Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd

12 reviews

alyciajstewart's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective 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? No

3.75

This book is truly heartbreaking. Reading about the experiences of slaves in the 1800s South was difficult. The author did an admiral job of bringing historical figures to life. I regret that I didn't know about the Grimke family until reading this novel. Clearly they played a very important role in history and I am grateful to now know more of their story. While this is a fictional account, it's clear that the author put a great deal of thought into keeping it as historically realistic as possible. The relationship between Sarah and Handful is well executed. They obviously have a very complicated relationship, but the author is still able to provide the depth needed for us to feel for both characters. Overall, this was a very well done novel and I found it both entertaining and educational. I listened to the book on audio, and I greatly appreciated that Sarah and Handful had different narrators. It definitely added to the overall experience.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Death, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Racism, and Slavery

bcom's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

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

1.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Slavery, and Physical abuse

Minor: Sexual assault

rachelmerry_'s review against another edition

emotional medium-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? It's complicated

4.0

I liked this story a lot better after learning that Sarah was a real person and much of her story in the book was true, before that I think I was feeling a little uncomfortable thinking the author’s imagination was veering too White Savior. I was glad that the author added Handful’s narrative, and that, although it was fiction, many details come from contemporary accounts. 

My favorite part of the book was definitely the last third or so, when Sarah comes into her own and her and Handful’s stories come back together. While Sarah’s parts at the end made for a great character arc, I thought the prose for Handful’s last few chapters were really beautiful. 

On the audiobook—the narrator for Handful was so, so good. But the voice for Sarah’s parts was all over the place. Maybe she was trying too hard to do different voices for each character, but her southern accent kept slipping into a British accent or just disappearing altogether. Bummer. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Physical abuse

woodsymel's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective 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? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Racism, Slavery, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Murder, Trafficking, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Abandonment, Torture, Medical content, Grief, Classism, Death, Colonisation, Medical trauma, Injury/Injury detail, Hate crime, Death of parent, Confinement, Sexism, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Gore, and Blood

Moderate: Toxic relationship

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Infidelity, and Alcoholism

iluvbooks13's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Slavery, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Racial slurs

enbae's review against another edition

dark hopeful inspiring tense 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? It's complicated

5.0

When I started reading "the invention of wings" I expected something totally different, but now it was the exact right book for me. Especially finding out how many people from this book really existed inspired and thrilled me. I had never heard of the Grimké-sisters and their doing before - as many great women who's stories get left out of our history classes - and I'm still absolutely stunned!!!
A must-read for so many (white) people who can't imagine the cruel reality of slavery.

!!!But also huge trigger warnings: this book deals with topics as slavery, rassism, sexism, torture and even execution! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Death of parent, Physical abuse, Death, Torture, Racial slurs, Religious bigotry, Police brutality, Racism, Sexism, Trafficking, Misogyny, Slavery, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Grief and Alcohol

Execution

rachel_macak's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Torture, Physical abuse, Slavery, and Racism

midnightmarauder's review against another edition

adventurous emotional informative inspiring reflective sad 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

4.0

The Invention of Wings is a fictionalized account of the life of Sarah Moore Grimké, a woman who led one of the first abolitionist and feminist movements alongside her sister, Angelina, in the mid to late 1800s.

On Sarah's eleventh birthday, she is "gifted" a slave girl named Handful. Sarah, already extremely against slavery at such a young age, initially rejects her "present", but, after being told that she couldn't do so, her and Handful become very close.

Handful lives up to her name, being defiant toward both Sarah and the Grimké household as a whole in the beginning of the novel. But, after getting to know Sarah more and hearing her personal stance of slavery, she warms up to her and the two become friends.

The story is written in a non-linear writing style, alternating between both Sarah and Handful's point-of-views, and different time periods from 1806 to 1836. Through these time periods, Handful works on the Grimké property and dreams of being free someday, while Sarah works toward her goal of the emancipation of all slaves, along with racial equality and rights for women.

I feel that Sue Monk Kidd did an excellent job at telling both Sarah and Handful's stories. People who write about white abolitionists tend to hold them to a god-like standard, without bothering to even mention their slaves (if they had any). Kidd took the time to humanize Handful and make it clear that she was a person, too, not just someone who sat on the sidelines. 

I do wish that Kidd had given more depth to Handful's point of view. I know there wasn't much she could cover, as Handful was enslaved for the entire book

until the end

, but I just feel like a little bit more could've been given to her story. 

All in all, I went into this book not knowing anything about either Sarah nor Handful. I hadn't even heard their names before. I really enjoyed reading about each woman's push toward equality for all. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Blood, Classism, Slavery, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Hate crime, Injury/Injury detail, and Misogyny

Moderate: Religious bigotry and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Abandonment, Terminal illness, and Death of parent

onyxx's review against another edition

challenging inspiring 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

4.75

  Z początku nastawiłam się na to że "Czarne skrzydła" będą opowiadać bardziej o niewolnikach samych w sobie. Czułam, że części z Szelmą są krótsze. To historia Sary oraz jej siostry była bardziej opisana. Po przeczytaniu notki od autora zrozumiałam dlaczego.
 Emocjonalna, piekna historia, która na dlugo zapadnie mi w pamięć.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Violence, Colonisation, and Slavery

Moderate: Hate crime, Police brutality, Physical abuse, and Torture

cuddlygryphon's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional informative 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? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, Slavery, Sexism, Racism, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail