Reviews with content warning for Drug use - Warrior Girl Unearthed

This book will make your heart break and your blood boil. Being back in Sugar Island was such a bittersweet feeling is this book. While I was happy to revisit some characters and meet new ones, this story left an ache in my chest.

Perry Firekeeper-Birch has a passion about her that is unmatched. Her desire to bring justice to her Anishinaabe tribe and peace to her ancestors will speak to something in your core you may not have known existed. There was a level of growth within her that was beautiful to watch unfold though she never wavered in her determination. Along with Perry, we see a glimpse into the life of her twin sister Pauline as well as a group of friends deemed the ‘Misfit Toys’ — I adore each of them so much.

Warrior Girl Unearthed is so much more than a group of misfit teens though. It’s a story filled with the constant injustices Indigenous people face and have face for so long. While this book is a work of fiction, much of it is based off of lived experiences and struggles. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for Indigenous representation, found family, strong family bonds, mystery, thriller or a YA contemporary.

*While reading The Firekeeper’s Daughter is not necessary for this book, I would highly recommend reading it first.

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betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious 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

3.5

Perry Firekeeper-Birch has always felt comfortable in her identity. She knows she is the more laidback twin, and probably the best fisher on Sugar Island. Now, she's ready for her Summer of Slack. However, after a fender bender takes her jeep out of commission, she now has to work to pay back her Auntie Daunis for the repairs.

So, she's interning at the museum for the summer. That's where she meets Team Misfit Toys, the other outcasts of the intern program. With them, maybe the summer won't be so bad after all. However, when Perry goes to a meeting and learns about "Warrior Girl," an ancestor whose bones are stored in the museum archive, she becomes determined to return her to her tribe.

Thanks to Macmillan and NetGalley for an advaced copy of Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley to review! Of course, Firekeeper's Daughter was such a success last year, I was curious to see Boulley's follow up. This is a companion novel of sorts, though I think you can read it without reading Firekeeper's Daughter. You'll just miss some background information from the first book.

First of all, this book is packed full of information about Native American artifacts being in museums, the laws behind them, etc. There's a lot of interesting stuff there, and a lot of it I didn't know. However, I do think it makes the plot drag a bit, and I'm not sure how much it will attract teens overall to this story. Though if slow burn mysteries are your thing, this might just hit the spot.

I found myself not as drawn into this story as I was for Firekeeper's Daughter, and part of me wonders if that's because I listened to that one instead. But I wasn't invested in the characters or in the story. The story didn't seem to flow as well, and it felt like overall, the book was slightly too long.

However, I'm loving that more Native authors are getting published and that these kinds of stories exist in the world. Especially when they show a perspective that not a lot of people know about. Always appreciate learning new things when I read, honestly!

Overall, I'm not sure this will get the hype that Firekeeper's Daughter did, but still a good sophomore novel either way.

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kari_f's review

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense

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 want to start this out by saying if Angeline Boulley writes it, I will read it! She has an amazing way of writing keep-you-on-the-edge-of-your-seat action that also centers Ojibwe culture, history, and community.

Taking place about 10 years after Firekeeper’s Daughter, this story focuses on Daunis’s younger cousins and the ins and outs of reclamation. As with Firekeeper’s Daughter, Warrior Girl Unearthed interweaves a thrilling story and nuanced characters with Anishinaabe language, customs, and the many loopholes that people use to take advantage of federal laws pertaining to Tribal land, bodies, and artifacts.

I love when novels give me a starting place to research and learn more about the world we live in, and the book does an amazing job of highlighting important issues like MMIWG2S (missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls, and two-spirit individuals) and various museums and colleges dragging their feet to comply with NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act).

As of the writing of this review, I could see this book being my favorite 2023 release.

** Note: While this book can be read as a standalone, I do recommend reading Firekeeper’s Daughter first if you plan to read both, since there are events in that book that are referenced in this one.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Macmillan for this advanced readers copy!

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marywahlmeierbracciano's review

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challenging tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

An Afro-Indigenous girl takes the repatriation of stolen ancestors and artifacts into her own hands in Angeline Boulley’s thrilling follow-up to Firekeeper’s Daughter. Underestimated by those in power and infuriated by institutional red tape, Perry and her friends must decide if it’s better to take shortcuts or to play by the book—which will bring their relatives home safely? Set in 2014, this story is tightly woven with the ongoing crises of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit People and violence against Black Americans. Read this, then take action!

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