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bishop_504's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
The last book I had to read for my writing class.
This book immediately drew me in with its opening line, “I was twelve the first time I saw my dead father cross from the kitchen doorway to the hall that led back to the utility room.” The premise of the story is established incredibly quickly with no over-the-top buildup or useless fluff. We know from the start the paranormal aspects of this book and the young child protagonist. The sleepwalking scenes help establish Junior’s character, and how desperately he wants to have his father back. The description of him making his legs fall asleep with the jump-rope was incredibly well done and horribly visceral. However, it was difficult for me to appreciate because I felt like I was going to throw up, which I would argue shows how talented the writer is.
Part of what made this book so great in my opinion, is how Junior acts so intelligently, but still child-like. He comes to conclusions not in spite of the fact that he is a child, but because of the fact that he is able to see the world from this viewpoint. He has a child-like faith in his father that fuels his return to a physical form. His impulsive gifts of Dino’s toy and his mother’s cigarette butts are healing to his father, and no adult would have thought to have given those things or would have thought to give anything at all. Once he realizes that his father is hurting Dino, he protects his brother by using cinnamon toothpicks laced with mace that he bought at school. This seems like an odd way of trying to protect him, but it works and the mace repels his father from his strange soul sucking of his youngest son. Even the final blow to his father, which is done by drowning a toy, seems representative of this child-like mentality. This is such detailed and precise characterization, and I want to keep it in mind if I ever write a child character dealing with more serious “adult” problems.
The one aspect of the story that did not feel as developed as the rest in my opinion, was Junior possessing the other Junior that drowned his father in the lake. This happened fairly late in the story, and it felt like a completely new paranormal idea to introduce as the novella was beginning to wrap up. Potentially introducing this idea earlier, or maybe implying that Junior was possessed by someone else during his sleepwalking might have helped this feel more natural. This is especially confusing given that Junior describes sleepwalking as being possessed by yourself, rather than someone else. However, given the context of this paranormal event, I like the implication that neither Junior nor his father fought the rabid dogs. The book explains that the other Junior was no memory of drowning his father, just like the protagonist Junior has no memory of defeating the dogs. It is interesting to ponder which person from the past or future possessed Junior and why.
The ending of the story made the whole plot come together in a horrifying full circle moment. Despite everything that Junior went through and how fiercely he fought to protect his family as a child, he makes the same mistakes as his parents as an adult. This is especially heart-wrenching when considering his previous characterization on page 84, “Standing there, I promised myself that if I ever had kids, I was going to be different. It’s a promise every Indian kid says at some point. You mean it when you say it though. You mean it so hard.” He is absent from his son Collin’s life, hardly ever seeing him. His decision to attempt to resurrect Collin makes him just as bad, if not worse than, his father. He will force his teenage son to exist in a twisted half-alive state and sacrifice his younger brother he tried so desperately to save during his childhood. Just like his father, he considers Dino lesser than him and worth the benefit that his death would bring. The reader is left with the knowledge that Junior will murder his brother to try to bring his son back the way that his father tried to return and knowing that there is no way this could possibly end well.
This book immediately drew me in with its opening line, “I was twelve the first time I saw my dead father cross from the kitchen doorway to the hall that led back to the utility room.” The premise of the story is established incredibly quickly with no over-the-top buildup or useless fluff. We know from the start the paranormal aspects of this book and the young child protagonist. The sleepwalking scenes help establish Junior’s character, and how desperately he wants to have his father back. The description of him making his legs fall asleep with the jump-rope was incredibly well done and horribly visceral. However, it was difficult for me to appreciate because I felt like I was going to throw up, which I would argue shows how talented the writer is.
Part of what made this book so great in my opinion, is how Junior acts so intelligently, but still child-like. He comes to conclusions not in spite of the fact that he is a child, but because of the fact that he is able to see the world from this viewpoint. He has a child-like faith in his father that fuels his return to a physical form. His impulsive gifts of Dino’s toy and his mother’s cigarette butts are healing to his father, and no adult would have thought to have given those things or would have thought to give anything at all. Once he realizes that his father is hurting Dino, he protects his brother by using cinnamon toothpicks laced with mace that he bought at school. This seems like an odd way of trying to protect him, but it works and the mace repels his father from his strange soul sucking of his youngest son. Even the final blow to his father, which is done by drowning a toy, seems representative of this child-like mentality. This is such detailed and precise characterization, and I want to keep it in mind if I ever write a child character dealing with more serious “adult” problems.
The one aspect of the story that did not feel as developed as the rest in my opinion, was Junior possessing the other Junior that drowned his father in the lake. This happened fairly late in the story, and it felt like a completely new paranormal idea to introduce as the novella was beginning to wrap up. Potentially introducing this idea earlier, or maybe implying that Junior was possessed by someone else during his sleepwalking might have helped this feel more natural. This is especially confusing given that Junior describes sleepwalking as being possessed by yourself, rather than someone else. However, given the context of this paranormal event, I like the implication that neither Junior nor his father fought the rabid dogs. The book explains that the other Junior was no memory of drowning his father, just like the protagonist Junior has no memory of defeating the dogs. It is interesting to ponder which person from the past or future possessed Junior and why.
The ending of the story made the whole plot come together in a horrifying full circle moment. Despite everything that Junior went through and how fiercely he fought to protect his family as a child, he makes the same mistakes as his parents as an adult. This is especially heart-wrenching when considering his previous characterization on page 84, “Standing there, I promised myself that if I ever had kids, I was going to be different. It’s a promise every Indian kid says at some point. You mean it when you say it though. You mean it so hard.” He is absent from his son Collin’s life, hardly ever seeing him. His decision to attempt to resurrect Collin makes him just as bad, if not worse than, his father. He will force his teenage son to exist in a twisted half-alive state and sacrifice his younger brother he tried so desperately to save during his childhood. Just like his father, he considers Dino lesser than him and worth the benefit that his death would bring. The reader is left with the knowledge that Junior will murder his brother to try to bring his son back the way that his father tried to return and knowing that there is no way this could possibly end well.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Self harm, and Animal death
bluejayreads's review against another edition
3.5
Very weird, very short, very disturbing. It had some strong magical realism elements, but since the narrator was the only person to experience anything weird, it didn't feel like magical realism so much as one of those books where you're not sure if there's actually something supernatural going on or if it's all in the protagonist's head. But the back cover also calls it "deeply rooted in the contemporary Native American experience," so maybe it's actually including a particular tribe's understanding of or mythology around ghosts and I'm just missing the context to understand. This whole novella gives me a feeling that I'm missing something. By itself, it's a disturbing, incredibly dark horror story that never quite answers the question of whether or not any of this actually happened. But I also get the sense that there's deeper ideas that I just don't have the context or the analysis stills to really grasp.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, and Death of parent
Moderate: Gun violence, Body horror, and Ableism
Minor: Gore
judassilver's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Grief, Violence, and Animal death
Moderate: Chronic illness, Colonisation, Addiction, Animal cruelty, Body horror, Car accident, and Child abuse
Minor: Bullying, Gun violence, Ableism, and Forced institutionalization
vixenreader's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
3.5
An example of a great author’s early book, this book is a flawed, but vibe coming-of-age story about the cycle of intergenerational trauma and toxicity.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Ableism, and Animal death
Moderate: Child death, Bullying, Blood, Medical trauma, Police brutality, Racism, Child abuse, Abandonment, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, and Violence
Minor: Cursing and Sexual content
Be aware of animal attacks, abuse towards children living with a disability, racism towards First Nations, and epilepsy/seizures.cantfindmybookmark's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Animal death, Bullying, and Mental illness
Moderate: Murder and Child abuse
Minor: Ableism
rtaire's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- 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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Death of parent, Gore, and Body horror
Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Violence, and Grief
Minor: Forced institutionalization
thebearnest's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gun violence and Ableism
ocassim's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Murder, and Gore
howlinglibraries's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
I was twelve the first time I saw my dead father cross from the kitchen doorway to the hall that led back to the utility room.
I've reached a point in my life where I buy print copies of SGJ titles whenever possible, because I already know ahead of time that I'm going to highlight the hell out of it, just as I did with this one. Half of my copy of this little story is highlighted because there's something about this author's writing that mesmerizes me from the very first page and doesn't let go, and Mapping the Interior was no exception.
Mapping the Interior isn't your average ghost story: in this, we follow a teen boy who's seeing his late father's ghost, but the spirit's motives are unclear at first. Is he visiting to watch his boys grow up? Is he seeking out closure for unfinished business? Or is there something darker at play here?
This novella packs such a powerful punch, and in so few pages! It's an atmospheric, immensely eerie horror tale, but it's also a look at Native experiences, generational trauma, and the endless absences that grief creates. Junior and his younger brother Dino are impossible not to fall in love with, which created such a high-stakes, emotional reading experience for me.
There's something about SGJ's way as a natural storyteller that makes every story feel like sitting at a campfire, listening to the most incredulous tales, hanging on every word — and, as always, I walk away already eager for the next one.
✨ Representation: the narrator and his family are Native American
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Animal death, Death of parent, Ableism, Bullying, and Gore
sexualedward's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
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? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Bullying, Death, and Death of parent
Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Classism, Murder, Animal death, Blood, Toxic relationship, Car accident, and Violence
Minor: Alcohol, Forced institutionalization, Genocide, Sexual content, Colonisation, Addiction, Gun violence, Police brutality, Racism, War, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Stalking, and Xenophobia