Reviews tagging 'Genocide'

The Marrow Thieves by Cherie Dimaline

111 reviews

charrlee's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense 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

4.0

When I opened The Marrow Thieves, it was definitely not the type of book I was anticipating. That being said, I really enjoyed the read! Cherie Dimaline has utilized her book to break open the lid on a very important conversation: what does means to have Indigenous futurity? Specifically, the implementation of Anishinabee (often referred to as "the language" in the book) throughout the book really held my attention. As I read The Marrow Thieves I found myself reflecting on Robin Wall Kimmerer's Braiding Sweetgrass, and I believe there is an important dialogue that can be had when connecting these two texts. After all, there is much to learn from the land and the language, and The Marrow Thieves will tell you that much.

Dimaline's book is extremely moving: from (found) family, reconnection to roots, and navigation through loss, there is truly so much to gain from reading her work. Though perhaps, what is most bone chilling about this book, is that we already know this story; it has happened before. Additionally, I found the read especially challenging because it made me rethink my definition of apocalypse. In a world that is all to eerily similar to our own, Dimaline makes you confront the fact that the apocalypse has already occurred, is continuing to occur, and will occur -- simultaneously, and specifically against Indigenous people. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Colonisation, Grief, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Racism, and Genocide

Moderate: Kidnapping, Body horror, and Violence

Minor: Trafficking and Child death

readingwithkaitlyn's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Blood, Death, Murder, and Grief

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, Religious bigotry, and Child death

Minor: Pregnancy, Alcohol, Genocide, Animal death, Sexual assault, Rape, Child abuse, Colonisation, Addiction, War, Sexual content, Racial slurs, Vomit, Excrement, Gun violence, and Stalking

Residential schools, global warming, pollution, starvation, disease.

draven_deathcrush's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad 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? Yes

5.0

I absolutely love this book. I'm Native, and I really want to read more books written by Native authors that are about Native culture, and this was the perfect one to read. It was heartwarming, well also being so sad and raw. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Genocide, and Racism

Moderate: Sexual assault, Child death, and Rape

obscurepages's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective tense slow-paced

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

4.5

Wow wow wow. I think I have goosebumps 😭 This was an incredible book. It's both harrowing and compelling, this is a story you won't forget soon.

There's something so visceral and melancholic in the writing style, but there's also the tiniest bits of humor and I love that. I also love how this book is just filled with hope and love, just as much as it's filled with grief. It speaks so much of what humans have done to the environment (since their world is now broken because of global warming) and other people (the way Native Americans are being hunted). Language and culture is a big part of this story too and it is beautifully profound.

Overall, an such an incredible story. Glad I was able to discover and read this book!

(Lots of CWs for this one tho please take care of yourselves. CW: residential schools, violence, colonial trauma, racism, genocide, death, grief, torture, sexual assault, pedophilia, injuries) 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Murder, Violence, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Colonisation, and Torture

Moderate: Genocide, Violence, and Grief

zombiezami's review against another edition

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Medical trauma, Grief, Death of parent, Religious bigotry, Physical abuse, Genocide, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Child abuse, Gore, Blood, Murder, Animal death, Death, Child death, Racism, Torture, Violence, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Colonisation, Vomit, Sexual violence, Stalking, Rape, Pregnancy, and Pandemic/Epidemic

Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Drug use, Drug abuse, and Alcoholism

sarahemhavens's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense

4.0

Many tears shed over this book, incredible imagery, and a heartbreaking storyline. Loved the ending

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Death, Colonisation, Violence, Grief, Forced institutionalization, and Murder

lortza's review against another edition

emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide

katischr's review against another edition

adventurous dark 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

4.5

Haunting but an absolute-must read, this book tells the story of coming of age during the apocalypse. The horrifying premise of indigenous people having their bone marrow harvested to comfort settlers feels eerily possible in an age when indigenous peoples’ autonomy and dignity are still being chipped away at. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Racism, and Genocide

abitbetterbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional 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? No

4.5

Well, what the fuck. How am I just supposed to go about living my life with an ending like that?

This book was stunning from start to finish, the prose was flawless, descriptive and evocative, the characters vibrant and life-like, the concepts and world-building absolutely horrifying and captivating, so close to home and hauntingly prophetic. 

The only thing I wished for was a bit more plot wrapping up at the end, it felt like there was a lot of lead up to one particular moment and I was kind of hoping for a few more answers to how everything would unfold, even now knowing there’s a second book!

Anyways, Wab deserves the entire world, and I don’t think I’ve ever had my heart broken by anything as much as Isaac & Miig. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Physical abuse, Death, Child death, Colonisation, Confinement, Grief, Violence, Death of parent, Genocide, and Racism

Moderate: Blood, Sexual violence, Rape, and Sexual assault

msbarnesela's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense fast-paced

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

3.75

Disclaimer: I’m not the target audience for this book. It’s YA, and it reads like YA, and I am not a teenager. I read this to determine whether I could use it with my students.

The plot moves quickly, and the chapters are short. The premise is compelling. The characters make sense, given the situation and setting. I wanted good things for them. They weren’t always likable, but they’re trying to survive while people are hunting them, and most of them are also dealing with puberty, so some prickliness is to be expected. 

I’m not a huge fan of the style of the prose. The book is from the perspective of the main character, who is a teen boy. The way his emotions and observations are narrated feels a little too exaggerated while also being weirdly self-aware. I would have enjoyed a bit more emotional subtlety and maybe just more writing craft? But again, I’m not the target audience. And I wonder if some of the storytelling techniques are echoing oral narrative techniques that I’m just not culturally connected to.

This is a book that I will use with my students. It has references to some really terrible things (see content warnings), but none of it is graphic. Violence and sex are acknowledged but not narrated, so it’s appropriate for younger high school (and maybe mature 8th graders, with adult support to contextualize and process the traumatic parts). Stylistically and structurally, it’s probably an easy enough read for middle grades. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Blood, Death, Genocide, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Racism, Trafficking, Violence, Child death, Cultural appropriation, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Abandonment, Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cursing, Medical content, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Pandemic/Epidemic, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Rape, and Trafficking

One character alludes to being gang-raped (the lead-up and aftermath are briefly detailed, but not the rape itself). Another character is said to have been raped (no detail). Kidnapping, trafficking, medical experimentation, and murder of indigenous people are the premise of the book, so it’s to be expected that it’s referenced. Residential schools are referenced frequently, but there’s very little description of the experience of institutionalization since only one character in the book had spent any time in the schools. There is one reference to sexual arousal between two teens, but nothing happens beyond kissing, and it’s awkwardly and abruptly interrupted. Two young adult characters couple up, and the woman is mentioned to be pregnant, but it’s a passing reference. Some characters shoot people (mostly justifiable self-defense) and feel bad about it afterwards.