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judah_g's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, and Misogyny
Moderate: Misogyny, Mental illness, and Xenophobia
Minor: Genocide
theboricuabookworm's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
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? Yes
5.0
I knew this book was going to wreck me, especially after reading A Woman is No Man but reading this, which followed many of the same themes but also many new ones of A Woman is No Man, was such a emotional rollercoaster. I'm going to need everyone to pick up a book by Etaf Rum (preferably all of them). The way that Etaf can create a story of women, especially daughters of immigrants, who come from a background of such pain and grief is something I think everyone needs to experience. Her works are literally indescribable.
Yara, I saw so much of myself in her. How her anxiety would manifest, how once she gave words to what was she feeling, only then was she able to start on her journey of healing and acceptance. I'm so glad that even though Yara had poor therapy experiences prior to Esther, she did not let that dissuade her from going back and trying again and realizing the importance of having someone to talk to. When Esther said: "There is no hierarchy of pain when it comes to traumatic experiences." I wanted to reach into the book and hug her. She was not the perfect therapist but she is one that helped Yara come to terms with how she had been living her life until that point and how she can make it better for herself and her daughters.
Every time someone asked if she had someone she could talk to or rely on and she would reply in the negative was such a gut punch. That loneliness is so visceral and it crept up on her before she knew it. But how she became more open to letting people in, even unwittingly at first, had me smiling through my tears.
I know my words and review will never be able to do justice to the way Etaf wove such a heartbreaking yet restorative story of breaking generational cycles and realizing that while you have such immense privilege that others prior to you and adjacent to you do not, you are still valid in your feelings and your grief.
Yara, I saw so much of myself in her. How her anxiety would manifest, how once she gave words to what was she feeling, only then was she able to start on her journey of healing and acceptance. I'm so glad that even though Yara had poor therapy experiences prior to Esther, she did not let that dissuade her from going back and trying again and realizing the importance of having someone to talk to. When Esther said: "There is no hierarchy of pain when it comes to traumatic experiences." I wanted to reach into the book and hug her. She was not the perfect therapist but she is one that helped Yara come to terms with how she had been living her life until that point and how she can make it better for herself and her daughters.
I know my words and review will never be able to do justice to the way Etaf wove such a heartbreaking yet restorative story of breaking generational cycles and realizing that while you have such immense privilege that others prior to you and adjacent to you do not, you are still valid in your feelings and your grief.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, Sexism, Racism, Misogyny, Gaslighting, Grief, and Emotional abuse
jennireadsmaybe's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
How do I write a review for Evil Eye? How do I capture how much this book means to me?
Evil Eye follows Yara, a Palestinian American woman, who after marrying and leaving her conservative family behind in Brooklyn is seemingly living the dream. She's gotten to do everything that her mother never could. She's working at a local college, married to a nice man, and raising her two daughters. Everything's great. Except it doesn't feel like enough.
Etaf Rum is a forced to be reckoned with; there's no other way to put it. Evil Eye explores generational trauma, motherhood, depression, friendship, and the deeply personal desire to be loved by the people around us. It's a hard read, but a necessary one in my opinion.
There were so many lines throughout the book that were a punch in the gut. Rum's writing is at once beautiful and harrowing, but I never find myself lost by it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Gaslighting, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Grief, and Mental illness
Moderate: Death of parent, Suicidal thoughts, and Racism
sarah_thebooknerd's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
This book is one that will sit with me for a long time. Etaf Rum is an auto read author for me and this book solidified that. The way in which she touches on families and generational trauma and breaking cycles and also mental health with this book is huge. I had such a connection to the FMC with the way that she would bottle things inside and it would get to a point where it would boil over. Be kind on yourself as you pick this one up.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Colonisation
koiolee's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
This book has a purpose. But it's not really my cup of tea. I normally love books about marginalized communities fighting what they know to move forward, change, heal, but this book felt more like a therapy session than a story of healing. There are long segments of typical therapy advice, stories, jargon, that makes the book drag on. There's metaphors that the author tells you explicitly what they mean, instead of an implicit nod towards. It feels like you're dumbing it down for your audience, when your audience is likely college-level, college-educated, media literate readers. You're writing for a small audience, when your actual audience are more or less people like me.
EDIT: It gives Catcher in the Rye vibes omg.
EDIT: It gives Catcher in the Rye vibes omg.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Colonisation, Islamophobia, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Misogyny, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Sexism, Grief, Racism, Panic attacks/disorders, Emotional abuse, and Infidelity
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Schizophrenia/Psychosis and Self harm
ka_schulze's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Misogyny
Moderate: Racism, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Child abuse
aliireads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
relaxing
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Good book! Very sad and hard to read at times. A little frustrating with Yara’s family and upbringing, but the ending is good. The last 1/3 kind of drags on, but the book was good overall. It covers abuse, spousal abuse, neglect, emotional abuse, depression, anxiety, etc. definitely a heavy book, but it also has some very sweet moments. Everyone deserves a friend like Silas. I would recommend it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Racism, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abandonment, Mental illness, Bullying, Child abuse, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
ealfving's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Misogyny
unboxedjack's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I really thought I'd enjoy this book more than I did. The premise of a first-generation Palestinian-American woman exploring oppression, intergenerational trauma, and all that comes with that is very much up my alley. Unfortunately, this fell short. Obviously the reader is primed to be sympathetic to the protagonist, Yara, but the character development was incomplete. That was especially clear in how secondary characters were written. They had no depth, with Yara's being pretty minimal at times. Though I did like how Rum painted well-meaning white people as being just as racist with their microaggressive comments, the dialogue and presentation of this (as well as dialogue as a whole) was repetitive, superficial, and unrealistic. There were plenty of opportunities to dive into these themes more deeply rather than creating a fairly obvious and unsatisfying story. Ultimately, this read like a YA novel rather than something designed for older readers. 2.5 stars.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, Emotional abuse, Domestic abuse, and Sexism
Minor: War, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Toxic relationship
decie's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Emotional abuse, Sexism, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Grief, Colonisation, Death of parent, and Racism