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Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Pomegranate by Helen Elaine Lee

6 reviews

juliaxgulia's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective 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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aseel_reads's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad medium-paced
  • 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

4.0

Overall, I liked the story that was told, it was really interesting to learn about ranita and her life up until the point. I did think that the 'big reveal' was underwhelming or we were missing it
her dancing in the garden, during the rain, in the middle of the night? What was the big deal? I felt like we were missing a scene there


Sometimes the writing was a bit much, hard to get through, being overly descriptive/wordy, but then it went away
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rubberrosebooks's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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

5.0

I loved this book with my whole heart. The author did such an incredible job exploring intersectionality with the main character being a woman who is black, queer and a mother. The events and dialogs we experience through Ranitas' eyes show both the surface level, as well as the more complex struggles of life post incarceration. 

I listened to this on audio (Libro.fm) and found it very easy to follow, even when the timeline changed. The character development was 10/10, and I appreciated that we got to know almost every single character in Ranitas life so intimately. 

I have experience within the system of corrections, and I appreciated how accurate the representation of prison life was. So many times, I caught myself saying, "Wow, this is exactly how it is." 

This wasn't a "poor me" kind of story, but a life like account of the unfortunate circumstances that many people who become incarcerated have been through.  Ranita takes responsibility for her actions, and I admire her so much.

This book is extremely well written and one I will think about for years to come! Ranitas resilience was inspiring and beautiful. 
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siobhanward's review against another edition

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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

4.0

 I'm loving that more and more stories of women in hard situations are not stories of broken women (ahem, Ms. Atwood), but instead are stories of women finding their strength and fighting back. Ranita had every chance to give up - her challenging past, her time in Oak Hills, her journey back into the world. But instead of writing that story, Lee chose to write a story of a passionate woman who is choosing to live her life.

I really enjoyed this story - I kept waiting for a gotcha but honestly I was just impressed by Ranita and her story. I loved the characters that Lee created - Ranita, her family, the other women at Oak Hills. Honestly, the other women at Oak Hills were interesting enough that I wish there had been more time devoted to the, but I understand that was not the point of the story. They just felt so well-developed for background characters. This was such a pleasure to read and I'm looking forward to reading more of Lee's work. 
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tianas_littalk's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful 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

4.75

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skudiklier's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful 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

5.0

This book has so much heartbreak and pain and frustration and hope. I'm really glad I read it, especially when for a little bit there I was worried it would just be hurt after hurt, but knew I was going to push through regardless. Pomegranate is very much about the past and the present, and how we are all of our past selves at once. It's about growth and change in combination with not being able to fully escape your past. It's about queer love, and the way society sets some people up to fail, and the bravery it takes to open up to others. It's so so beautiful and I would highly recommend it. 

Thank you to Netgalley and Atria Books for the chance to read and review this ARC. 
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