Racism, and Violence

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, and Violence

librarymouse's review

challenging dark reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

Saeed Jones' vocabulary and the lyrical quality of his formatting serve to draw the reader in closer to the events and emotions within the poems, forming an encompassing bond that drew me to finish the book in one sitting. The poems feel like one continuous narrative from an ever shifting speaker, rich with cultural references.
For now, I'm content with interpretation, but I look forward to my next read through, and all of the read-throughs after that, when I can pull apart the syntax and spacing and study it line by line to see how Jones poured so much pain and complex emotion into the deceptively simple poems in this book. Prelude to Bruise deserves all the praise I can give and more.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual content, Violence, Car accident, and Outing