Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

79 reviews

lynxpardinus's review against another edition

dark reflective tense

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Drug abuse, Genocide, Sexual content, Alcohol, and War

Minor: Cancer and Antisemitism

theodoreeeeeeads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

What a horrorshow vetsch. Lots ittying on with krovvy scenes and gullivers spinning physically and metaphorically, I defo smecked a malenky whilst viddying the pages. A tolchock in the yarbles when it got intense but I do recommend it to all the lewdies!! (this is what the whole book is like hehehe)

Now returning from the Nadsat language to English, wowowoeeee what a book, well-written, thought provoking, funny at moments and with a fantastic plot. The story poses lots of moral dilemmas and philosophical questions.

It’s terrifically dark, the phrase “ultra-violence”, as used many times in reference to gang activities, is very accurate. 

Easy to read classic (except the whole new language lol). Would massively recommend. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Child abuse, Death, Gore, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

perth_is's review against another edition

dark reflective tense fast-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Drug abuse, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, and Murder

Moderate: Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit

basti's review against another edition

• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Gore, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Suicide attempt

krosrightboob's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective tense slow-paced

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

5.0

If you can get past the made up goloss (slang) which gets easier the further in you get, this book is an absolute literary masterpiece. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Sexual harassment

_sophahs_'s review against another edition

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Not an enjoyable read but an important one. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

shoohoob's review against another edition

dark emotional tense slow-paced

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

2.75

I definitely should have read this instead of listened, but the audiobook narrator kinda ate 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug use, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Murder, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

alext8086's review

challenging dark sad fast-paced

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

3.75

I felt like the slang language the main character uses is a bit over the top. I also feel like most of the book is just him doing awful things. I love the second half of the book, though, when he doesn’t get to be an absolute villain all the time. When he is just being his normal awful self, I did not love the book

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Antisemitism, Suicide attempt, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

ttatt's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

2.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Suicide attempt

becandthebooks's review against another edition

4.0

"What's it going to be then, eh?"

I can understand how this book has divided readers throughout its time. This was the first Classics Readalong that I'm hosting with my friend Sam for 2024 and, oh my brothers, did it divided the group. Not in a bad way, but what an interesting discussion we all had. Some finished it and enjoyed it like myself, some DNF'ed it and the majority were on the fence with the general consensus being "it gave me the ick... but it is one of the most impressive pieces of literature" (as quoted by @exlibris_emily).

During Part 1 we are introduced to our narrator Alex who, along with his teenage friends, loves to go out at night partaking in "ultra -violence" - beating, stealing, bribing, raping, even murder. The language that Burgess has created within these pages, Nasdat, really helps to read through these horrifying ordeals, it almost creates a sense of putting it at arms length, you know what you are reading, but its not as graphic as what it would be in a normal language. Nasdat also helps to create a sense of the dystopian world we are visiting, dark, grungy and unsafe. "It's a stinking world because it lets the young get on to the old like you done, and there's no law and order no more."

During Part 2 we are with our self-proclaimed 'humble' narrator whilst he is in prison for a couple of years and ends up being the guinea pig for a new rehabilitation program designed to cause illness and stress whenever violence occurs and in turn take pressure of the criminal system. He is held down with his eyes pinned open and forced to watch "ultra-violence" on a screen while listening to classical music, which just so happens to be his favourite type of music. This, in turn, also destroys the enjoyment of the thing he appreciates the most. "Horrorshow is right, friend. A real show of horrors."

As we move into Part 3 Alex is out of the program and attempting to find his place again in society. He ends up with a political party that want to use him for their plight. "To turn a decent young man into a piece of clockwork should not, surely, be seen as any triumph." He accidentally helps them out by a whim-of-the-moment choice and at the same time accidentally cures himself of the illness he feels when he comes into contact with violence, violent thoughts or Beethoven.

Will he go back to his old ways, or will he end up on the straight and narrow after all of his punishments?

"And all it was was that I was young."

I've never read anything like "A Clockwork Orange" before. I started off reading it with a Nasdat dictionary in one hand and the book in the other. Once I was through Part 1 I put the dictionary down and just went with the flow. It took a lot of concentration and for such a short book felt like a lengthy undertaking. Having said all of that, once I got into the flow I enjoyed the challenge and I can see how it has become a classic. It's so unique and it would have also been breaching on taboo subjects with the actions and mindsets the main characters demonstrate. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail