A review by lrocke
Catching Teller Crow by Ezekiel Kwaymullina, Ambelin Kwaymullina

challenging emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Catching Teller Crow follows two young Aboriginal women, Beth Teller and Isabelle Catching. Beth died in a car crash several months previously, but her father can still see her. He's a policeman in the city and has been sent to a small town to investigate a fire at a children's home to rule out foul play. They meet Catching, a witness to the fire, who isn't telling them everything she knows. Beth's chapters are in prose, while Catching's are in verse, which I had to reread to make sure I followed it properly as I'm not used to reading in that style. It's a story about the harm colonialism has wrought on the Indigenous people of this country, and the systemic racism that's still perpetuated. It was beautifully written and moving.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Murder, Pedophilia, Racism, and Sexual assault

Catching Teller Crow follows two young Aboriginal women, Beth Teller and Isabelle Catching. Beth died in a car crash several months previously, but her father can still see her. He's a policeman in the city and has been sent to a small town to investigate a fire at a children's home to rule out foul play. They meet Catching, a witness to the fire, who isn't telling them everything she knows. Beth's chapters are in prose, while Catching's are in verse, which I had to reread to make sure I followed it properly as I'm not used to reading in that style. It's a story about the harm colonialism has wrought on the Indigenous people of this country, and the systemic racism that's still perpetuated. It was beautifully written and moving.