Reviews

Chasseurs d'étoiles by Cherie Dimaline

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cloudy__queer's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring 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

5.0

babsxi123's review against another edition

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5.0

A heartbreaking, face paced, couldn’t-put-it-down follow up to Marrow Thieves. A beautiful and harrowing tribute to generational trauma, building and fostering community, and recognizing that love is stronger than our greatest mistakes.

Characters kept facing impossible vs impossible choices and just when you think “there’s no way this gets worse” - it did, in fact, keep getting worse. When faced with impossible vs impossible choices, what one would you take?

I think it’s easy to say you’d rather die than betray your family or others like you, but as we saw with Frenchie and his brother, it’s not ever that simple. Would you doom a stranger to torture if that meant you could save your family from the same fate? If the answer is yes, how do you live with the choices? Would you sacrifice someone else’s newborn if it meant your 9 year old could have a longer life? And how do you forgive your loved one knowing they sacrificed an innocent stranger so you could live? Would you allow state sponsored genocide of millions of people if it meant you and your family would live?

These are only some of the ethos in this book and we haven’t even touched on surviving the horrors of residential schools. And what those survivors, and those who love them, have to live with once they’re out.

The last question above is a little too on the nose, honestly. Modern USA and Canada (just to name 2 of many) citizens are currently living our lives at the cost of state sponsored genocide of indigenous people. The basic underlying driver of this plot has already happened in real life, and I think that’s what makes this book so haunting.

Among the horrors and unimaginable suffering, there were moments of immeasurable beauty. Taking care of community when all else seemed hopeless. Not leaving the dead unburied. Learning as many indigenous languages as possible as to keep the languages living. Telling stories and honoring traditions. Holding onto bells for a future where jingle dresses could be worn again.

And the author’s writing? Top tier.

The author’s note at the end is also important to read. Lots of love and care went into this series, and I’m so glad I read it.

chawntay's review against another edition

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5.0

This really needs to be a trilogy! So good. Very well written like I was IN THE SCENE.

skrajewski's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful 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? Yes

4.5

This sequel to The Marrow Thieves picks up right where the story left off. After Miig just got back his husband and everyone is celebrating, Frenchie is captured by the Recruiters. Locked away in one of the dreaded schools, Frenchie does all he can to stay sane, from communicating with other “inmates” to talking with his long-lost brother Mitch, who was captured at the beginning of The Marrow Thieves. Meanwhile, readers gain insight into what Rose and other members of the family are doing while Frenchie is locked up. Rose is unwilling to accept that Frenchie is dead. Along with Derrick, who clearly likes her, they begin to search for him. The family plans to wait for Rose, but when they receive disturbing news about new plans that threatens the life of the baby Wab and Chi Boy are expecting, they decide to move south toward the United States. But there is danger at every turn for all of them, people that can’t be trusted, and all of them must make tough decisions to stay safe.

What a heartbreaking, yet often hopeful, sequel that will keep readers up late at night, eager to learn what happens next. It was hard to venture back into the horrific world Dimaline created, but I was left with hope, for Frenchie and his family were bound by love for one another.