Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes by Chris Crutcher

3 reviews

kageraven's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

2.5

 Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes is a realistic fiction novel about outcast teenagers. Sarah Byrnes has a face marred by burn scars while Eric Calhoune is overweight. The story is told from Eric’s perspective as it alternates between the present and the past. In the present, Sarah has gone mute and Eric struggles trying to figure out how to help her as he recollects the history of their friendship. It is emotional, dark, and tense. The novel does cover many serious topics such as physical and emotional abuse, bullying, and abortion, and it does so in a way that seems natural for the plot and characters. 

The book comes across as misogynistic, though I begrudgingly admit it did get a bit better by the end of the book. The women are oversexualized and seem pretty one-dimensional even when they have interesting backstories. Many of the characters have a lot of depth and are engaging to unravel, but the personalities of the characters seem underdeveloped. It’s not necessarily a bad book. The flawed characters drive the story, and the complexity of the problems they encounter constitute a compelling plot. It’s thought-provoking and even inspiring to a certain extent. But it was frustrating to read which made it difficult to connect with the characters. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Sexual harassment, Suicide, Violence, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Self harm, and Sexism

ellariawrites's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Fatphobia, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Physical abuse, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Abortion, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Suicide, Violence, and Bullying

Minor: Pregnancy, Suicide, Abandonment, Confinement, and Misogyny

b3ck's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Mental illness, Religious bigotry, Violence, Bullying, Child abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Eating disorder and Abandonment

Minor: Gaslighting, Abortion, and Fire/Fire injury