Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Otok nestalih stabala by Elif Shafak

34 reviews

deluna's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Child death, Genocide, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Colonisation, and War

dannilmp's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful informative reflective tense medium-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? Yes

4.0

A book I picked up for Storygraph's read around the world 2023 challenge, featuring an unusual narrator...a humble fig tree. To say this novel is unlike any I've read before is an understatement. Full of historical facts and plant trivia, but there is so much more to learn than just facts. At the heart lies a love story, and not just a romantic one but familial love as well.
I love the way Shafark conveys the story from the tree's point of view, and how the switching between different characters and indeed different time periods is done smootly enough as not to disrupt the flow of the story. The ending was fitting to the story told, and even filled me with hope despite the book's nature. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Homophobia, Racism, and Abortion

Minor: Child death and Suicide

honnhi's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

I cannot stop thinking about this book. From the first page, I fell in love with the writing style. It’s beautiful and poignant without being difficult to understand.
I feel like the perspective of the fig tree and meditations on nature so perfectly captured these very relatable human emotions and experiences.
The parents’ story gripped me so much that I found myself wishing the chapters on Ada were shorter at times, but I do think the Ada chapters were important in their own way. It added a dimension to the parents’ narrative especially.
This is the exact type of story I yearn for when I read magical realism.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Grief, Religious bigotry, and War

Moderate: Hate crime, Homophobia, and Violence

Minor: Abortion

arshiya_amreen90786's review against another edition

challenging dark hopeful informative reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and War

emmagreenwood's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective sad slow-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cancer, Child death, Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Suicide, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, and Classism

natashad's review against another edition

challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, and War

Moderate: Alcoholism

itsheyfay's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Racism, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Suicide, Medical content, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

merrynthomas's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective relaxing sad medium-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? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War

Moderate: Death, Mental illness, Racism, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy

Minor: Alcoholism, Cancer, Homophobia, Suicide, and Abortion

caleb_makes's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad fast-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

4.0

Devastating and beautiful. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder

Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Abortion, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Cursing, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

myriam7's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Racism, Violence, Pregnancy, and War