Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life by Lulu Miller, Lulu Miller

36 reviews

ren_the_hobbit's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

3.5

Having a biology degree, the revelation about fish wasn’t a surprise and I don’t think it hit the way the author was intending. I also had to keep reminding myself that it wasn’t written for people with a biology degree. But the history was fascinating and the correlation with the past and the author’s own life was also engaging. I didn’t know anything about David Starr Jordan and so everything about him was a surprise.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism

Moderate: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, and Medical trauma

Its not on the list so including here that there is a lot of discussion of eugenics and forced sterilizations. David Starr Jordan was apparently a huge proponent and financial supporter of the eugenics movement.

lynniekate's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective medium-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, and Grief

chromatography's review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism

Moderate: Mental illness, Racism, and Suicidal thoughts

alpal2020's review against another edition

adventurous dark funny reflective sad fast-paced

A fascinating story well told. The author intertwines her struggle to find meaning in life with the unwavering, unself-reflective confidence a pivotal scientist had in his.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Mental illness, Racism, and Suicidal thoughts

sierrabowers's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

If you like reading about science and taxonomy, this would be a good book for you. If you’re loosely interested, maybe you would as well. I am not interested in these subjects but the way the author tied the subjects into her own story about life and how the universe is not as it seems… well I was interested to know why fish don’t exist. It was good book! Definitely not what I was expecting but it was enlightening and relaxing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Car accident, Suicide attempt, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, and Classism

averydappercat's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

This book has validated a feeling I've had for a while. I've been wanting to diversify the kinds of books I read in the past year or so and in doing so, started reading classics, nonfiction, and horror (genres I never used to read). This book felt the bridge that connected my foray into nonfiction and give me a much bigger understanding of things I did not expect to gain an understanding of. I expected this book to give a specific kind of catharsis and though I did not get that, I think I got something more profound that will stick with me in life moving forward.

I can't add this content warning in the tags because it's not on there for some reason, but content warning for

eugenics.

It really just shows up in the most unexpected places. It's not explicit and the topic is handled very well, so if you want to be in for a surprise and know you don't have triggers, then I recommend that you don't open the spoiler tag. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Mental illness and Murder

grey_jayne's review against another edition

emotional informative mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

3.75

I think the hype got to me on this one. It's good but I found it too meandering from the central premise at times. I did enjoy listening to it read by the author tho...and how she shared her queerness. Worth checking out.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Racism, Sexism, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Medical trauma, Colonisation, and Classism

Moderate: Police brutality

rin_dawg's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness

Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Pedophilia and Rape

confuzzledsheep's review against another edition

reflective medium-paced

1.0

If you are not a biologist, or even yet a Taxonomist, and want to reflect deeply on one's own sadness in the story of the author and David Starr Jordan, then this may be helpful for you. As a depressed biologist who's been long disillusioned with the myth of a Sole Genius Scientist and has already had many of the discussions within this book, I will rate it as passing. I found this book lacking in detail on David Starr Jordans life that I expected it to have- furter discussion of the problems with the Holotype model of taxonomy, the sheer brutality of scientific discovery during the time period. This book touches on those, but never gets as deep as it could. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Suicide attempt, and Colonisation

Minor: Child abuse, Child death, and Domestic abuse

librarymouse's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

About a third of the way through this book, having googled David Starr Jordan, I was ready to finish this, as a hate reader if need be. Jordan was, without question, a horrible man. The atrocities he inflicted upon the world with his promotion of eugenics outweigh any good he may have done as a scientist by multiple orders of magnitude. Seeing Lulu Miller's hero worship of the man was off-putting, the more I learned of him. However, I ended up really enjoying this book as I read on, as Miller explores her own life alongside Jordan's, she brings along the reader. We learn of the atrocities he's committedin the same order she did while conducting the research for this book. It's still hard to have the hero worship of the young Jordan, with his love of stars and rescy jokes, when faced with the knowledge of his role in the American Eugenics movement.

Jordan's hands-on malicious acts, like his touring endorsement of eugenics and the possible murder by poison of his benefactor are completely bonkers. I am constantly amazed that people Revere him, while simultaneously understanding, as I, too have been in awe of the young man he once was.

This book breaks down every facet of Jordan, from his political, religious, and social beliefs; to his family life, addressing each idiosyncrasy with data driven research.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child death, Death, Genocide, Homophobia, Infidelity, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, and Alcohol