A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

From Book Trigger Warnings
A Little Life
Cover of A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
Author(s) Hanya Yanagihara
Published March 10, 2015
Publisher Doubleday
Genre(s) Contemporary Fiction
Age group Adult


A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara is an adult contemporary novel, originally published on March 10, 2015.

Trigger Warnings

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  • Ableism (violent)
    Dismissal of chronic pain, physical abuse after showcasing disability, character is raped because of his disability. This happens in The Axiom of Equality, Chapter One.
  • Child abandonment
    A baby is left in a dumpster
  • Child abuse
  • Child death
    Detailed, The Axiom of Equality Chapter Two.
  • Child molestation
  • Child rape
    From 9 to 12 years old. Hundreds of men, including his parental figure. The Axiom of Equality, Chapter Three.
  • Drug abuse
  • Domestic violence/abuse
    Has the potential to lead to a possible murder. The Axiom of Equality, Chapter One and Two.
  • Eating disorder
  • Emotional abuse
  • Gaslighting
  • Lesbophobia (unchallenged)
  • Manipulation
  • Pedophilia
  • Physical abuse
    Character is constantly hit by people raising him as a child. He is later hit by a partner as an adult.
  • Prostitution
    Of a child (from nine to twelve years old). The Axiom of Equality, Chapter Three.
  • Racism
    Deep discussions of Black identity are discussed within the book, including internalized racism and being mixed. Some Black readers have expressed this oversteps boundaries, as the author is not Black.
  • Rape
    The Axiom of Equality, Chapter One and Chapter Two. Child rape at Chapter Three.
  • Self harm (graphic)
  • Sexual abuse
  • Sexual assault
  • Suicide ideation
  • Suicide
    Graphic attempt at The Axiom of Equality, Chapter Three.
  • Transphobia (misgendering)
    Character isn't actually trans, but characters doing the misgendering believe they are, trans identity is used as a punchline. Vanities, Chapter One.

Representation

An asterisk (*) indicates that the author openly identifies with that identity.

  • M/M romance (main characters)
  • Non-specified POC (main character)
  • Black side characters
  • Indian side character
  • Disabled main character
  • PTSD (main character)

Tropes