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reciprocalriice's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Physical abuse
Moderate: Child abuse
rini's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Colonisation, Death, Death of parent, Drug use, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Racial slurs
Minor: Pregnancy
jenny_d's review
challenging
emotional
slow-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
4.75
Goddamn, this book is beautifully written. Everyone is flawed, but not unloveable. I grew to love that family in such a short page count. I liked the parallels and themes illustrated within chapters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Body shaming, Child abuse, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Transphobia, and Racism
Moderate: Death of parent
mattypallett's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
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? It's complicated
4.5
I knew a very small amount about indigenous Canadian culture before reading this book, and whilst it isn’t an encyclopaedia, it does a great job of informing the reader about the culture seamlessly, without losing the flow of the narrative.
Jonny is a very interesting and complex character, and I could always understand and relate to his motivations. I really appreciated the author explored the complexities of his queer and indigenous selves; it’s a fascinating intersection which I hadn’t seen expressed so in-depth before.
My only slight issues were as follows; 1) there was quite a few pop culture references, which I personally find kinda corny when reading, 2) the narrative isn’t linear and sometimes the time jumps were slightly unclear to me which would leave me confused for a few pages, 3) I personally feel like Jonny’s sexuality was tied for too heavily to just sex, rather than the emotional & romantic implications of sexual identity.
With all that being said, any of my issues with this book just come down to my own preferences, and even then, this book was gorgeous. 100% recommend.
Jonny is a very interesting and complex character, and I could always understand and relate to his motivations. I really appreciated the author explored the complexities of his queer and indigenous selves; it’s a fascinating intersection which I hadn’t seen expressed so in-depth before.
My only slight issues were as follows; 1) there was quite a few pop culture references, which I personally find kinda corny when reading, 2) the narrative isn’t linear and sometimes the time jumps were slightly unclear to me which would leave me confused for a few pages, 3) I personally feel like Jonny’s sexuality was tied for too heavily to just sex, rather than the emotional & romantic implications of sexual identity.
With all that being said, any of my issues with this book just come down to my own preferences, and even then, this book was gorgeous. 100% recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Death, Homophobia, and Physical abuse
kidcorvus's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Colonisation, Homophobia, and Physical abuse
kirkspockreads's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Homophobia, Bullying, Alcoholism, Transphobia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Racism, Drug abuse, Drug use, Addiction, Terminal illness, Death, Cursing, Colonisation, Child abuse, Bullying, Body shaming, Adult/minor relationship, Dysphoria, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, and Physical abuse
clea's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Very powerful and honest story. It reads like a stream of consciousness, with a chaotic timeline and not much of a plot. But I really liked how the book was written, as it feels all the more personal and raw without a strict, "normal" narrative structure.
Joshua Whitehead doesn't shy away from anything, shows us the repulsive and ugly sides of life but also fills his novel with many beautiful, sincere moments. (I especially liked Jonny's relationship to his grandmother and mother. It was really nice to see such a loving and supporting family members.)
The reason why I didn't give it a higher rating, is because I found it sometimes hard to follow the story without drifting away. Maybe I would've been more immersed if I had read a physical copy, instead of listening to the audio book (but Whitehead narrating the audio book made the story feel even more intimate). Also, there is a lot of sexual content and a heavy focus on bodily fluids, which sometimes was a bit too much for me.
But I still highly recommend to read it! Its topics and perspective are all too often ignored or looked down upon and it is really important to give those stories a voice.
Joshua Whitehead doesn't shy away from anything, shows us the repulsive and ugly sides of life but also fills his novel with many beautiful, sincere moments. (I especially liked Jonny's relationship to his grandmother and mother. It was really nice to see such a loving and supporting family members.)
The reason why I didn't give it a higher rating, is because I found it sometimes hard to follow the story without drifting away. Maybe I would've been more immersed if I had read a physical copy, instead of listening to the audio book (but Whitehead narrating the audio book made the story feel even more intimate). Also, there is a lot of sexual content and a heavy focus on bodily fluids, which sometimes was a bit too much for me.
But I still highly recommend to read it! Its topics and perspective are all too often ignored or looked down upon and it is really important to give those stories a voice.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Colonisation, Death, Grief, Homophobia, Physical abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Racism
helenab18's review
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Colonisation, Cursing, Death, Grief, Homophobia, Physical abuse, and Sexual content
aromarrie's review against another edition
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
i’m currently taking a poetry in performance course for the spring semester at my college and i learned something interesting just last night. according to my professor’s lecture notes, “when reading poetry, it’s often about the wonder of what treasures there are to find in a poem, where each and every element has been given the attention and love a poem demands”.
reading this story felt like reading poetry at its core, felt like a lesson plan that showed me what it meant to be really honest, what it feels like to read someone spill their guts and not care to make it more appealing, they’re just there. it’s messy, it’s uncomfortable, it’s confusing, but it’s so gripping and you’re highlighting every page because there’s significance in so many pieces of the narrative it flies all around you.
one of my favorite parts from this story was the relationships that jonny, our mc, carry so close to his heart, recounting memories with such dark humor but with all the bare bones of it—“i wish that he [one of jonny’s clients(?)] knew that when a NDN laughs, it’s because they’re applying a fresh layer of medicine on an open wound (chapter v)”. there’s so much pain, so much weight to carry that there’s brief moments where it feels like all jonny could do was scream out to release all contents inside him—but in his day to day life, in the stories and experiences he’s had with other people on the rez and in the city he’s living in now, it’s like he has to live between two different places at once.
physically, he’s having this conversation with someone and he can listen as their words register in his mind but mentally, he has to create another visual that this conversation conjures up because all he’s made up of is memories and just existing feels like constantly having to reconcile the past with the present.
sex itself is so immersive and almost like a taboo, but it’s one of the most vulnerable topics to delve into and jonny immerses himself in the act. it’s not just about being with the other person, physically, but there’s moments inbetween where he feels like he’s fucking himself, too. he and his body are like two separate entities that are visible to others and not only does that attach itself to the “mortifying ideal of being known” but also to getting to know yourself. jonny learns just as much about himself through sex as he does in the intimacy that comes with revealing your body to someone else’s. sometimes it just seems like a simple contract, a give and take, but i love how much being in jonny’s head made it seem that there’s more to learn from them than one would think.
human life is all about transaction, what you’re willing to lose in order to gain, but that’s something that we can’t even grapple with ourselves because we’re too blind to realize that there’s so much more to that. the intensity and bare truth that the author gave in writing through jonny was very addictive, and like i said before, it felt like seeing poetry in action.
“Maybe that’s why the only bit of me I left was a ghost? I guess that’s all we left each other, eh Kokum, just each other’s spirits? One for you, one for Momma too—maybe that’s why Manito gifted me two? Manito gifted me enough to travel out and in and all that space between, to weave like those old rapids do, and to carry memories as a souvenir between this world and the fourth, where I’ll finally come home and have nothing but my glories to share with you.”
this book is incredible.
reading this story felt like reading poetry at its core, felt like a lesson plan that showed me what it meant to be really honest, what it feels like to read someone spill their guts and not care to make it more appealing, they’re just there. it’s messy, it’s uncomfortable, it’s confusing, but it’s so gripping and you’re highlighting every page because there’s significance in so many pieces of the narrative it flies all around you.
one of my favorite parts from this story was the relationships that jonny, our mc, carry so close to his heart, recounting memories with such dark humor but with all the bare bones of it—“i wish that he [one of jonny’s clients(?)] knew that when a NDN laughs, it’s because they’re applying a fresh layer of medicine on an open wound (chapter v)”. there’s so much pain, so much weight to carry that there’s brief moments where it feels like all jonny could do was scream out to release all contents inside him—but in his day to day life, in the stories and experiences he’s had with other people on the rez and in the city he’s living in now, it’s like he has to live between two different places at once.
physically, he’s having this conversation with someone and he can listen as their words register in his mind but mentally, he has to create another visual that this conversation conjures up because all he’s made up of is memories and just existing feels like constantly having to reconcile the past with the present.
sex itself is so immersive and almost like a taboo, but it’s one of the most vulnerable topics to delve into and jonny immerses himself in the act. it’s not just about being with the other person, physically, but there’s moments inbetween where he feels like he’s fucking himself, too. he and his body are like two separate entities that are visible to others and not only does that attach itself to the “mortifying ideal of being known” but also to getting to know yourself. jonny learns just as much about himself through sex as he does in the intimacy that comes with revealing your body to someone else’s. sometimes it just seems like a simple contract, a give and take, but i love how much being in jonny’s head made it seem that there’s more to learn from them than one would think.
human life is all about transaction, what you’re willing to lose in order to gain, but that’s something that we can’t even grapple with ourselves because we’re too blind to realize that there’s so much more to that. the intensity and bare truth that the author gave in writing through jonny was very addictive, and like i said before, it felt like seeing poetry in action.
“Maybe that’s why the only bit of me I left was a ghost? I guess that’s all we left each other, eh Kokum, just each other’s spirits? One for you, one for Momma too—maybe that’s why Manito gifted me two? Manito gifted me enough to travel out and in and all that space between, to weave like those old rapids do, and to carry memories as a souvenir between this world and the fourth, where I’ll finally come home and have nothing but my glories to share with you.”
this book is incredible.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Homophobia, Grief, Physical abuse, Death, Bullying, and Alcohol
brenticus's review against another edition
challenging
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
4.0
I think this is a brilliant book in a lot of ways. If you're in doubt about the relevance of intersectionality, this book puts it front and center. Jonny is an indigenous person from Peguis, Manitoba who has to grapple with the complexities of being two-spirited in a society that has all but had the concept beaten out of them by generations of cultural genocide. He deals with indigenous problems, gay problems, women's problems, men's problems, and some that are pretty much just Jonny.
The timeline of this book is chaotic; we primarily follow Jonny around as he tries to get enough money to return to the rez for his step-father's funeral, but each short chapter jumps around to discuss different points in Jonny's life as he grapples with his identity. Jonny's role in his family and community is complex and clearly something different from the Western delineation of gender roles. He associates strongly with the women in his life and often finds himself rejected by the men, being accepted by them only for specific purposes. In Jonny's case, that purpose is usually sex.
Why only four stars with all this praise? Well, the book juggles a lot of issues but by the end a lot of the balls still feel like they're in the air or dropped to the ground unsatisfactorily. That's not to say the ending is bad; on the contrary, I think it's beautiful. But there are just some aspects of Tias's life, his relationship with Jonny, and Jonny's relationships with Roger and Jordan and his mother that feel a bit too fuzzy for my liking.
In the back of the book the author says that he wrote this to affirm that two-spirit people are not a thing of the past, that they're a part of society and not going anywhere, and I think that really should have been at the front of the book. This is a relatively short book with a lot to unpack, but at the very least that blurb at the back shows that the author hit his intended purpose perfectly.
The timeline of this book is chaotic; we primarily follow Jonny around as he tries to get enough money to return to the rez for his step-father's funeral, but each short chapter jumps around to discuss different points in Jonny's life as he grapples with his identity. Jonny's role in his family and community is complex and clearly something different from the Western delineation of gender roles. He associates strongly with the women in his life and often finds himself rejected by the men, being accepted by them only for specific purposes. In Jonny's case, that purpose is usually sex.
Why only four stars with all this praise? Well, the book juggles a lot of issues but by the end a lot of the balls still feel like they're in the air or dropped to the ground unsatisfactorily. That's not to say the ending is bad; on the contrary, I think it's beautiful. But there are just some aspects of Tias's life, his relationship with Jonny, and Jonny's relationships with Roger and Jordan and his mother that feel a bit too fuzzy for my liking.
In the back of the book the author says that he wrote this to affirm that two-spirit people are not a thing of the past, that they're a part of society and not going anywhere, and I think that really should have been at the front of the book. This is a relatively short book with a lot to unpack, but at the very least that blurb at the back shows that the author hit his intended purpose perfectly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Grief, Physical abuse, and Racism
Minor: Body shaming, Cultural appropriation, Death of parent, and Pedophilia