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3.95 AVERAGE
3.95 AVERAGE
I've said it before, and I'll say it again. Louise Erdrich's writing is pure poetry. Fleur is such a fascinating character, and her story is told from other people's perspectives. I wish we could get to know Fleur through her own eyes, but that just helps enforce the enigma that is Fleur.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-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
This is such a wild book! I assign Erdrich's novel TRACKS in my Postcolonial Women's Novels course, and this is the sequel. You don't need to read TRACKS first, but there are some lovely continuing details that resonate so much more deeply if you've read it.
FOUR SOULS picks up the moment TRACKS left off by following Fleur, who seeks to murder the man who logged her land (this isn't a spoiler -- you know this on the first page). What you also know on the first page (from the family tree) is that she instead somehow ends up marrying him. What?!?! The plot is so good all the way through, and I couldn't put it down. Erdrich does an amazing job at exploring the complexities of love, tradition, identity and power during this era of reservations, broken treaties, and industrialization.
FOUR SOULS picks up the moment TRACKS left off by following Fleur, who seeks to murder the man who logged her land (this isn't a spoiler -- you know this on the first page). What you also know on the first page (from the family tree) is that she instead somehow ends up marrying him. What?!?! The plot is so good all the way through, and I couldn't put it down. Erdrich does an amazing job at exploring the complexities of love, tradition, identity and power during this era of reservations, broken treaties, and industrialization.
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
dark
mysterious
reflective
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:
Yes
I haven't read Tracks (or if I have, it was very long ago), so I came to these characters fresh and blank. Fleur and Nanapush (her adoptive father/grandfather) are central characters, but separated for most of the story here. Nanapush and Polly Elizabeth (the sister-in-law of a man on whom Fleur sets out to exact revenge) are the narrators, mostly, but Margaret (married to Nanapush) does a small bit of narrating too. Most people in the story are Native Americans. I'm a little unsure of the year — after a World War, either I or II, but not in the present. Fleur's daughter (teenage?) is in one of the infamous residential schools.
The book has a literary tone throughout, although I noticed that more at the start and at the end. I've recently read The Round House and The Night Watchman by this author and really loved both of them. I think I'll be reading her entire backlist eventually. Four Souls is less complex and less nuanced than those other two (and substantially shorter too).
The saga of the medicine dress, made by Margaret after a near-death experience, and the sometimes comical jealousy of Nanapush, are going to stay in memory longer, I think, than the journey Fleur makes. It's a bit strange that there are two stories in this slender book, and they only intersect because Nanapush, Margaret and Fleur are all related.
.
The book has a literary tone throughout, although I noticed that more at the start and at the end. I've recently read The Round House and The Night Watchman by this author and really loved both of them. I think I'll be reading her entire backlist eventually. Four Souls is less complex and less nuanced than those other two (and substantially shorter too).
The saga of the medicine dress, made by Margaret after a near-death experience, and the sometimes comical jealousy of Nanapush, are going to stay in memory longer, I think, than the journey Fleur makes. It's a bit strange that there are two stories in this slender book, and they only intersect because Nanapush, Margaret and Fleur are all related.
.
Complex and multi-narrated, this story felt harmonious, destructive, sad, and persistent. The narrative was easy to follow and yet I felt like I couldn't scratch the surface of something deeper within the text. It has left me thinking.
adventurous
funny
reflective
challenging
funny
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
A split narrative that left me wanting the opposite perspective at times, but not so often that it was unenjoyable. Working through the Love Medicine series and I don't know if this is going to stick with me as much as the others.
I love Louise Erdrich - but I struggled to follow the various voices and characters in the book. Maybe I should have read Tracks first - I didn’t realize this was a series. Or maybe I was distracted at the beginning and missed something key, but I just couldn’t ever find the enjoyment and ended up just making myself finish. I’ve read other reviews so maybe will try again another time.