Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

Gorzki smak jej wielkiej radości by Tahereh Mafi

28 reviews

emilysawyer's review against another edition

reflective sad slow-paced

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

1.5

I kept waiting for the plot… and then I got to the end of the book. There was no plot. No rising action, no climax, no resolution. Just sad existential trains of thought from the main character whose life is so terrible and family hates her (but not really). Unfortunately I disliked this book so much.

Content Warnings

dramagirl2003's review against another edition

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challenging emotional fast-paced

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

4.75

i still don’t know entirely what to make of this book, but it was certainly enlightening

thoughts while reading

p33: well i thought that but wasn’t 100% sure

p51: look i know it’s a bit weird when your friend is crushing on your sibling, but that is an overkill reaction

p71: maybe shadi was conducting herself with more maturity than shayda and that’s why the doctor assumed she was the oldest

p190: yeah you might as well have

p229: ali better not still be in zahra’s bathroom

quotes

p33:

There's no such thing as an Islamic terrorist.
It was morally impossible—philosophically impossible—to be Muslim and a terrorist at the same time. There was nothing in Islam that condoned the taking of innocent lives.
And yet there it was, every day, every day, the conflation:
Muslim terrorist. Islamic terrorist.

p136:

I had a thousand human needs that needed tending to and I felt paralyzed by the weight of those needs…
…worrying that I perhaps I wasn't eating enough or sleeping enough…
…my heart and mind were so full these days they were stretching at the seams…

p190:

I realized, as I cried myself to sleep that night, that I might've hurt him less had I simply driven a stake through his heart.

Content Warnings

guessgreenleaf's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Content Warnings

brookey8888's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

3.25

I enjoyed this, but I think that to much was happening and none of it get wrapped up or flushed out. I appreciate the topics discussed in this, all of them being hard and difficult conversations, but half of them weren’t even concluded. This also just felt off to me? I’m not Muslim so I can’t speak on the
Representation And the some of the topics discussed, but it just didn’t seem All that well done to me. I know the author is Muslim so maybe that’s her experience, but read reviews from Muslim readers.

Content Warnings

aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition

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emotional fast-paced

4.0

As a former Muslim who grew up during 9/11 and post 9/11, this book def hit some feelings. Def look up content/trigger warnings tho. There is at least brief mentions of a few different things.
Although I didn't love the romance aspect and would've loved to see more of Noah, I thoroughly enjoyed this book on family, grief, and struggles of being Muslim in a country that thinks you are the personification of pure evil. I was a little confused at the beginning with the switching of time a few times throughout the book tho.

Content Warnings