Reviews tagging 'Racism'

Normal People by Sally Rooney

77 reviews

mintymintyminty's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

1.75

This book comes highly recommended from so many angles, but IMO does not come even close to deserving these accolades. This book is raw, and written in an interesting kind of vignette style, but it does not do anything with these attributes, and they end up being barely any kind of saving grace to the plot. The plot is insipid and despair-inducing, and the only thing I could glean from these characters is how much I would never want to be like them. Overall, a depressing slog that is a celebration of mediocrity in publishing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Vomit, and Grief

Moderate: Suicide

Minor: Racism and War

jja_b's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.5

Ok, while I don’t deny that Rooney is a very talented writer, I think this might have been a mismatch between me and her. I didn’t really know what to expect when going into it, but I probably should have guessed by the title that this would be a “normal” story. I don’t mean that in a critical way, and I’m not implying that it’s uninspired. “Normal” was obviously what Rooney was going for. I could look at a group of people I know and find a similar tale, This just wasn’t for me.

Don’t get me wrong. I did enjoy the book at times. I found Connell quite a compelling character and I think the book can be described as a page-turner, but most of the characters were unlikeable and the miscommunication between Connell and Marianne just became too frustrating.

The ending infuriated me. I get the point, but it was still infuriating.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Cursing, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Grief, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Bullying, Racism, and Blood

gailsage_thomps's review against another edition

emotional 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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Drug use, Infidelity, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Islamophobia and Pregnancy

maarigirl's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.0

I found this very easy to read. The struggles of both of the main characters are very real and human, instead of shock-worthy.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Racism

luckyonesoph'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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Sexual content, and Classism

Minor: Body shaming, Racial slurs, Racism, and Alcohol

bookboii's review against another edition

emotional tense medium-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Death of parent, Alcohol, and Classism

Minor: Homophobia, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Racism, and Pregnancy

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

4.0

slayful 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Classism

Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Violence, Abortion, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol

karlisimp's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-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

2.0

I couldn’t put the book down. I think it is a good read for sure but I did not like the stereotype that Marianne was portrayed under. I’m glad that Connell got mental health help, but Marianne never did and she was clearly battling depression and probably an eating disorder. She probably is also autistic or has ptsd. Overall the content of the book is dark. I don’t know why this was suggested to me as like a happy romantic coming of age story. The book was good and the writing was good but the content was not it for me especially with constant disparity.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, and Violence

Minor: Racism

bella_izzy_gabby's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Extremely well written. Makes you reflect a lot on your own life but be careful because it has a lot if triggers.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, and Blood

vixenreader'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

4.75

Be prepared to relive your most woeful miscommunications you have ever had in a romantic relationship. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Toxic friendship, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Death, Infidelity, Self harm, Sexual violence, Suicide, Grief, Death of parent, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Biphobia and Racism

If you are part of the kink community, you should recognize that the masochism in the book is more of an unhealthy pattern in a character’s abusive cycle rather than a prime example of how consensual BDSM is actually practiced.