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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
I was really intimidated to read this, but I decided to take the plunge this weekend. This book hooked me from page one, and made me keep going until the end.
This hit me on so many levels. As someone who used to work in single-payment loans and saw first hand what the cycle of debt can do to people, yeah this hit me.
This also hit me in terms of what is going on with Indigenous Peoples and what they're struggling with today. Racism. Colonization. Segregation. The drive for family and to belong and to be loved.
This should be read in school.
This hit me on so many levels. As someone who used to work in single-payment loans and saw first hand what the cycle of debt can do to people, yeah this hit me.
This also hit me in terms of what is going on with Indigenous Peoples and what they're struggling with today. Racism. Colonization. Segregation. The drive for family and to belong and to be loved.
This should be read in school.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is a debut dystopian novel about a world that has been divided by colonization. The "Mainlanders" came to Sossi territory, stealing their land and displacing them to the "Gutter." There, the Sossi were forced into reliance on government subsidies in a system that was not only not built for them, but built actively against them. After the deaths caused by a Sossi revolt, the Mainlanders determined an amount of money that the Sossi people owed them in reparations, so now every "Gutter child" is born with a huge weight of debt on their shoulders.
The main character, Elimina, is a special case because she was given away at birth to a Mainland mother for a special social experiment. Her own history was taken from her and she lived as an outsider from both the Mainland and the Gutter until her adopted mother's death. At that time she is brought to an "Academy" to start paying off her debt. That is where this story begins.
This book was amazing in its ability to create a fictional world that sheds a wide light on institutionalized racism against BIPOC people and it's colonialist underpinnings (especially as I read this from the perspective of a white settler on the land now called Canada). It was also just a heart-wrenching narrative with excellent world-building, character, and plot development.
The main character, Elimina, is a special case because she was given away at birth to a Mainland mother for a special social experiment. Her own history was taken from her and she lived as an outsider from both the Mainland and the Gutter until her adopted mother's death. At that time she is brought to an "Academy" to start paying off her debt. That is where this story begins.
This book was amazing in its ability to create a fictional world that sheds a wide light on institutionalized racism against BIPOC people and it's colonialist underpinnings (especially as I read this from the perspective of a white settler on the land now called Canada). It was also just a heart-wrenching narrative with excellent world-building, character, and plot development.
fast-paced
emotional
reflective
sad
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:
No
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Police brutality, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment
Not emotionally convincing.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Forced institutionalization
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
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
challenging
emotional
hopeful
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:
No