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A review by doritobabe
The Break by Katherena Vermette
5.0
The Break is a book that has simultaneously broken my heart and helped to put a few healing staples back in. Vermette's first novel is worthy of its award and it's run in the CBC Reads competition.
A novel about family and healing, resilience, specifically the power of women, and time; it's all about time.
TL;DR:
Writing: 4.5/5 (Simple text that is encapsulating and inspiring for the mind. Characters, events, and locations that the imagination can grow and shape and relate to.)
Plot: 5/5 (This plot is painful. It rips the soul out of the reader. But then, you feel okay. You can grow. You heal and adjust alongside each of these characters. You learn about life and tragedy through sharing this experience with them.)
Characters: 4/5 (One could argue that having so many characters makes things a bit hard to follow. This feeling was similar to the one instilled by the web of characters in [b:One Hundred Years of Solitude|320|One Hundred Years of Solitude|Gabriel García Márquez|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327881361s/320.jpg|3295655] or [b:Wuthering Heights|6185|Wuthering Heights|Emily Brontë|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388212715s/6185.jpg|1565818] -- where it is a dizzying array of personal realities and histories that make up one complex story.)
First things first: Vermette included a trigger warning. THANKS FOR THAT. Seriously. Probably saved her and some readers a lot more problems and shock. I know that I braced myself, but it wasn't enough for what was to come.
The Break centers around a heartbreakingly violent event that affects several generations of one family. This book is about violence that people inflict on each other because of violence previously done unto themselves, their family, their peoples.
Vermette takes the reader through several women's perspectives and lives to show the affects of such a brutal action on different minds. Specifically, how one's personal and cultural identity and ties with family can help with healing. Themes of strong familial relationships and how these affect cultural and personal identity are central to this novel. Other readers may argue for the overarching themes of racism and colonialism pervade this novel --which I do not deny-- but I prefer to take a more loving, optimistic stance towards this novel. It personally helped me get through the painful colonialist and violent reality of these pages.
I think this is one of my favorite reads of 2017 and has affected me as much as [b:Monkey Beach|940388|Monkey Beach|Eden Robinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320465113s/940388.jpg|314881] did.
A novel about family and healing, resilience, specifically the power of women, and time; it's all about time.
TL;DR:
Writing: 4.5/5 (Simple text that is encapsulating and inspiring for the mind. Characters, events, and locations that the imagination can grow and shape and relate to.)
Plot: 5/5 (This plot is painful. It rips the soul out of the reader. But then, you feel okay. You can grow. You heal and adjust alongside each of these characters. You learn about life and tragedy through sharing this experience with them.)
Characters: 4/5 (One could argue that having so many characters makes things a bit hard to follow. This feeling was similar to the one instilled by the web of characters in [b:One Hundred Years of Solitude|320|One Hundred Years of Solitude|Gabriel García Márquez|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327881361s/320.jpg|3295655] or [b:Wuthering Heights|6185|Wuthering Heights|Emily Brontë|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388212715s/6185.jpg|1565818] -- where it is a dizzying array of personal realities and histories that make up one complex story.)
First things first: Vermette included a trigger warning. THANKS FOR THAT. Seriously. Probably saved her and some readers a lot more problems and shock. I know that I braced myself, but it wasn't enough for what was to come.
The Break centers around a heartbreakingly violent event that affects several generations of one family. This book is about violence that people inflict on each other because of violence previously done unto themselves, their family, their peoples.
Vermette takes the reader through several women's perspectives and lives to show the affects of such a brutal action on different minds. Specifically, how one's personal and cultural identity and ties with family can help with healing. Themes of strong familial relationships and how these affect cultural and personal identity are central to this novel. Other readers may argue for the overarching themes of racism and colonialism pervade this novel --which I do not deny-- but I prefer to take a more loving, optimistic stance towards this novel. It personally helped me get through the painful colonialist and violent reality of these pages.
I think this is one of my favorite reads of 2017 and has affected me as much as [b:Monkey Beach|940388|Monkey Beach|Eden Robinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320465113s/940388.jpg|314881] did.