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A review by annamolpus
Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Our heroine is a scientist obsessed with an endangered species that she loves dearly. In fact, she often identifies more with the animals she studies than with her fellow humans. She has significant trauma in her past, some of which is alluded to only obliquely so that the reader slowly pieces together what happened via flashbacks sprinkled throughout the novel. As the novel begins, our heroine has travelled to a foreign land on a possibly-doomed quest to save her species, where she's greeted with distrust - or even outright hostility - from the locals who feel their livelihood is threatened. However, over time, she forms a found family of sorts with a motley crew of people who develop respect for her obsession even if they don't always understand it.
My only issue with my synopsis of Migrations above is that it applies equally to McConaghy's subsequent novel "Once There Were Wolves." As it happens, I read Once There Were Wolves first, so it felt fresher to me then and Wolves is my favorite of the two. There are certainly differences between the novels, but I must admit that as I began Migrations, I was pretty quickly struck by the similarities. Nevertheless, I enjoyed Migrations and found it very moving. It takes place in a near future where most species are going extinct at a rapid pace, which is certainly a sobering premise. I would've preferred a slightly more straightforward recounting of the protagonist's past trauma (she's an unreliable narrator). But the well-developed characters and passion for nature were a draw for me.
I'd recommend this for fans of character-centric literary fiction, particularly with a passion for environmentalism.
My only issue with my synopsis of Migrations above is that it applies equally to McConaghy's subsequent novel "Once There Were Wolves." As it happens, I read Once There Were Wolves first, so it felt fresher to me then and Wolves is my favorite of the two. There are certainly differences between the novels, but I must admit that as I began Migrations, I was pretty quickly struck by the similarities. Nevertheless, I enjoyed Migrations and found it very moving. It takes place in a near future where most species are going extinct at a rapid pace, which is certainly a sobering premise. I would've preferred a slightly more straightforward recounting of the protagonist's past trauma (she's an unreliable narrator). But the well-developed characters and passion for nature were a draw for me.
I'd recommend this for fans of character-centric literary fiction, particularly with a passion for environmentalism.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Car accident
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Violence
Minor: Sexual assault, Suicide, and Suicide attempt