Reviews tagging 'Mass/school shootings'

As Long As the Lemon Trees Grow by Zoulfa Katouh

56 reviews

spellbindingtomes's review against another edition

emotional hopeful sad 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Trafficking, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail

jstark's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional inspiring 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? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Blood, Medical content, and War

Moderate: Death of parent

Minor: Gun violence, Sexual assault, and Mass/school shootings

singingshooter's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional inspiring lighthearted 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? Yes

5.0

This book is both heartbreaking and warming. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Grief, and War

Moderate: Child death, Blood, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Sexism, Torture, and Pregnancy

handowskie's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted sad tense 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail

wyvernsandwords's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring reflective sad 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, War, and Injury/Injury detail

nehaanna's review against another edition

emotional hopeful sad 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

I haven’t cried over a book in years. I’ve read plenty of war novels, novels about trauma and violence and fear and PTSD and unjust regimes and war crimes. But this book tapped into something so honest and wrenching. It’s a privilege to be able to just read about the Syrian Civil War and not ever experience something like it, as Syria did or as Palestine continues to feel. There is so much storytelling about the human range of emotions and ability to survive. Our brains are wired to adapt and overcome in the harshest of circumstances, and this book demonstrates this. 

There is no amount of words for the grief this book inspires. I think I started crying when I read the words “I’ll tell God everything,” and I never stopped. Reading this about a month or so after the Assad regime fell in Syria and a few days into a tentative ceasefire in Palestine, I can only think of the war torn, the displaced, the refugees, the asylum seekers, the ones who fled their country of birth for the chance of life. And now they can return home, their hopes have come to fruition. This book is just one of many stories about so many Salama’s, Kenan’s, Layla’s, Hamza’s, Lama’s, Yousuf’s, Dr. Zaid, and so many more. May their hearts be at peace and their souls at rest.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and War

Moderate: Confinement, Eating disorder, Sexism, and Sexual harassment

thearielleview's review against another edition

challenging dark informative sad tense fast-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Chronic illness, Death, Genocide, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual violence

larabroekhuijsen's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, War, and Injury/Injury detail

bella613's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

Highly recommend this book! 
I cried so hard. This one is a lot to handle but it's so worth it. I feel like I learned more from it as well- even though it's fictional, events that happen are based on real things. 
I picked up this book because I saw somewhere that Zoulfa Katouh is ARMY and that sparked my interest. The audiobook doesn't include her acknowledgments, and honestly I want to buy this book in print eventually because I want it in my personal library. 
This is a beautiful, heartfelt, raw work of art. I'm glad I read it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Torture, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Pregnancy

ruc's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Mental illness, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Abandonment, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, Vomit, Trafficking, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment