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kappafrog's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
This story is a heartbreaking look at the effect the Sixties Scoop had on Indigenous people in Canada. While this wasn't exactly like the typical Sixties Scoop - where the taking of children was sanctioned by child welfare services - it explored how much that sort of forced interracial adoption fractured family and individual identities. It's estimated that 20,000 Indigenous children were forcibly relocated during the Scoop, so the emotions that Ruthie and her family went through in this book are far from unique.
At times I wondered why we were spending so much time with Joe. His story was interesting to read, but I finished the book with so many unanswered questions about the fallout with Norma
The book could have dug a little deeper on a few of its themes.
The above are all just things I wish we could have seen more of. I do have one criticism of the book aside from that though. I really didn't like how Norma's mother Lenore played into stereotypes about manipulative people with migraines. Her migraines were her key emotional manipulation tactic, and I really didn't appreciate that. While it's something that could certainly happen, one of the reasons that migraine isn't taken seriously as the massively debilitating disease it is is that people see it as something women fake to get out of things they don't want to do. There's plenty of research showing that. So, as someone whose life has been badly affected by chronic migraine (and OCD, which Norma's mother was also possibly implied to have), I didn't love that the author used this trope. It wasn't a dealbreaker, since it was technically plausible (migraine can be triggered by emotional upset), and the main characters in the novel were suffering from so many worse societal ills, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.
Overall, I'd definitely recommend this book. It is a heavy read, but it really shines in moments like the descriptions of the landscape and people's connections to it and Joe's memories of his sister. It provided insights into a way of life unknown to most people (including me) by exploring the social and economic realities of life for itinerant Indigenous berry pickers in Canada and Maine. While there were things I would have liked to see it explore more, it was a fantastic debut, and I look forward to seeing more from this author.
Graphic: Car accident, Child death, Death, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Cancer, Grief, Infertility, Kidnapping, Medical content, Miscarriage, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Violence, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Racism, and Terminal illness
Moderate: Murder, Addiction, Genocide, Homophobia, Blood, Colonisation, Ableism, Classism, and Cursing
Minor: Animal death, Body shaming, Racial slurs, Fatphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, and Vomit
reaganalexis's review
2.5
Minor: Fatphobia
10inspace's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Bummer that the author found endless ways to describe characters as fat without being relevant in any way whatsoever to the story.
Graphic: Death of parent, Violence, Emotional abuse, Murder, Dementia, Child death, Addiction, Kidnapping, Alcoholism, Fatphobia, Racism, Body shaming, Terminal illness, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Infertility, Grief, Drug use, Domestic abuse, Death, Colonisation, and Alcohol
brdwilliams's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Racism, Miscarriage, Fatphobia, Child abuse, and Child death
elisahvdb's review against another edition
3.5
Moderate: Body shaming and Fatphobia
careinthelibrary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I liked what it had to say about how families being separated destroys the family from inside and out, but wished that there was more discussion about how Norma's culture being taken from her affected her and her sense of self. She wondered about things, but I think it would have been more powerful had there been a stronger presentation here of how it changed her trajectory. Joe was an interesting character because we saw how the tragedies in his family affected him. The before and after. How grief and especially anger derailed his future and caused him and his loved ones pain. And the resolution at the end was even more bittersweet because we saw the whole picture. But who would Ruthie have been? What did being Norma cost her?
The cover is absolutely stunning. Not sure the title and cover accurately represent the book's plot but I love it anyways.
Graphic: Miscarriage, Addiction, Grief, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, Death, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Alcohol, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Terminal illness, Medical content, Dementia, Medical trauma, and Colonisation
Minor: Fatphobia
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