Reviews

The Painted Drum by Louise Erdrich

lsparrow's review against another edition

4.0

I love this authors stories..
how she weaves in so many different characters and stories and issues. I also love the imagery she uses in this book.

boreasword's review against another edition

4.0

Rich, and full of well drawn characters.

bytheosean's review against another edition

2.0

this book was kinda boring and like the only bits of the story that were interesting weren’t even the protagonist’s stories to tell so it’s like whatever. i appreciate being offered a different type of book regarding the indigenous community, and especially one that doesn’t necessarily focus on the pain and the fatigue of being native in white america. that being said,, i could not care less abt this dumbass drum.

craftygoat's review against another edition

4.0

Enjoyed. Didn't go into it realizing it would reference some of the characters from Erdrich books I'd previously read. Loved that it did -- but maybe that left me dissatisfied that it didn't give me more?

Spoiler

Specifically, when Bernard told the drum's history so Faye and her mother could know they were of Pillager descent, I expected that there would be some magic Pillager effect on them. Was disappointed that they never showed even any interest.

Still, a good story of the drum and the various lives it touches. Lots of heartbreak and lots of overcoming.

mjgriffinii74656's review against another edition

5.0

I have read enough of Erdrich's work by now to have a great appreciation of how she writes. Not just her style, but also the intricate ways in which her stories are knitted together, for indeed much of her work seems to be about amalgamating all the best parts of (...) something (some feeling, some idea about the soul, about character, some quirk of a plot detail). _The Painted Drum_ is a beautiful story about the history and legacy of this indigenous artifact, but it's also an intricate, emotional story of what it means to live, love, and lose. I see grief everywhere in the pages of this text, but I also see so much to live for.

juanitamfm's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

• 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

3.5

Overall I really loved parts of this book. The second and third parts were a lot more interesting…Unfortunately the author started and ended the story with the two less interesting (in my opinion) characters. But the storytelling was like a completely different book when it was coming from Bernard’s point of view. And also Ira’s and her kids story was so sad…I could’ve used some closure there as well…like I would’ve loved to hear the baby made a quick and full recovery. I would’ve liked to know if Ira actually did choose Morris, and how the girls were doing after they left the hospital. I thought there was going to be a lot more about the lady with the lip scar…also some family trees would’ve been super helpful in this book! 
I also wanted to see if there was going to be any consequences to  Faye stealing the drum that was never supposed to be stolen or sold”.  Her story was kind of boring…like I couldn’t get why she didn’t want to be with Krahe…and I thought there was going to be more about her sister’s story. Like after she finally got up off the ground…what happened at the hospital. How did her mom find out. Stuff like that. 

surlymanor's review against another edition

5.0

“Life will break you. Nobody can protect you from that, and living alone won't either, for solitude will also break you with its yearning. You have to love. You have to feel. It is the reason you are here on earth. You are here to risk your heart. You are here to be swallowed up. And when it happens that you are broken, or betrayed, or left, or hurt, or death brushes near, let yourself sit by an apple tree and listen to the apples falling all around you in heaps, wasting their sweetness. Tell yourself you tasted as many as you could.”

meghayes11's review against another edition

Did not finish

kamckim's review against another edition

3.0

This is a 2005 book by Erdrich. The writing is strong, but I didn't relate to the "bookends" of the story that begin with Faye and her mother. As the reviews state, they live in New Hampshire and find a drum that connects them to their Ojibwe past on a reservation in North Dakota. The story didn't come alive until part two, "North of Hoopdance." These are the stories told about the drum from Bernard, to whom they deliver the drum. Bernard's are the compelling stories in the novel. I think Erdrich does much better with characterization and storytelling when she directly (re)creates the Native peoples (although I like Father Travis in her later novels). This story was a bit open-ended and didn't really speak to me existentially the way some of her other novels do. However, it did end on a hopeful note about new beginnings and possibilities. The good news is, Erdrich's novels have intertextuality that allows a reader to enter a world unto itself. If you've read many of her novels, you start to feel like you know everyone on the reservation. Don't let that stop you, though, because each novel stands alone as a single story as well. This one is just not my favourite, and I think her later novels are better than her earlier work.

revdeb54's review against another edition

4.0

I usually do not like Erdrich's writing. This book is captivating. I'm not sure what makes it different, but I am enjoying the plot, character development and writing style.