Reviews tagging 'Racism'

The Sympathiser by Viet Thanh Nguyen

86 reviews

michyram's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark funny informative mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

Moderate: Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Murder, and War

zenocorsini's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Racism, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Xenophobia, Murder, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, and War

hanyaya's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Police brutality, Murder, and War

Moderate: Xenophobia and Colonisation

sakisreads's review against another edition

challenging dark tense slow-paced

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

3.0

The Sympathizer was a tough read for me; I had little understanding of the context and the descriptions felt long-winded 😳 I also kept picking it up and then putting it back down, so perhaps my disjointed reading didn't help either.

I can understand, though, why it won a Pulitzer Prize. It does not shy away from the horrors of the war (which is often depicted as the 'Vietnam War' by American people and the 'American War' by Vietnamese people, and as Viet Thanh Nguyen points out in an interview happened in Cambodia and Laos). The unnamed narrator faces some horrific fates and also does some horrific things; there is no denying this. 

I definitely did not expect Man, his 'blood brother' to be the Commissar hired to be the 'reeducator' (torturer)! 😫

I am giving it 3 out of 5 stars and would still recommend to people who are looking for a challenging, dark but fascinating tale on what it means to be a spy for two opposing sides! Thank you ✨

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body horror, Death, Gore, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Grief, Colonisation, War, and Classism

pianoman543's review against another edition

challenging dark funny tense slow-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, and War

Moderate: Alcoholism, Gore, Incest, Racism, Sexism, Death of parent, and Colonisation

birtch's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective tense 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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Racism, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Murder, and War

fantacathair's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Rape, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

yasmin_raev's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Murder, and War

Moderate: Fatphobia and Pedophilia

mapmaker87's review against another edition

challenging dark funny reflective sad tense slow-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? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Murder, and Colonisation

adubbs11's review against another edition

challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Rape, and War