Reviews with content warning for Sexual harassment - Split Tooth

Reviews tagging 'Sexual harassment'

Split Tooth by Tanya Tagaq

17 reviews

cluckieduck's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective fast-paced

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

4.5

Oof. This is a beautiful book, but I can't say I enjoyed it. In fact, I don't think it's written for you to enjoy; it's a harsh, brutal reality of a life in an isolated community that many people are sheltered from knowing, and whether that's good or bad, I'm not one to say.

Tanya Tagaq has such a way with her prose. The juxtaposition of lyrical, poetic flow and crass, vulgar descriptions is really engaging. This was a quick book to read, but the subject matter is far from easy. It is rife with triggering content masked beneath mythical stories that make you question if what you really read just happened, but not wanting to go back and double-check. Some things are better left uncovered.

Empathy is for those who can afford it. Empathy is for the privileged.

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lizaliza5's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

5.0

wow. if you think you are ready, just read it. and get the audiobook and listen to it while you read. you need to hear her read the words and you need to hear her singing and to see the illustrations. this book was an experience that will stick with me forever.

" The Land has no hierarchy. The Land has no manners; you only obey and enjoy what is afforded to you by her greatness. Only logic and great care ensure your survival. Only the patterns of skills gifted by our ancestors keep us living in harmony. We obey or we succumb." INSANE. you need to read this. (but of course be aware of the EXTENSIVE content warnings and proceed with caution. It can get DARK.)

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lottifus's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious medium-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? It's complicated

4.0

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laurenmiller100's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

3.75

“Fear is learning to run from me. Not the other way around.”

Someone on Goodreads called this book the thorniest of roses, and I have to agree. As others have mentioned, big time trigger warnings on this. It’s vulgar, disturbing, beautiful, brutal, mysterious, magical, and deeply upsetting. Definitely a unique read, but one that I struggled with because the content is so difficult. The plot can be winding, vague, and hard to follow because it’s written as poetry. I don’t have much of a mind for poetry even though I love it, so I don’t know that I really followed all the events of this story. That said, what did make a huge impact on me is the feeling that Tagaq is trying to get across. The ending is beautiful and horrible. Tragic and disquieting. I am glad I read it, and I hope to never read it again.

“We are reverberations of our ancestors and songs of our present selves. It is very quiet in the future as it is in the deep past. The quiet. We always live among the dead. It’s scary but the quiet is our true home. This is why we must make the most of our gristle and meat. We must celebrate being harnessed into our bodies. We are a product of the immense torque that propels this universe. We are not individuals but an accumulation of all that lived before.”

Characters: 6
Atmosphere/Setting: 10
Writing Style: 8
Plot: 7
Intrigue: 8
Logic/Relationships: 4
Enjoyment: 2

6.2/10 = 3.75 stars

Content Warnings

drs's review against another edition

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The writing is fantastic. The content is not what I want to read right now though. Ever since I became a parent I can’t handle stories with violence against children and this one has multiple instances of it in the first 15 pages.

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kodi_rae's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Part autobiography, part narrative fiction, part magical realism, etc. with some tough themes about SA, trauma, etc. One of the things that makes “Split Tooth” beautiful is the way Tagaq talks about the environment, animal spirits, the northern lights, etc. and how it ties into the narrative and cultural beliefs and practices. I read in other reviews that if you listen to the audiobook she narrates it herself and incorporates throat singing between each section which I imagine would lend itself to a whole new, raw experience. I think it would be worth revisiting.

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