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suzyreadsbooks's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dementia, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Drug use, Grief, and Child death
Minor: Cancer and Gore
darcyreadssometimes's review
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book was trippy, unsettling, and stunning. The story is told through multiple perspectives, with three from present day characters and one from Tsala, an important person in Cherokee legend. There is not a clear line between the spirit world and our world, and one of the characters struggles with drug addiction, so things are not always as they seem. This felt like literary fiction with splashes of horror. The ending had me feeling a little confused, sad, but also hopeful. I donโt want to say more for fear of spoiling anything, but Iโll leave this quote:
๐๐บ๐ข๐ต๐ต ๐ญ๐ข๐ถ๐ฏ๐ค๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ข ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฆ๐น๐ฑ๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ข๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต ๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฃ๐ข๐ด๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ด๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐ค๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ๐ด ๐ข๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ข๐ณ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ท๐ข๐ณ๐ช๐ฐ๐ถ๐ด ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ด.
โ๐๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฌ, ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฌ.โ ๐๐บ๐ข๐ต๐ต ๐ด๐ข๐ช๐ฅ, โ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ท๐ฆ ๐ด๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ, ๐ณ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต? ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บโ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ช๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฅ๐ช๐ค๐ช๐ฏ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฅ ๐ต๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ฆ, ๐ณ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต? ๐๐ตโ๐ด ๐จ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฅ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ.โ
This was also my first read in my 2021 challenge to myself to read at least 12 books by Indigenous authors. Things I googled (and would recommend googling) to enhance my reading experience: the Trail of Tears, Tsala, and the Darkening.
While I donโt think this book is for everyone, I recommend it, especially to people who enjoy literary fiction, who like weird books, who appreciate morally grey characters, and who like seeking connections across seemingly disparate storylines.
๐๐บ๐ข๐ต๐ต ๐ญ๐ข๐ถ๐ฏ๐ค๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ข ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฆ๐น๐ฑ๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐ต๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ข๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต ๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฃ๐ข๐ด๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด, ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ธ ๐ด๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ต๐ช๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐ค๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ๐ด ๐ข๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ข๐ณ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ท๐ข๐ณ๐ช๐ฐ๐ถ๐ด ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ด.
โ๐๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฌ, ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฌ.โ ๐๐บ๐ข๐ต๐ต ๐ด๐ข๐ช๐ฅ, โ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ด ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ท๐ฆ ๐ด๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฏ, ๐ณ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต? ๐๐ฉ๐ฆ๐บโ๐ณ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ช๐ฌ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฅ๐ช๐ค๐ช๐ฏ๐ฆ ๐ธ๐ช๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ต ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฃ๐ข๐ฅ ๐ต๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ฆ, ๐ณ๐ช๐จ๐ฉ๐ต? ๐๐ตโ๐ด ๐จ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฅ ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐บ๐ฐ๐ถ.โ
This was also my first read in my 2021 challenge to myself to read at least 12 books by Indigenous authors. Things I googled (and would recommend googling) to enhance my reading experience: the Trail of Tears, Tsala, and the Darkening.
While I donโt think this book is for everyone, I recommend it, especially to people who enjoy literary fiction, who like weird books, who appreciate morally grey characters, and who like seeking connections across seemingly disparate storylines.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Confinement, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Genocide, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Violence, Stalking, and Domestic abuse
thesaltiestlibrarian's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. The opinions expressed herein are mine alone and may not reflect the views of the author, publisher, or distributor.
Brandon Hobson wrote a book that is less than 300 pages, but has enough content and meaning to unpack that you could teach half a unit on this book by itself. The Removed killed me. But it healed me too.
I donโt want to get into specifics, because now that Iโve finished it, this book needs to be experienced going in blind. The blurb gives you as much as I want to give you, just enough to prepare you for the hardness of the subject matter. Brandon Hobson does the rest.
At once heartbreaking and sublime, Hobsonโs prose and characters force you to come back and finish the story. I was about a third of the way through and had considered DNF-ing this, but Iโm SO glad that I didnโt. I canโt place my finger on where--maybe the halfway mark--something hooked me again, and I had to know how everything would turn out. What started out as confusion and frustration became sudden epiphany and perfect sense when the climax dropped me into falling action. All the questions Iโd had got wrapped up and answered, and Iโm still feeling the squeeze in my heart more than twelve hours after finishing the last sentence.
What a beautiful little book. Current, horrible, sad, healing. I hate this book for making me love it so much.
Brandon Hobson wrote a book that is less than 300 pages, but has enough content and meaning to unpack that you could teach half a unit on this book by itself. The Removed killed me. But it healed me too.
I donโt want to get into specifics, because now that Iโve finished it, this book needs to be experienced going in blind. The blurb gives you as much as I want to give you, just enough to prepare you for the hardness of the subject matter. Brandon Hobson does the rest.
At once heartbreaking and sublime, Hobsonโs prose and characters force you to come back and finish the story. I was about a third of the way through and had considered DNF-ing this, but Iโm SO glad that I didnโt. I canโt place my finger on where--maybe the halfway mark--something hooked me again, and I had to know how everything would turn out. What started out as confusion and frustration became sudden epiphany and perfect sense when the climax dropped me into falling action. All the questions Iโd had got wrapped up and answered, and Iโm still feeling the squeeze in my heart more than twelve hours after finishing the last sentence.
What a beautiful little book. Current, horrible, sad, healing. I hate this book for making me love it so much.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Police brutality, Suicidal thoughts, Racial slurs, Grief, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Addiction
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Stalking, Genocide, Death, Cursing, and Child death
erins_library's review against another edition
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
(Gifted from Ecco)
The Removed by Brandon Hobson (Cherokee) follows a family as they live with the grief of losing their brother/son in a police shooting. The book takes place over a one week period, many years after the murder, as each family member moves through the world and carries the weight of that loss. I found it to be a heartbreaking, reflective storytelling experience. Itโs told in multiple perspectives, including a historical perspective from a character who lived right before the Trail of Tears. I really enjoyed how the historical character connected and wove into the larger story, I was curious how it would fit in and I loved how it played into the narrative. I also liked how the book used metaphor and symbolism. Iโm not always super tuned into what is and isnโt a metaphor, so Iโm sure Iโm just scratching the surface of it... but I like what I was able to catch.
Itโs a shorter book, at less than 300 pages, which I appreciated in many ways. It made it really impactful and because it took place over one week it very much felt like a slice of life story. We glimpsed a singular moment in time in the charactersโ lives and although it didnโt wrap up their stories by the end it was ok. It gave the sense that their lives keep going, they still have problems theyโre working through and resolving for themselves. It left me with a lot to think about.
CW: drug use, addiction, grief, police shooting, Alzheimerโs, foster care, physical abuse, alcohol, racism, slurs, trail of tears
The Removed by Brandon Hobson (Cherokee) follows a family as they live with the grief of losing their brother/son in a police shooting. The book takes place over a one week period, many years after the murder, as each family member moves through the world and carries the weight of that loss. I found it to be a heartbreaking, reflective storytelling experience. Itโs told in multiple perspectives, including a historical perspective from a character who lived right before the Trail of Tears. I really enjoyed how the historical character connected and wove into the larger story, I was curious how it would fit in and I loved how it played into the narrative. I also liked how the book used metaphor and symbolism. Iโm not always super tuned into what is and isnโt a metaphor, so Iโm sure Iโm just scratching the surface of it... but I like what I was able to catch.
Itโs a shorter book, at less than 300 pages, which I appreciated in many ways. It made it really impactful and because it took place over one week it very much felt like a slice of life story. We glimpsed a singular moment in time in the charactersโ lives and although it didnโt wrap up their stories by the end it was ok. It gave the sense that their lives keep going, they still have problems theyโre working through and resolving for themselves. It left me with a lot to think about.
CW: drug use, addiction, grief, police shooting, Alzheimerโs, foster care, physical abuse, alcohol, racism, slurs, trail of tears
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse, Addiction, Racism, Racial slurs, Grief, and Physical abuse
Minor: Police brutality
jayisreading's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.25
The best way I could describe The Removed is a stretched out feeling of longing that lingers even after the book ends. The book switches perspectives between four characters: Maria (the mother), Sonja (the daughter), Edgar (one of two sons), and Tsala (an ancestor); all of whom reflected on various themes including life and death, oneโs connection to the spirit world, and their position in the world (not only within the family and community, but also racially as Native).
Each character presented a unique perspective and different focus, though Hobson masterfully intertwines the four โstoriesโ to be in dialogue with one another, particularly that of the Echota family (Maria, Sonja, and Edgar) and their grieving over the death of the older son, Ray-Ray, who was murdered by a policeman. The story itself is centered on the day leading up to the anniversary of Ray-Rayโs death, and the familyโs attempt to bring everyone together again (geographically, and to some extent, temporally) for this moment. Between these three charactersโ perspectives existed Tsalaโs story, which was the shortest and set in the past, but also my favorite. He brought to light the horrors of the forced relocation of several Indigenous nations, including the Cherokee, and the violence they faced. However, it was the glimpses of beauty through Cherokee myth, spirits, and respect for nature that entranced me. And this care for oneโs roots spilled into the other threeโs lives, who make numerous references to the importance of nature, the spirit world, and their ancestors/family. Despite their various griefs and trauma, all four characters shared moments of beauty in their lives. Hobson presented tragedy, but also added tinges of beauty that complicated the meaning of life and death; not just for these characters, but also in general.
This book deliberately takes its time and encourages the reader to do so as well. Hobson writes with what felt like a wish for readers to pause and reflect on our position in the world through these charactersโ emotions and experiences. It may be a slow read, but itโs a beautifully crafted one.
Note: I received an ARC of The Removed in exchange for an honest review from Ecco and NetGalley.
Each character presented a unique perspective and different focus, though Hobson masterfully intertwines the four โstoriesโ to be in dialogue with one another, particularly that of the Echota family (Maria, Sonja, and Edgar) and their grieving over the death of the older son, Ray-Ray, who was murdered by a policeman. The story itself is centered on the day leading up to the anniversary of Ray-Rayโs death, and the familyโs attempt to bring everyone together again (geographically, and to some extent, temporally) for this moment. Between these three charactersโ perspectives existed Tsalaโs story, which was the shortest and set in the past, but also my favorite. He brought to light the horrors of the forced relocation of several Indigenous nations, including the Cherokee, and the violence they faced. However, it was the glimpses of beauty through Cherokee myth, spirits, and respect for nature that entranced me. And this care for oneโs roots spilled into the other threeโs lives, who make numerous references to the importance of nature, the spirit world, and their ancestors/family. Despite their various griefs and trauma, all four characters shared moments of beauty in their lives. Hobson presented tragedy, but also added tinges of beauty that complicated the meaning of life and death; not just for these characters, but also in general.
This book deliberately takes its time and encourages the reader to do so as well. Hobson writes with what felt like a wish for readers to pause and reflect on our position in the world through these charactersโ emotions and experiences. It may be a slow read, but itโs a beautifully crafted one.
Note: I received an ARC of The Removed in exchange for an honest review from Ecco and NetGalley.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Genocide, Grief, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Gun violence, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Cancer and Homophobia
More...