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The Bone People by Keri Hulme
4.0

Some very uncomfortable reading (prepare to sob!) in this disquieting novel about isolation, cultural survival, trauma, dysfunctional love and extremely violent child abuse. Hulme's writing style is vivid, graphic, poetic; her leading lady is a memorable character, refreshingly liberated but the novel is overlong and the chaotic final segment despoils the importance of what went before. It's worth pointing out that Hulme put the ending in the prologue, which makes a bit more sense when you re-read as a conclusion. Recommended.