A review by readbyryan
The Sentence by Louise Erdrich

dark emotional funny hopeful mysterious sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

THE SENTENCE is a book for the moment. Set just before and into Covid, Tookie is just released from prison after 10 years and gets a job at a bookstore. One day one of her most annoying patron’s, Flora, passes away and starts haunting the store. Her step-daughter Hetta returns home one day with a baby.

Set in Minneapolis during Covid and the George Floyd protests, this book feels so present and real, written and published while we are still processing many of these events. Tookie is the heart of this book and a great character. She’s Native American and works for an indigenous bookstore. I love her relationship with her husband, Pollux. The cast of characters who work at the bookstore is fantastic. Tookie’s interaction with her grandson made me smile.

This book is about many hauntings. Sure, there is the haunting of the bookshop. But Tookie is haunted by her past in prison. She’s haunted by her heritage that she has an uneasy relationship with. At the same time, the country is haunted by the lingering effects of Covid (on the body and society.) While Minneapolis, is haunted by the brutal murder of George Floyd.

Though heavy at times, there were many moments that made me laugh from the humor or from the delightful interactions of the characters. I thought that this is a brilliant book, for readers, from a bookstore owner, capturing the zeitgeist of a society in turmoil.▪️