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arood's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Child abuse, Alcoholism, Mass/school shootings, Gun violence, and Colonisation
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Sexual violence
mializa_mk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Gun violence
Moderate: Rape, Child abuse, and Sexual assault
library_anne's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Pregnancy, Mass/school shootings, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Police brutality, Rape, War, Violence, Child abuse, Hate crime, Murder, Drug use, Addiction, Blood, Gun violence, Alcoholism, Cursing, Genocide, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Domestic abuse
spicycronereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
The narrative is made up of many different points of view of “urban Indians,” mostly in and around Oakland, CA. With the multiple POVs you see the vast interconnectedness of the characters that leads toward the climactic event but you do lose out on a sense of depth with any given character. Nor do they have time to develop. So it is more like sketches of the various actors who all meet at the powwow event in the climax.
Each of the characters is dealing with their indigenous identity as well as various class-based and family traumas, that are undoubtedly connected to the historic violence against Native Americans. I do wish that with one or two characters we could have focused more on community, or their successes, or joy. The focus was almost entirely anchored in trauma and deficit, exploring the “there there” that is gone. I suspect that contemporary indigenous identity is more multi-dimensional than that.
There are many moments of poetry throughout the book. One of my favorite lines is “To cry is to waste the feeling. He needs to dance with it. Crying is for when there’s nothing left to do.”
The ending is ambiguous and I didn’t mind that though there were a couple of loose ends I would have liked to have seen tied up.
Overall a gorgeous read. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Graphic: Gun violence and Racism
Moderate: Violence, Domestic abuse, Drug use, and Abandonment
Minor: Child abuse, Sexual violence, Abortion, and Animal death
sydneylount's review
- 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
Graphic: Gun violence, Child abuse, Racism, Violence, Child death, Death, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Mass/school shootings, Injury/Injury detail, Addiction, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexism, Death of parent, and Rape
litliz's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Drug use, Ableism, Body horror, Death, Cursing, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, Racism, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Rape, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Genocide, Murder, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Violence, Abandonment, Body shaming, Grief, Addiction, Blood, Chronic illness, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Toxic friendship, Alcoholism, Car accident, Death of parent, Dysphoria, and Suicide
Moderate: Abortion
bookworm_haley's review
- 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? No
5.0
Moderate: Child abuse, Mass/school shootings, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cursing, Drug abuse, Suicide, Gun violence, and Violence
calamitywindpetal's review
- 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
4.5
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, Alcoholism, Suicide, and Racism
Moderate: Sexual violence, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Child abuse, and Sexual assault
felofhe's review
- 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? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal death, Chronic illness, Classism, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Pedophilia, Violence, Ableism, Cursing, Death, Genocide, Grief, Mass/school shootings, Sexism, Sexual assault, Alcohol, Bullying, Death of parent, Drug use, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Dementia, Domestic abuse, Fatphobia, Misogyny, Blood, Gore, Gun violence, Pregnancy, Body shaming, War, Car accident, Child abuse, Colonisation, Gaslighting, Medical content, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
bridgeca2's review
- 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
Graphic: Drug abuse, Gun violence, Abandonment, Mass/school shootings, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Drug use, and Violence