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mals_library's review
1.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Body horror, Death, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Blood, Gun violence, Sexism, Infertility, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, Transphobia, Suicide, Suicidal thoughts, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Racism, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, Self harm, Rape, and Sexual content
seawarrior's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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
Outlawed is a journey through the Wild West I've never experienced before, one which is emotionally gripping, genuinely frightening, and told through the perspective of those ignored or kicked down in traditional Western narratives. Through this journey we follow Ada, the teenage daughter of a midwife whose future is destroyed after she fails to conceive a baby, and is then accused of witchcraft by those she had once healed and trusted.
Ada is an interesting protagonist in many ways. She straddles the line between adolescence and adulthood, expertise and inexperience, wisdom and ignorance. Her mother's teachings have left her with adequate skills to practice medicine, but not much else. Once joining the Hole In the Wall Gang she shows poor judgement as a thief and as a peer, by making ignorant and insensitive remarks that strike a nerve with those whose life experience she's has yet to understand. Ada's shortcomings are not excused by the narrative or unrealistically healed by it, instead we're allowed to see both her perspective and those of the Gang members who are upset with her to form our own judgement that may differ from Ada's.
Throughout the book we are introduced to a number of characters who like Ada, have been discarded by society. Most of these characters are also infertile women, who found themselves in similar predicaments to Ada and had little other choice but to become outlaws afterward. I appreciated how even despicable acts such as killing were routinely told with empathy towards both the victim and the perpetrator. Within the world of Outlawed, violence is neither random nor justified, but understood as initiatives inflicted by the desperate or the powerful when one either has too much influence or not enough. The Hole in the Wall Gang reasons away their crimes because they have to in order to live with themselves, and because they feel that their victims are one face among many who would laugh as their lives were taken. Yet their violence is often more horrifying than it is grandiose, and always understood as a last resort effort for survival.
Though I read this book slowly I felt that North's writing style was effortlessly engaging and almost magical. Through Ada's eyes we see the beauty of human life and the environments that sustain it, both natural and man-made. Yet we are also made to feel the weight of the many tragedies she has witnessed, survived and inflicted. When Ada first ventures to find the Hole in the Wall Gang the tales she hears of their exploits are larger than life, and when she leaves them they are even more so. Within that time she learns that each of their members are only human and therefore flawed, with this possibly applying to the Kid most of all. The most powerful theme in this novel is how life goes on even after immense tragedy, and how we may find purpose in its midst.
Ada's purpose as a healer and her resolve that her knowledge is needed by the world at large is a striking motivation that propels her story forward and opens a well of emotion whenever her life is threatened. In these times North packs a punch by describing her grief towards her past and her possible future, with both realities linked by the medical and social wisdom her mother passed onto her. We come to accept as Ada does that on her survival hinges the lives of countless other infertile women who need an answer to their plight that will make the proponent theories of witchcraft and "race mixing" a thing of the past. Yet before she can achieve this dream Ada must learn through her failures while never giving up on herself, knowing she will one day find vengeance through the healing of others.
Ada is an interesting protagonist in many ways. She straddles the line between adolescence and adulthood, expertise and inexperience, wisdom and ignorance. Her mother's teachings have left her with adequate skills to practice medicine, but not much else. Once joining the Hole In the Wall Gang she shows poor judgement as a thief and as a peer, by making ignorant and insensitive remarks that strike a nerve with those whose life experience she's has yet to understand. Ada's shortcomings are not excused by the narrative or unrealistically healed by it, instead we're allowed to see both her perspective and those of the Gang members who are upset with her to form our own judgement that may differ from Ada's.
Throughout the book we are introduced to a number of characters who like Ada, have been discarded by society. Most of these characters are also infertile women, who found themselves in similar predicaments to Ada and had little other choice but to become outlaws afterward. I appreciated how even despicable acts such as killing were routinely told with empathy towards both the victim and the perpetrator. Within the world of Outlawed, violence is neither random nor justified, but understood as initiatives inflicted by the desperate or the powerful when one either has too much influence or not enough. The Hole in the Wall Gang reasons away their crimes because they have to in order to live with themselves, and because they feel that their victims are one face among many who would laugh as their lives were taken. Yet their violence is often more horrifying than it is grandiose, and always understood as a last resort effort for survival.
Though I read this book slowly I felt that North's writing style was effortlessly engaging and almost magical. Through Ada's eyes we see the beauty of human life and the environments that sustain it, both natural and man-made. Yet we are also made to feel the weight of the many tragedies she has witnessed, survived and inflicted. When Ada first ventures to find the Hole in the Wall Gang the tales she hears of their exploits are larger than life, and when she leaves them they are even more so. Within that time she learns that each of their members are only human and therefore flawed, with this possibly applying to the Kid most of all. The most powerful theme in this novel is how life goes on even after immense tragedy, and how we may find purpose in its midst.
Ada's purpose as a healer and her resolve that her knowledge is needed by the world at large is a striking motivation that propels her story forward and opens a well of emotion whenever her life is threatened. In these times North packs a punch by describing her grief towards her past and her possible future, with both realities linked by the medical and social wisdom her mother passed onto her. We come to accept as Ada does that on her survival hinges the lives of countless other infertile women who need an answer to their plight that will make the proponent theories of witchcraft and "race mixing" a thing of the past. Yet before she can achieve this dream Ada must learn through her failures while never giving up on herself, knowing she will one day find vengeance through the healing of others.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Police brutality, Self harm, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Hate crime, Infertility, Miscarriage, Murder, Religious bigotry, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Gun violence, Infidelity, Alcohol, Death, Grief, Medical content, Pregnancy, and Racism
Moderate: Incest, Sexual content, and Transphobia
laurenparham's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
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? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infertility
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Abortion, Animal death, Death, Homophobia, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Racism, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexism, Transphobia, and Violence
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