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sophiejohn's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
What...what do I even say about this book? Ash Davidson, you are a fucked up lady who can WRITE.
The first thing I have to say about this book is that it is LONG. Way longer than necessary. Like the end just kept going and the first third of the book was very drawn out. The first third though, I get that. The worldbuilding in this was totally immersive, and it had to be because PNW logging culture in the 1970s is incredibly niche. So I think that the first third to half is a character study that provides the necessary context in the fall and early winter months to understand the nuances of the actions that the characters take when the plot starts to snowball in the late winter to spring-summer months.
Emotionally, this was a roller coaster. The writing was out of this world to me, but the cover looks way too happy for this ultimately devastating book.
having rich die at the end felt like it undid all the tension that had been so carefully built throughout the very long story. I was hoping for some kind of payoff - and we were about to get it, too. in the last 50-85 pages (I think? I read this digitally), I felt like I was gulping water after being thirsty all day, then the bottom just fell out of my glass.
also the dog stuff? fucked. sick in the head. my mental health during this book was hanging on the thread that is scout the dog, most tender and loyal hound, and Ash Davidson just snipped it (like that other dog's vocal cords 😳).</spoiler
The first thing I have to say about this book is that it is LONG. Way longer than necessary. Like the end just kept going and the first third of the book was very drawn out. The first third though, I get that. The worldbuilding in this was totally immersive, and it had to be because PNW logging culture in the 1970s is incredibly niche. So I think that the first third to half is a character study that provides the necessary context in the fall and early winter months to understand the nuances of the actions that the characters take when the plot starts to snowball in the late winter to spring-summer months.
Emotionally, this was a roller coaster. The writing was out of this world to me, but the cover looks way too happy for this ultimately devastating book.
also the dog stuff? fucked. sick in the head. my mental health during this book was hanging on the thread that is scout the dog, most tender and loyal hound, and Ash Davidson just snipped it (like that other dog's vocal cords 😳).</spoiler
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Miscarriage, and Grief
Moderate: Blood and Animal cruelty
Minor: Colonisation
rivbug27's review
dark
informative
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Car accident, Colonisation, Violence, Racism, Pregnancy, Physical abuse, Miscarriage, and Medical trauma
Minor: Cultural appropriation, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Grief, Infidelity, Misogyny, Sexism, and Vomit
krys_kilz's review
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
I really enjoyed this book! Even though the pacing is slow, I found myself unable to put it down. I became deeply invested in the characters, which I think was heavily influenced by the pacing and amount of time spent with each character. Their stories were complex and shifting and deeply human. I also really enjoyed how much the community itself is a character that means different things to different people. It is a book deeply rooted in place.
I really appreciated the inclusion of indigenous perspectives. I found Daniel's character and his uncle's speech to be some of the strongest and most moving parts of the book. Daniel's uncle's speech was definitely influenced by the Cree proverb: "Only when the last tree has been cut down, the last fish been caught, and the last stream poisoned, will you realize that you cannot eat money."
I found the critique of conservation activists and how they often use indigenous people incredibly important as well as the scalding critique of corporate interests and capitalism. This book offers an intimate portrait of how relationships with the land change through colonial contact and capitalist extraction and the devastating ecological destruction left in their wake. This book is also a stunning examination of why people do or do not act and what truly makes a community.
I will say that I really did not like the ending. I think I understand what Davidson was trying to do, but it just did not work for me. With a different ending this would have been a 5-star book.
I really appreciated the inclusion of indigenous perspectives. I found Daniel's character and his uncle's speech to be some of the strongest and most moving parts of the book. Daniel's uncle's speech was definitely influenced by the Cree proverb: "Only when the last tree has been cut down, the last fish been caught, and the last stream poisoned, will you realize that you cannot eat money."
I found the critique of conservation activists and how they often use indigenous people incredibly important as well as the scalding critique of corporate interests and capitalism. This book offers an intimate portrait of how relationships with the land change through colonial contact and capitalist extraction and the devastating ecological destruction left in their wake. This book is also a stunning examination of why people do or do not act and what truly makes a community.
I will say that I really did not like the ending. I think I understand what Davidson was trying to do, but it just did not work for me. With a different ending this would have been a 5-star book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Miscarriage, and Infertility
Moderate: Colonisation, Racism, Abortion, Animal death, and Car accident
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