Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich

24 reviews

retroreader17's review against another edition

emotional inspiring 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Colonisation, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Racism, Drug abuse, Alcoholism, Drug use, and Alcohol

cantfindmybookmark's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny informative 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? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Trafficking, Colonisation, and Alcoholism

Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Rape, Torture, Sexual assault, and Animal cruelty

d3nim_diva's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Classism, Grief, Sexual assault, Racism, and Trafficking

ekmook's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative 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? No

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Racism, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Grief, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Violence, and Trafficking

Moderate: Child death, Classism, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Forced institutionalization, and Gun violence

hkburke2's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

Complex and lyrical. This was a slow read for me. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation and Sexual assault

Moderate: Rape, Racism, Addiction, Confinement, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Trafficking and Animal death

have_a_doris_day's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad 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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child death, Sexual assault, Colonisation, Death, Trafficking, Kidnapping, and Racism

Moderate: Addiction

Minor: Domestic abuse

republicofben's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring tense slow-paced

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

3.5

Although the synopsis and subject matter of this book piqued my interest, I found it hard to stay engaged with the story. Aside from the slow pace of the story's main events, the part that made it hard for me to make it through this book was the large cast of characters. One theme of this book - and also something I expect the author hoped readers would take away - is the diversity of people part of and that interact with a community. I did enjoy meeting and getting to know the wide cast of characters, but the constant switching of narrators caused the pace of the book's main events to be slow and drawn out. My rating breaks down to the book not suiting my tastes, but one I would still recommend to someone looking for a book that deals with Native American stories and history or a true ensemble book that flips between narrators.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Colonisation, Physical abuse, Rape, Death, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Racism, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, and Xenophobia

Minor: Alcoholism, Grief, Abandonment, Addiction, Blood, Chronic illness, Alcohol, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Bullying, and Genocide

erica_palmisano's review against another edition

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective sad 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

Fascinating and surprising. I haven't spent a lot of time in places like North Dakota & Minnesota during the 1950s, so I wasn't sure what to expect. The story was vivid and covered some difficult realities, but also kind and grounded in the details of daily life and simple pleasures. The audio narration was straight-forwardly lovely – cadence and style were simple and it was good to hear the fragments of the Chippewa language pronounced properly too. So glad I read this and got to meet these characters!

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Content Warnings

Minor: Confinement, Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Trafficking, Colonisation, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexual harassment, Animal cruelty, Child abuse, Misogyny, Ableism, Addiction, Drug use, Xenophobia, Alcoholism, and Sexual violence

char1otte's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring 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? No

5.0

I have never read anything like it! It took me a few chapters to get into the style of writing and to understand how the story was told but I recommend it to anyone!
Can anyone tell me what a waterjack is?

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Physical abuse, Alcoholism, and Death

Moderate: Rape and Addiction

Minor: Animal death, Blood, and Colonisation

kimveach's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

5.0

Such a good story - based upon the true fight by the Turtle Mountain band of the Chippewa against the government's plan for the termination of the reservation and support of their people. She brings to life so many different characters and elements of reservation life in the 1950s.  I love these characters and hated to leave them when the book ended.  I'll be reading more from this author.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Colonisation, Kidnapping, Racism, Rape, Trafficking, Injury/Injury detail, and Sexual content

Moderate: Drug abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Minor: Animal death, Death of parent, Grief, and Incest