Reviews

Abandoned by her mother at 14 and mourning her father’s passing as an adult, Clarissa discovers her biological father is a man from Lapland, a Sami priest. Telling no one, she disappears to northern Finland to find him and uncover anything she can about her mother, learning about the Sami culture along the way.

This novel had a beautiful starkness. With an economy of words and a darkly witty tone, every phrase and line perfectly propelled the story. Every facet was wielded with precision and craft, and it is clear why it was named a NYT notable book of the year. Usually such quiet and artful books aren’t exactly page turners, but this was an exception. It will most likely make my top fiction list of the year.

CW: intellectual disability slurs, sexual assault

littlesprite21's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional 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

4.5

librarian_lisa_22's review against another edition

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emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.5

The scene between Clarissa and her mother is terrifying. The complete excision of all reminders of violence from her life, including a daughter and then a family, is grotesque. Then Clarissa repeats the excision by leaving her fiancé, although with a letter and not completely.

What obligation does a mother have to her children? And what obligation do we have to tell the truth to those we love? This book is beautiful and haunting.

ll104duke's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

4.5

candaceopper's review against another edition

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5.0

really, really nice in many ways.

elenavarg's review against another edition

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1.0

This book made me very angry. Along with the story containing my least favorite trope of someone being utterly lied to and cheated for not knowing who their ”real” (birth) parent is, it’s a prime example of a white American person completely using several cultures as plot devices in their story. It’s inaccurate, racist and ableist, and the name of the book has been taken straight from an actual Saami poet Marry Ailoniedia Somby and if you now search this title, all you can find is this pathetic excuse for a book.

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