Reviews tagging 'Racism'

The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

29 reviews

m0_x13's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Eating disorder, Miscarriage, Racism, Rape, Suicide, and War

damiscous's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful 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

4.0

The first time I half-assedly read this book, I was sixteen and reading it as an assignment. I'm so very glad I came back to it. With the passage of time, we mature, we learn, we grow, and we begin to see our parents more as people than simply parents. In my current stage of life, this book has touched me in a way it didn't before, especially in regards to my relationship with my own mother as I search for my own way through life. There's some disconnect for me, admittedly, as the book is also heavily centered around Chinese culture, but that difference in culture also has many parallels with my own. Though the book is dated, the complexities of mother-daughter relationships is a timeless topic that Amy Tan explores in a sincere, emotional manner. I laughed, I cried, and I cringed - what else would you want from a novel examining one of the deepest of human connections? I feel that this is a novel I need to come back to later in life to further understand and appreciate the story that Tan has shared with us.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child death, Racism, Sexism, Suicide, Grief, and Death of parent

Minor: Homophobia, Rape, and War

ksuazo94's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide

Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Death of parent, and War

Minor: Emotional abuse and Abortion

notartgarfunkel's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective slow-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Death of parent, Abandonment, and War

Moderate: Miscarriage, Racism, Xenophobia, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

Minor: Homophobia

runitsthepopo's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Miscarriage, Misogyny, and Abortion

Moderate: Racism and Rape

Minor: Homophobia

samone2's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Abortion, and Death of parent

Moderate: Eating disorder, Racism, and Rape

Minor: Homophobia, Sexual assault, and War

cassreading's review

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? Yes

5.0

Little vignettes that trace the lives and connections of Chinese immigrant mothers and their Chinese-American daughters. Beautifully written, complex women in even more complicated relationships, exactly my cup of tea.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Rape, Suicide, and War

ashleysbookthoughts's review against another edition

challenging emotional slow-paced

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

3.5

Disclaimer: my library only had this book on audio and I don’t do well with fiction on audio. This one was particularly difficult for me because of the shifting timelines and perspectives, which I would have found less confusing in print. However, I looked up a character list (thanks, Cliff Notes!) that helped my brain keep track. 

So, this was not the right format for me to experience a book like this. Because it was audio, my brain at times felt like that Charlie Day meme, trying to figure out which character was related to which (we get stories from the mothers and daughters of the Joy Luck Club). 

BUT! Despite all of my confusion and extra brain power, this book made me FEEL things. One advantage of the audio is I think it made the stories (particularly the mothers in China) feel more real, as if I was sitting with them as they told me about their lives. The book packs an emotional punch. I definitely recommend it. I wish I’d had a physical copy, though. 

CW: miscarriage, abortion, homophobia, rape, war, death of parent, death of child, drowning, infidelity, divorce 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Miscarriage, Racism, Rape, Abortion, and Death of parent

Moderate: Homophobia, Infidelity, and War

kstericker's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny hopeful 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: Child death, Death, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, and War

Moderate: Addiction, Drug use, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty and Child abuse

claudiamacpherson'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? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Racism, Death of parent, Abandonment, and War

Minor: Animal death, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Sexual violence, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting