see_sadie_read's review against another edition
3.0
3.5
I want to start out with praising Bahni Turpin for her narration. Historical fiction isn't a genre I gravitate toward and I don't know if I'd have made it through this one without Turpin's reading of it.
Next, I want to warn that there is a spoiler in this review. In fact, I should just get it out of the way. SPOILER: Bird does not give these characters their happy ending! Hopeful, I might call it (if 20 years too late), but not happy. I get that Bird may have been constrained by historical fact, but I was still hugely disappointed by this. (And there are so few details available about Cathy that I have to wonder if Bird couldn't have made it work if she really wanted to.)
Beyond that I appreciated the beautiful use of language (having the audio version really helped with this). And I thought Bird really highlighted some aspects of slave life that gets glossed over in a lot of fiction. For example, when everyone was up in arms over a white girls being kidnapped by Indians and a free slave asking, Who hasn't seen worse done to our by a Master? Or when a black soldier was speaking passionately about not wanting a white woman (as all white men seem to assume he does), but a black woman. These were moments that touched me and felt real.
A caveat: Maybe it is a simple reality of writing race, but I was never able to allow myself to forget that Bird is white. So, beautiful as these scenes might be, there was always a grain of "It feels right, but I'm white and she's white, maybe it only feels right to us who have never faced this head on. I hope that's not the case, but..." Certainly I've seen other reviewers take issue with some aspects of the representation. And there were definitely whiffs of Cathy being better than other slaves, which is problematic in the same way writing a female character that is somehow 'different' and 'special' and 'better' than 'those other girls' is inherently anti-female in general. So, I leave open that there may be problematic aspects I didn't highlight.
I did think the story repeated itself at times and dragged a bit through the middle. There were a few "too coincidental to be believed" moments (the prostitute scene, for example) and I just can't accept the ending. It looped around and gave Cathy something she'd wanted early on and left the possibility of happiness in the future. But that wasn't enough to really satisfy me. All in all, however, I liked it well enough.
I want to start out with praising Bahni Turpin for her narration. Historical fiction isn't a genre I gravitate toward and I don't know if I'd have made it through this one without Turpin's reading of it.
Next, I want to warn that there is a spoiler in this review. In fact, I should just get it out of the way. SPOILER: Bird does not give these characters their happy ending! Hopeful, I might call it (if 20 years too late), but not happy. I get that Bird may have been constrained by historical fact, but I was still hugely disappointed by this. (And there are so few details available about Cathy that I have to wonder if Bird couldn't have made it work if she really wanted to.)
Beyond that I appreciated the beautiful use of language (having the audio version really helped with this). And I thought Bird really highlighted some aspects of slave life that gets glossed over in a lot of fiction. For example, when everyone was up in arms over a white girls being kidnapped by Indians and a free slave asking, Who hasn't seen worse done to our by a Master? Or when a black soldier was speaking passionately about not wanting a white woman (as all white men seem to assume he does), but a black woman. These were moments that touched me and felt real.
A caveat: Maybe it is a simple reality of writing race, but I was never able to allow myself to forget that Bird is white. So, beautiful as these scenes might be, there was always a grain of "It feels right, but I'm white and she's white, maybe it only feels right to us who have never faced this head on. I hope that's not the case, but..." Certainly I've seen other reviewers take issue with some aspects of the representation. And there were definitely whiffs of Cathy being better than other slaves, which is problematic in the same way writing a female character that is somehow 'different' and 'special' and 'better' than 'those other girls' is inherently anti-female in general. So, I leave open that there may be problematic aspects I didn't highlight.
I did think the story repeated itself at times and dragged a bit through the middle. There were a few "too coincidental to be believed" moments (the prostitute scene, for example) and I just can't accept the ending. It looped around and gave Cathy something she'd wanted early on and left the possibility of happiness in the future. But that wasn't enough to really satisfy me. All in all, however, I liked it well enough.
nadoislandgirl's review against another edition
3.0
What is so intriguing, is that the book was based on a real story! A black woman became a Buffalo Soldier. She was an interesting character - always kept me on my toes. Time felt loose. The writing felt day-by-day and then suddenly I would realize that a year had gone by! Spanning the American Civil War to rounding up "Indians" in Texas to put onto reservations, we see this world through the life of a black soldier. Unique perspective and well done.
I want to give this a 3-1/2 star.
I want to give this a 3-1/2 star.
janiceh's review against another edition
4.0
The Audio Book has a chapter Historical Note. Start with that. Great narrator and interesting historical novel with the added bonus of an interview with the author.
jhurl's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
katiehj's review against another edition
4.0
A really wonderful 4/5 stars. It would have even even higher, but I felt like it took a bit of time to really grasp me. But by the end, I was enthralled.
tiaowuma1's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
informative
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
4.5
solson1974's review against another edition
4.0
Definitely a 4.5. Cathy is such a strong character and the amount of research that must have gone into this book is evident. I had to take breaks because I knew the story wasn’t going to go how I wanted it to and I almost couldn’t bear to see it play out, but it was such a good story.
imtyna's review against another edition
5.0
This is based on a true story! So glad I found this book, I’m going to look more into her story. I listened to this as an audiobook and the narrator did a fabulous job!
wondermajica's review against another edition
4.0
This was a wonderfully written book that has managed to do the impossible, make me interested in the Civil War era. The descriptions of the South (while we are there) and the way Southerners speak is done in such a believable way that I had no trouble creating an image of the events in my head. While mostly a story of survival and the darkness that still, unfortunately, plagues the United States, it does have a few moments of humor that had me legitimately laughing out loud. With that being said, I did feel a little disconnected while reading (which could be partially due to being sick at the time) and unlike the majority of the amazing stories I read, it is not sticking with me. However, I do now have a great interest in learning more about Cathy and the former slaves that served in the U.S. Military.
*I won a free ARC copy of this book from Goodreads giveaways.
*I won a free ARC copy of this book from Goodreads giveaways.