Reviews with content warning for Antisemitism - Thistlefoot

In a few ways, Thistlefoot reminds me of American Gods (Neil Gaiman). Folklore, modern Americana, a bit of hobo ethos, a clever conman. It isn't at all similar in plot, but the vibes are right.

The prose is really nice and the audiobook narrator (January LaVoy) did a lovely job. I liked the Yaga family characters, Winifred, Benji - but was not big on the adjacent bus crew. They lacked substance.

The main themes - the enduring legacy of cultures in the stories of descendents, the destructive power of fear, multigenerational trauma - were powerful.

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readwriterobyn's review against another edition

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dark emotional slow-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

𝙏𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙧 𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨: self-harm, suicide, death, PTSD, cross-generational trauma, genocide, infant/child harm

This book crushed me in all the right ways. I rarely, rarely read stories that are sad or heart-wrenching, as I prefer my fiction to be upbeat or dark (but not sad). This one takes the cake for me. I was sobbing the last few chapters–enough that it made my fiancé determined to read the book after me. He knows I don’t cry at books. But this one got me.

The story crossed generations, continents, and tragedies as it unfolded, mixing Jewish folklore with a modern urban setting. My favorite characters were the house (with the titular name of Thislefoot) and Winnie (no spoilers, but she’s a clear winner). Thistlefoot’s perspective was fascinating: every story it told us could be the truth, an utter fabrication, or somewhere between the two. And it blatantly tells you that multiple times over the course of the story. I haven’t read anything like it.

It was also a unique study in relationships–mothers/daughters, siblings, crowd/performers, townspeople/outsiders, civilians/military, past/present, self/others, ghosts/living, alive/inanimate (and what it means to be “alive”). There was so much packed within this book, that it’s hard to imagine it was a debut book.

Additionally, now that it’s sat on my shelf for a few weeks, I find myself thinking about the message of the story a lot. There’s a lot to say, but I loved (and believe in) the idea that history and its traumas transcend time, space, and distance to be heard; they demand to not be forgotten.

My only quibble about the story was that it was very thick, and I had to be entirely focused to read it. Otherwise, I felt I couldn’t absorb all of the information and themes presented. As a bedtime reader, this was challenging and it took me longer to read than other novels of similar size.

Overall, if you like descriptive writing with metaphors and symbolism, multiple POVs, emotional damage, cross-generational trauma and the stories that come with them, all with a dash of magic, then this is a must-read for you.

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nisaak's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

This book went places I totally didn't expect it to go. If you pick it up because it's a Baba Yaga story, you won't be disappointed. But it's more than that. It's the story of her descendants, who inherit her house. Bellatine and Isaac are magical in their own right. I found it both very challenging and very rewarding to read. At times I thought, "Where is this going?" but I was never bored. I look forward to reading more by Nethercott.

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rorikae's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional 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

'Thistlefoot' by GennaRose Nethercott is a wonderful folklore filled novel that touches on the power of stories, memory, and community.
Bellatine and Isaac Yaga have been forging their own lives. Bellatine finds comfort in creating things out of wood while Isaac uses his ability to slip into other people's mannerisms to busk. They are brought back together when a package arrives, an inheritance from one of their family members. The inheritance in question, a house with legs. As the house starts to bring them together, it also has an enemy who has followed it to America and wishes to see it destroyed. The Yaga siblings will have to band together, pull from their family's history, and believe in one another to take down this threat.
This book is absolutely fantastic. Nethercott has created a collection of complex characters that are both easy to care for and ones that are easily frustrating in ways that feel uniquely human. This is also a story stuffed to the brim with folklore. It is told not only through the eyes of Bellatine and Isaac but also from the point of view of the house, which I absolutely loved. At the heart of this story are so many important lessons. How violence creates a lasting memory. The power and resilience of community. How stories live on. Between beautiful prose, folklore and fantastical elements, and complex characters, this is a special story. I'll definitely be checking out what Nethercott writes next because they brought something unique and magical to this story.

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bemaline's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It's one of those books that I had no idea what it was about for a while, but it's a lovely story.

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thehobbitbarbie's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious 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

If you'd told me a week before I read Thistlefoot that an Americana horror novel was going to be my new favorite book, I'd have thought you were out of your mind. But here we are, almost 450 pages later, and this book is all I've thought about since I first opened it.

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megold12's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

Nethercott is a masterful storyteller in this book. I always love books about storytelling or the power of myths, legends, history, and folklore. This book was a masterful combination of history and mystic. It’s been a while since one book has made me so utterly sad in one moment and so hopeful and joyous in another. There is a lot of very dark and difficult topics covered, but I feel Nethercott weaves these important aspects of the story in with the magic and myth well. I still felt the full weight of the painful and horrific history.

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sneaky_snake22's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional inspiring mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

This is a beautiful tale. It weaves together the past, present, magic and reality in a way that draws the reader in further and further. You learn and grow with the characters and understand how a past that seems so far removed from ourselves is connected and ingrained. It's a story that inspires you to connect and remember those that are struggling today. The main takeaway is that storytelling ensures those that are physically lost to us are never forgotten, that no matter the atrocities that occur, by remembering and telling the stories of those that lived, we can beat the hatred and darkness. And that by remembering the past, we can heal ourselves.

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