Reviews tagging 'Child abuse'

Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

159 reviews

olivesinthegarden's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

I want to start off by saying that this book is incredibly emotional and explores deep ideas about identity, purpose, and the intricacies of our own existence. I really enjoyed how thought provoking and sad it was. Overall, a great and moving story.

That being said, there are some bones I have to pick with it. I feel there are a lot of sexist elements in the book, likely due to the time it was written, and let me tell you it hasn’t aged well. The women in this story are either love interests or malicious figures, and the scientists in this book are all men.

Fay’s character makes me angry. She’s heavily infantilized; she’s supposed to be in her mid thirties, but is referred to as a “girl” and behaves very immaturely. She’s a manic pixie dream girl who is mainly there for sexual gratification.

Rose (Charlie’s mother) is the stereotypical hysterical woman who is also evil and has emotionally beaten her husband into submission, leaving him to cave to her malicious will despite being such a great guy and having the best intentions.

I also want to mention that scene where Charlie was super offended when Fay asked if he was gay - just a touch of homophobia in there too. I could get into more, but I’ll just emphasize that I think this book has some out-dated views, especially of women.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse

Moderate: Ableism and Sexism

Minor: Animal death and Suicidal thoughts

acarbonbasedlifeform's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Dementia

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Grief, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

samuelverry's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective sad fast-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? No

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, and Child abuse

mercedesmarquez's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.5

I really enjoyed this book. It was really remarkable. The only things that detracted were how the female characters were portrayed and the obvious effort to derive the deeper meaning of life. This book is remarkable for the time it was written, however, the specific brand of psychology portrayed does reveal its age. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism

Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content

Minor: Suicidal thoughts

blaketisdebest's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Incest, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

teabrewer's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

4.0

This book is really interesting. Writing each chapter as "Progress Report" allowed the story much more immersive and at times I felt like I was reading a real report. The progression of the writing style of the main character was so natural and seamless I sometimes forgot it was intentional.The portrayal of women is a bit weird in a few lines but considering this is midcentury scifi written by a man, it's actually not that bad. I dare to say that, in some sections, it's even good. I loved the exploration of the psych and of the effects of being in each extreme of the intelligence spectrum. The use of algernoon as a foreshadow to Charlie enhanced the story a lot. It also helped to tell a part of the story that couldn't usually be told because of the nature of the first person narrative

, the death of the main character

.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, and Abandonment

Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Confinement, Rape, Excrement, and Alcohol

_fallinglight_'s review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-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

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Medical content

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Excrement, Dementia, and Abandonment

jovanh's review against another edition

reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.0

This was a much better book than I expected. Despite making me angry and uneasy, the writing is very thoughtful. Charly is a deep and complex character and I marvel at the emotional honesty he displays.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, and Excrement

Moderate: Animal death, Sexual content, and Dementia

Minor: Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Alcohol

asose's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Minor: Bullying, Child abuse, and Suicide

rjselby's review

dark emotional sad fast-paced

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Physical abuse, and Medical trauma

Minor: Self harm and Suicidal thoughts