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betsygrace's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Hate crime, Child death, Racial slurs, Death, Death of parent, Medical content, Sexism, Abortion, Miscarriage, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Car accident, Fire/Fire injury, Infertility, and Medical trauma
katesbooknook's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Car accident, Racism, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Cursing, Miscarriage, Grief, Animal death, and Death
Moderate: Misogyny, Murder, Abortion, Sexism, and Ableism
Minor: Cancer
prof_pelon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Moderate: Violence, Alcohol, Cancer, Car accident, Child death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Infertility, Pregnancy, Racial slurs, Sexism, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Terminal illness, Abortion, Animal death, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Infidelity, and Racism
colettesjourney's review
Graphic: Animal death, Child death, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infertility, Miscarriage, Racism, and Racial slurs
abookwanderer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
While it took me a while to settle into, by the end of the book I was completely invested in the story of this broken and troubled family. I didn’t want to leave them. Davidson has brought a small logging town in the 1970s Pacific Northwest to life. And while some of the logging jargon was hard to follow at times, it never took me out of the book. In fact, it made it even more real.
And that’s what they made Google for, anyway, right?? I love when a good story also teaches me something.
I was repeatedly impressed with Davidson’s ability to have me sympathizing with the loggers when I knew if I was plopped down into this story, I’d be one of the hippie tree-huggers. She humanized each character, whether they were ‘good’ or ‘bad’.
The book is told from three different points of view: Rich, his wife Colleen, and their five year old son Chub. I was never lost when the views changed, each voice distinct and beloved by the end.
While it deals with some very heavy and serious subjects—environmental degradation, infidelity, miscarriage, birth defects—at its heart, it’s a novel about perseverance, family history, commitment, and love. This story wrecked me. In a good way, and I’ll be thinking about it for a long time.
Thank you to Scribner and Netgalley for an advanced reader’s copy.
Graphic: Miscarriage, Infertility, Death, and Child death
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Terminal illness, Racial slurs, Medical content, Death of parent, Car accident, Alcoholism, and Abortion