Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

11 reviews

orangewitchling's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

If I had a highest rating to give I’d give it, this book deserves every accolade and raving review. 
The writing and tone of the story was outstanding, the author didn’t use any unnecessary metaphors nor descriptions to fill pages, every sentence had a purpose to show the situation through the characters point of view. The author managed to let even the smallest character shine in its own light, which is a feat on its own. I was able to see each character’s perspective and relate to their plight. 
This is a multigenerational story with all the realistic and historical ups and downs, there were many moments of heartbreak that felt relatable and triggering. The characters were complex and  morally gray at times like any human, which helped the story be believable at a core level.
I adored Sunja and Kyunghee, they were women of their time that continuously showed strength and resilience through all the hardship. My favorite male characters were Mozasu and Solomon, they were so wholesome and lovely. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and War

bites_of_books's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad 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? No

5.0

Yes, I truly love well-crafted historical fiction that spans generations and this one did not disappoint. 

The characters are complex and multidimensional, the prose is beautiful and careful in how it describes each event and each decision made by the characters. The historical context is given without it being overwhelming or dry and it makes it all feel urgent. 

I breezed through this book and I'll definitely pick up other works by Min Jin Lee. Highly recommend! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Grief, Religious bigotry, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, and Deportation

moonmoonsun's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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? No

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

anh_read's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense slow-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: Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Suicide, Violence, Police brutality, Colonisation, War, and Classism

Moderate: Confinement, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Medical content, and Medical trauma

A historical fiction about a Korean family immigrating to Japan. As the reader follows them throughout three generations, one gets a deeper insights into Korean history, as well as the life of Korean immigrants in Japan. Each generation faced their own kind of hardships and try to navigate their life in a foreign country that is hostile towards them.

isacarvalho91's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Chronic illness, Genocide, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Colonisation, and War

issyd23's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad 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? Yes

2.0

Didn’t love this but I still want to watch the tv series 2♣️

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Death, Genocide, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexual assault, Suicide, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Colonisation

Moderate: Toxic relationship

daphnewoods's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

This book definitely delves deep into some really tough subjects, but it’s written with such tenderness and grace and wisdom that it didn’t leave me in a place of darkness; but rather expanded my heart even wider. It’s an absolute treasure and should be required reading. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Body shaming, Bullying, Cancer, Child death, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Police brutality, Trafficking, Grief, Car accident, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Outing, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Classism, and Deportation

ksuazo94's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense fast-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: Adult/minor relationship, Rape, and Suicide

Moderate: Miscarriage, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Grief, Death of parent, Colonisation, and War

Minor: Bullying, Cancer, and Car accident

abigailjblay's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective 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

2.0

Well written, just not for me but I'm sure many will enjoy this book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Death, Hate crime, Infidelity, Mental illness, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

fairyribs's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

4.5- my god this book was amazing. Knocked off 0.5 because the ending was a bit…meh. But the themes, history and the ramifications of cultural genocide were heartbreaking but very necessary to read about.

I went into this book expecting it to be a history of the Japanese colonial rule but instead I got an intimate portrait of a family and it’s fight for survival during and after colonialism. I never knew that people like the Zainichi existed and to see how many of them came to be was quite illuminating, along with the discrimination many Korean-Japanese people face today.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Cancer, Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Xenophobia, Vomit, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Colonisation, Dysphoria, War, and Injury/Injury detail