Scan barcode
lay_kone's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death, Racism, Racial slurs, Cannibalism, Dementia, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Body shaming, and Cancer
celery's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Dementia, Sexual violence, Gore, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual harassment, Classism, Alcohol, Chronic illness, Hate crime, Medical content, Addiction, Cannibalism, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Dysphoria, Kidnapping, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Emotional abuse, Eating disorder, Mental illness, Murder, Body shaming, Cancer, Fatphobia, Gaslighting, Grief, Gun violence, Vomit, War, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Suicidal thoughts, Cursing, Infidelity, Animal cruelty, Terminal illness, Blood, Body horror, Violence, Child death, Bullying, Car accident, Death, Death of parent, Religious bigotry, Infertility, Police brutality, and Injury/Injury detail
katndrsn's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Racial slurs and Misogyny
Moderate: Alcoholism, Murder, Homophobia, Racism, Addiction, Domestic abuse, Police brutality, Medical trauma, Hate crime, and Cancer
Minor: Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Stalking, Terminal illness, Death of parent, Death, Dementia, Cannibalism, War, Rape, and Emotional abuse
staceyinthesticks's review
- 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
4.0
Moderate: Death
Minor: Alcoholism, Murder, Racism, War, Violence, Cursing, Death of parent, Dementia, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content
artstitute'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
5.0
Graphic: Medical trauma, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Fatphobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Cancer, Racism, Rape, Body shaming, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
Moderate: Cannibalism, Infidelity, Addiction, Alcoholism, Blood, Dementia, Death of parent, Pedophilia, Eating disorder, and Mental illness
Minor: Pregnancy, Bullying, and Vomit
portapages's review against another edition
- 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
This book is also contains characters who are rather queer, anti-racist, and socialist for their time, considering it's set in 1930s USA.
THAT SAID, once again, this book crosses multiple very trying times in USA's history. It was also written in 1987. The language used in the book is not something we deem acceptable anymore, especially considering the ethnicity of the writer.
However, while there were some questionable portrayals of black stereotypes (a child with blue gums is expected to be a devil and in some ways lives up to it, as compared to a black chold with a fairer complexion), I found that every person was approached with a lot of nuance. It was very artfully done.
Graphic: Death, Racial slurs, Suicidal thoughts, Child death, Cancer, Death of parent, Dementia, Mental illness, Murder, and Racism
Moderate: War and Hate crime
Minor: Sexual content and Adult/minor relationship
saintyeehaw's review against another edition
- 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? Yes
2.5
Also, the main character finds her self worth by
Graphic: Body shaming, Classism, Grief, Medical trauma, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Cancer, Death, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Mental illness, Murder, Racism, Terminal illness, Rape, Religious bigotry, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts
chloenfp'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
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Cancer, Cannibalism, Classism, Death of parent, Death, Dementia, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, Child death, Misogyny, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Grief, Physical abuse, and Slavery
lily1304's review against another edition
3.25
It's flagged as "LGBTQ+" because it prominently features a committed relationship between two women, and no one in the novel is ever weird about it. Racism and sexism are strong themes, but there is apparently zero homophobia in Whistle Stop, Alabama. It's honestly kind of refreshing, but also confusing. Everyone treats this couple like they're married, but they're described in really vague terms, almost like a "Boston marriage" romantic friendship. It's like the opposite of The Price of Salt.
The way racism is depicted is particularly interesting - the novel features the Ku Klux Klan and an old white lady with a mild discomfort around black men and everything in between. It's difficult to tell which mildly racist opinions are the author's and which are just the characters'. The N-word and the word "colored" are used with abandon. The novel also makes a big deal out of colorism among the black characters.
One of the characters, Evelyn, an older lady in 1986, goes on a whole journey about how sexism has affected her life - and her story concludes triumphantly with her at weight-loss camp, and losing a significant amount of weight is one of her victories. Unironically. Evelyn's relationship with Ninny makes it seem like the story is about to take a strong body-positive stance, but it's a total bait and switch.
Graphic: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Murder, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, and Sexism
Moderate: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cancer, Cannibalism, Dementia, Fatphobia, Grief, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, and War
Minor: Kidnapping and Pregnancy
amcghig's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
Graphic: Racism, Racial slurs, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Death, Child death, and Alcoholism