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kelseyvsy's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, War, and Classism
Moderate: Cancer, Drug use, Genocide, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Excrement, Police brutality, and Gaslighting
noneisntoff's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Body shaming, Death, Genocide, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Trafficking, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, and Deportation
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Car accident, Murder, and Deportation
Minor: Antisemitism
piecesofamber's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Violence, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gun violence, Sexism, Torture, Blood, Abortion, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, Classism, and Deportation
Minor: Cancer, Cursing, Infertility, Infidelity, Rape, Sexual content, Excrement, Religious bigotry, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
sophiesmallhands's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, Murder, Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content, Trafficking, Abortion, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and War
Minor: Body shaming, Cancer, Child death, Drug use, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Vomit, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
zoekyriacou's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, and Abortion
Moderate: Child death, Genocide, Gun violence, Homophobia, Infidelity, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Murder
jnk7's review against another edition
Graphic: Religious bigotry and War
aminahslibrary's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, War, and Deportation
geoalice23's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Body shaming, Cancer, Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Medical content, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Car accident, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Outing, Cultural appropriation, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation
saucy_bookdragon's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
3.5
Against the Loveless World is a very thematically charged novel. Following the life of a Palestinian woman named Nahr, she is continuously upheaved by political turmoil leading to her making home in various places including Kuwait, Jordan, and Palestine, eventually landing her in an Israeli prison where she writes her story. Along the way the book discusses a very large variety of topics related to the region, including but not limited to genocide, colonialism, and feminism. It's a fiction novel that reflects the reality for many Palestinians.
The prose was absolutely gorgeous, flowing smoothly and lyrically, immediately transporting the reader into the story. It's pretty episodic and I liked some sections more than others, in particular the one where she was a prostitute and the one where she was actively rebelling against Israel I found the most interesting and poignant. I do wish that the book had lingered more on some aspects as at times it felt as if it was mentioning themes and topics without fleshing them fully out. I also found Nahr to be somewhat distant from the reader, she was often pretty passive and I never felt I really knew what were her personal beliefs and motives. The sections I mentioned enjoying the most where the ones Nahr and the themes were the most fully realized.
There's a lot to unpack and think about with this book and it's a good reminder for me that I still have a lot to learn about Middle Eastern history. It's a thematically rich story about someone marginalized by both her ethnicity and gender, left wayward in a world torn apart by violence.
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Genocide, Homophobia, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Islamophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Murder, and Colonisation
Moderate: Antisemitism
aw_nf15's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Islamophobia, Grief, Religious bigotry, Abortion, Murder, Colonisation, War, and Classism