Reviews with content warning for Racism - Grown

Reviews tagging 'Racism'

unifrost_8824's review

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dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense fast-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? No

5.0

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spicycronereads's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

This is the first Tiffany D. Jackson book that I didn’t love. It’s also the first time I found myself yelling at or talking back to an audiobook. Apologies to voice actress Joniece Abbott-Pratt for all the yelling I did at her. For better or worse, she made the story come alive.

The book opens with main character, Enchanted, waking up, covered in blood, with no memory of how she got that way. In the room with her is a man who is dead and it is someone whom she clearly fears. The narrative, then goes back in time and starts to relay the events that led to the situation. it was extremely stressful. Because you can see exactly how things were going to go. It may be because I’m an adult woman, but the manipulation tactics seemed so transparent. It was difficult to remind myself that the target audience is young women, who might be more likely to fall pray to these tactics. It was also infuriating to see how the victims of intimate partner violence were treated both by people in their lives, and by the system.

The author does a good job of addressing the nuances and social attitudes around these issues, from the over-sexualization of Black girls, to the systemic failures for survivors of intimate partner violence, to the differential treatment of perpetrators based on their race. Definitely check your trigger warnings though, this is a rough one!

Overall, the audio performance was really great. It is a story that needs to be told. It would probably less frustrating for the target demographic (it is a YA novel). I liked it but didn’t love it. ⭐️⭐️⭐️

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fkshg8465's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative 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

5.0

********** I don’t consider these spoilers, but you may *********

This may be an extreme and even glamour filled version of a reality that happens everyday to millions of women, especially BIPoC women and young women. Millions of us have been/are being assaulted (myself included), and probably just as many or more of us are beaten and brutalized and victimized and gaslighted by men, especially men with power, money, and influence. It doesn’t even have to be a lot of any of the three - so long as it’s just a little more than what we have. This story is my story. It’s an exaggerated version, but it happened to me under different circumstances. I also suspect the entertainment industry is probably as toxic as written. Bravo to Tiffany Jackson for writing with courage and gentleness and for killing off a character who should’ve been raised differently and could’ve brought so much beauty into the world if he had.

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minayana's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional tense fast-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

4.75

This book was phenomenal and gut wrenching. From the first word, your eyes are glued to the page and you can’t help but keep reading and reading. It’s absolutely heartbreaking and horrifying as you watch Enchanted get groomed and her circumstances get worse and worse. This is such an important read, and I loved the spotlight on how black girls and women are treated when they are in abusive situations-not being believed, and being blamed for being too “grown.” I liked how the novel explores how a situation like this would affect the family as well, but in the end the focus is still on Enchanted. Your heart just breaks for her the whole novel, and you keep rooting for her to get her out of this situation. This didn’t get a 5 star cause unfortunately, the ending was a bit rushed and I’m not quite sure how I feel about the last two pages. I’ve read White Smoke by this author as well, and I’ve noticed that she tends to put a tad too many plot twists at the end.

I really did not like how the author literally states in her authors note that the relationship between Gab and her bf is ok…..NO, it is NOT ok for an 18 year old to date a 15 year old just because the older one treats the younger one nicely like what the fuck….that really rubs me the wrong way. The whole point of the novel is the fact that it is the adults job to recognize that relations with a minor is wrong and disgusting!!! It literally goes against the whole message of the novel!!! It doesn’t matter that the older one was 17 in the beginning!!! A 14 year old and a 17 year old??? Gross!!! Ugh. Unfortunately, I just can’t give the book 5 stars for that.. Ignoring that one major flaw, this was an amazing book and I would highly recommend. Please check the trigger warnings first! This is a YA novel, but the content can be very triggering. This is definitely an older YA novel.

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mathenam's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
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

4.5

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anonymous_blobfish's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad fast-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

5.0

“The most disrespected person in America, is the black woman. The most un-protected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America, is the black woman.” - Malcolm X

This was heartbreaking and powerful, deeply evocative and so fucking upsetting. I spent half my time on the brink of angry tears and the other half fighting the urge to vomit. I do recommend this book but with care at it broaches incredibly heavy and triggering topics.

CW: sexual abuse, rape, pedophilia, slut-shaming and victim-blaming, assault, child abuse, kidnapping, addiction to opioids, brief racial microaggressions, and PTSD.

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ruinedbyreading's review against another edition

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challenging emotional 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

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emily_mh's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

4.5

Tiffany D. Jackson just knows how to write contemporaries!! She has a true talent. Every one of the four books I’ve read of hers have been astonishing, including this one.

This book will boil your blood. It shows in detail how Black women are harmed, exploited, devalued, and disbelieved. This happens in all areas in life, but Grown focussed on this occurring in the music industry, following Enchanted’s story. What struck me especially in relation to this topic was that people in the book (as in real life) were so desperate to put the blame on anyone but the perpetrator of harm.

This book is heartbreaking. What Enchanted goes through is horrendous. Jackson doesn’t shy away from exactly how Black girls are exploited in the music industry. Acknowledging this reality is so important, as it provides visibility on an issue that doesn’t get any in mainstream media.

Jackson crafted this story so well. The book starts out with the morning after the murder, then goes back in time, focussing on how Enchanted got to that point. The result is this well-executed looming sense of foreboding. The incredibly short chapters match the pace at which Enchanted’s life is snatched out of her control. We are presented with certain small details early on that then become super important later, giving that click of understanding. As I said, Jackson is one hell of a writer!!

One thing I did think was odd was that Jackson didn’t take the stance that a 17 year old getting with a 14 year old is weird, as is a 20 year old getting with a 16 year old, when those are weird age gapes considering the relative life stages of the people involved. But I also could have been reading these sections too literally and be completely wrong about what her stance is! I just wanted to flag that in case.

Rep: Black MC, Black SCs, Latina SC

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