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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
this is a really beautiful meditation on trauma and healing, betrayal and manipulation, Native identity, mental illness, mothering and being mothered, the push and pull of emotionally abusive relationships
it is so fearless and honest and brutal
poetic, free-spirited, noel, touching, painful. memorable
I enjoyed this, until I didn't. I wasn't expecting it to be a heartwarming, fluttery memoir - that's not what I mean by enjoyable. But I felt lost, the voice kept changing, and once I was lost I couldn't find my way back into the flow of reading.
This is one of those books that seem really popular, in the sense that everyone is reading it, so I figured I'd read it and see why people love it so much.
So, I wanted to love it, but it was just okay for me.
A big part of it is both the length and the writing style. I wasn't expecting it to be so short. It's not even 150 pages, and that's including the Q & A at the end, plus a forward at the beginning. It's not long at all, and I think that's why I finished it, because I really struggled with her writing style.
It felt like I was reading diary entries or her notebook, and her memoir felt really disjointed and all over the place. Stream-of-consciousness is what comes to mind, and so Mailhot jumps around in time and place. It is one of those books you really have to pay attention to, otherwise you'll miss something. Not only that, but it felt like I was reading a collection of essays.
It's not completely Mailhot's fault, since I went into this book expecting a more traditionally written memoir. I also felt like I was reading the same thing over and over- it felt like each chapter involved Mailhot pining after someone, while lamenting over having one child, while her other child was taken away from her. There didn't seem to be any resolution or movement, and I think, what it comes down to, is that I was expecting something very different than what this memoir contained. I also thought the usage of the word you throughout the book made me feel like I was watching things from a distance, and I had a hard time connecting with her. I had a hard time keeping up with her thought process, since it does meander around quite a bit.
It's a shame, since there were a few sentences that were absolutely beautiful and poetic. I wanted to like it, I really did. And I tried so hard to like it, but I just didn't have it in me. I can see why so many people love it, and I really do think that the reasons why people love it are the reasons I didn't, but not every book is going to be for every person. This clearly wasn't the book for me, but I am glad that it is a book that works for so many other people.
My Rating: 2 stars. Heart Berries was just okay, and I was definitely expecting a more traditional memoir. Even though it wasn't for me, I can see why so many people think it's a great read.
So, I wanted to love it, but it was just okay for me.
A big part of it is both the length and the writing style. I wasn't expecting it to be so short. It's not even 150 pages, and that's including the Q & A at the end, plus a forward at the beginning. It's not long at all, and I think that's why I finished it, because I really struggled with her writing style.
It felt like I was reading diary entries or her notebook, and her memoir felt really disjointed and all over the place. Stream-of-consciousness is what comes to mind, and so Mailhot jumps around in time and place. It is one of those books you really have to pay attention to, otherwise you'll miss something. Not only that, but it felt like I was reading a collection of essays.
It's not completely Mailhot's fault, since I went into this book expecting a more traditionally written memoir. I also felt like I was reading the same thing over and over- it felt like each chapter involved Mailhot pining after someone, while lamenting over having one child, while her other child was taken away from her. There didn't seem to be any resolution or movement, and I think, what it comes down to, is that I was expecting something very different than what this memoir contained. I also thought the usage of the word you throughout the book made me feel like I was watching things from a distance, and I had a hard time connecting with her. I had a hard time keeping up with her thought process, since it does meander around quite a bit.
It's a shame, since there were a few sentences that were absolutely beautiful and poetic. I wanted to like it, I really did. And I tried so hard to like it, but I just didn't have it in me. I can see why so many people love it, and I really do think that the reasons why people love it are the reasons I didn't, but not every book is going to be for every person. This clearly wasn't the book for me, but I am glad that it is a book that works for so many other people.
My Rating: 2 stars. Heart Berries was just okay, and I was definitely expecting a more traditional memoir. Even though it wasn't for me, I can see why so many people think it's a great read.
This one was a bit hard for me to read. I really appreciate her story I just found the writing hard to get into for me. I did feel it was very raw and heavy and I do admire her for being vulnerable and real about her experiences with abuse, eating disorders, mental illness and love. I wasn’t really invested in her main love story, and felt a little disappointed with how things turned out there. I just was waiting for her to realize she didn’t need to be treated that way and in such an unhealthy relationship. But that feels tricky to say since it’s a memoir and I’m sure there were things in the actual relationship that may have not been reflected here.
“I believe in the author’s right to tell any story, and the closer it comes to a singular truth the more art they render in the telling.” Terese Mailhot sets out to reinvent Native memoir, by stressing both the unique nature and universality of her experience. The discussion of language’s power and the inventiveness of this memoir’s structure made it immensely readable. The short poetic prose made for a quick read, but for that reason, I feel the need to spend more time with this book (especially after reading the afterword for some context of the author’s writing process and motivations).
*received advanced copy as part of giveaway*
*received advanced copy as part of giveaway*
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
fast-paced
This is a blunt, poetic work that chronicles the author's life and love - largely in the form of a letter written to the aforementioned love. This format made the novel much more immediate to me - while I first bristled at the constant "you," it began to get personal. I felt to blame for emotions and slights, for wrongs both small and large. I felt like a character in the book, even while I felt like I was snooping on someone else's intimate moments that had nothing to do with me. It was an effective device that made me think a lot about my impact on the world, on friends and lovers, on indigenous people... I was stunned by the time I finished it - feeling like I'd traveled years in the space of a relatively small number of pages. Mailhot lays it out in the first part of the book:
"I learned how story was always meant to be for Indian women: immediate and necessary and fearless, like all good lies."
What she's written is definitely immediate, necessary, and fearless...and one of the first books in awhile that I have finished and returned immediately to page one to start reading again.
I know, I know: I'm a cliche.
Loved this book.
"I learned how story was always meant to be for Indian women: immediate and necessary and fearless, like all good lies."
What she's written is definitely immediate, necessary, and fearless...and one of the first books in awhile that I have finished and returned immediately to page one to start reading again.
I know, I know: I'm a cliche.
Loved this book.
Poetic(ish) writing that relates powerfully raw emotions, but holds the reader at arm’s length so that it is difficult to grasp meaning, nuances, or effectively relate to the author. I felt pity for the apparently horrible life she has, but found sympathy challenging, and a number of times felt that it was just an artfully written self-depreciating woe-is-me piece. Thankfully short.