Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

10 reviews

mels_reading_log's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

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

4.0

This is the story of a family of Native American migrant workers who traveled to Maine each yeah to harvest blueberries. In the early 60’s the youngest daughter goes missing, they search for her for years, never giving up hope that they will find her. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Blood, Kidnapping, Violence, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Racism, Terminal illness, Infertility, Grief, Cancer, Death of parent, Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Death, Dementia, and Domestic abuse

kimveach's review

emotional hopeful mysterious 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? Yes

4.25

I chose to listen to this book as it was on a "great on audio list."  I've heard better narrations, but the story was great.  I think I'd have liked it even better in print.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pregnancy, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Death, Suicidal thoughts, Mental illness, Abandonment, Cursing, Death of parent, Racism, Dementia, Infertility, Murder, Physical abuse, Cancer, Child death, Gaslighting, Grief, Kidnapping, Medical content, Medical trauma, Terminal illness, Classism, Colonisation, Racial slurs, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Toxic relationship, and Violence

10inspace's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• 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

Hell of a read. Heartache and happiness and everything human in between. 

Bummer that the author found endless ways to describe characters as fat without being relevant in any way whatsoever to the story. 

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Content Warnings

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

elderwoodreads's review

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.5

This book definitely dragged at times which is such a shame because I loved the overall concept and some of the passages had incredibly strong writing. The "twist" of the book is immediately revealed and the story takes the reader through what happened to the end that is hinted at in the beginning of the story. I loved this conceptually and I feel like it actually made dual POV work for me for once. Unfortunately several of the Joe chapters felt like they should've been cut or gone through another round of edits in my opinion. The Norma chapters were all strong and I loved her story, it hit home a lot for me as someone finding my biological family. Overall I will definitely read anything else Peters publishes but I will not be recommending this to everyone I meet. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Grief, and Cancer

Moderate: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Alcoholism, Blood, Child death, Death, Violence, Racism, Murder, Abandonment, and Abortion

Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Police brutality, Cursing, Vomit, Blood, Body shaming, Child abuse, Mental illness, Racial slurs, and Medical content

rsagarin's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Racial slurs, Kidnapping, Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Racism

Moderate: Death, Genocide, Hate crime, Infertility, Mental illness, Xenophobia, Grief, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Chronic illness, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Cancer, Cursing, Drug abuse, Forced institutionalization, Homophobia, Classism, Colonisation, Dementia, Drug use, Addiction, Death of parent, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship

nativeladybookwarrior's review against another edition

challenging emotional sad medium-paced

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

3.5

Solid debut. The first third of the book I enjoyed bc it gave me a look into the book's title and how its tied in with Indigenous family and community. Thes  details made me want more. But then it transitions to the plot, and I was able to foreshadow easily what had happened and what would happen next, so me thinking that was intentional, I instead looked forward to the character development but I only  enjoyed that growth with Joe. I enjoyed Joe's perspective (the brother). But Norma's POV I found myself pushing thru. I saw qualities btw to cultures, families and upbringings, which I respected and appreciated but I wish I got more POV's. I woulda loved to read on Mae, Ben, the Mom and Dad, and even Charlie. That woulda given me the depth I crave in character driven stories. But, I look forward to what this author has in store for us in the future. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Grief, Kidnapping, Colonisation, Gaslighting, and Emotional abuse

Moderate: Violence, Terminal illness, Racism, Miscarriage, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, and Child death

Minor: Murder, Mental illness, Death of parent, and Abandonment

alexisgarcia's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-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

4.25

i think the pacing in this is a bit off, but this is a really good book overall. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Child death, Colonisation, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Grief, Infertility, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Drug abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Terminal illness, Racism, Death, Child abuse, Classism, Cursing, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Drug use, and Emotional abuse

kelly_e's review against another edition

emotional hopeful 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? Yes

4.75

Title: The Berry Pickers
Author: Amanda Peters
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating: 4.75
Pub Date: April 4, 2023

I received complimentary eARC copy of this book from HarperCollins Canada via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #Gifted #Ad

T H R E E • W O R D S

Riveting • Quiet • Moving

📖 S Y N O P S I S

July 1962. A Mi’kmaq family from Nova Scotia arrives in Maine to pick blueberries for the summer. Weeks later, four-year-old Ruthie, the family’s youngest child, is seen sitting on her favourite rock at the edge of a field before mysteriously vanishing. Her six-year-old brother, Joe, who was the last person to see Ruthie, is devastated by his sister’s disappearance, and her loss ripples through his life for years to come.

In Maine, a young girl named Norma grows up as an only child in an affluent family. Her father is emotionally distant, while her mother is frustratingly overprotective of Norma, who is often troubled by recurring dreams and visions that seem to be too real to be her imagination. As she grows older, Norma senses there is something her parents aren’t telling her. Unwilling to abandon her intuition, she pursues her family’s secret for decades.

💭 T H O U G H T S

Amanda Peters debut novel, The Berry Pickers, came onto my radar while browsing 2023 releases on NetGalley. From the synopsis, I had a gut feeling I'd absolutely love this novel, yet it far surpassed me expectations.

Told in alternating POVs between Joe and Norma, Peters has crafted two unique voices offering just enough history without it overshadowing the story. The writing is subtle and the story has a steady pace. With themes of generational trauma, different types of loss, and the search for truth and identity, there is also an undercurrent of love, hope, and forgiveness. This novel is filled with great sorrow, yet there's so much resiliency that I couldn't help but feel hopeful.

The Berry Pickers is a book that will stay with me. Each of the characters found a way into my heart. It moved me to the core and is a stunning portrayal of the importance of family, language and culture. Amanda Petters is a new voice in Canadian fiction that I will be eagerly awaiting more books from.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• readers searching for an Indigenous voice
• historical fiction fans
• book clubs

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"Words are powerful and funny things, said or unsaid."

"Hope is such a wonderful thing until it isn't."

"If children lose their parents, they are orphans. If a husband loses his wife, he's a widower. But there's no word for a parent who loses a child. I've come to believe that the event is just too big, too monstrous, too overwhelming for words. No word could ever describe the feeling, so we leave it unsaid."

"Some wounds cannot be healed. Some wounds never close, never scar. But the further away from the injury, the easier it became to smile."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Murder, Addiction, Alcoholism, Racism, Infertility, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Kidnapping, Death, Violence, Miscarriage, and Blood

Moderate: Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Cancer, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Dementia, Suicidal thoughts, Cursing, and Animal death

sibling death, divorce

readingwithkaitlyn's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Death, Grief, Kidnapping, Violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Domestic abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Cancer

Moderate: Mental illness, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, Body shaming, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Miscarriage, and Child death

Minor: Religious bigotry, Ableism, Fire/Fire injury, Suicidal thoughts, Police brutality, Excrement, Racial slurs, Car accident, Pregnancy, Animal death, Animal cruelty, Vomit, Death of parent, Infertility, Sexual content, and Suicide

Residential schools, heart attack, dementia, aneurysm.

katiewhocanread's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-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? It's complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Kidnapping, Racism, Domestic abuse, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Alcohol, Mental illness, Miscarriage, and Emotional abuse