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A review by doughastings
Son of a Trickster by Eden Robinson
4.0
This is a really good book. The fact that it took me 6 months to finish in no way reflects on the quality of the writing. It’s just that we are in the middle of a pandemic, I live in Winnipeg (come see Canada’s most racist city!), and the graves at Kamloops, and climate change, …it’s just a pretty dark time, and this is a very serious book. I had to read it slowly, and only during the daytime. Reading it before bed kept me up. My other pandemic reading has been pretty light subject matter.
So, the book. It is so good. Jared is such a great character. Funny, smart, vulnerable, tough, kind, fucked up, together, such a rich portrayal of a complicated kid. All the other characters are fantastic too. And as a parent of young adults, she writes realistic teen dialogue. It just snaps.
It is a very intense book. It deals with the sequelae of residential schools, addiction, violence, dysfunctional families, and just the general fallout of our colonial system. Some of the violence is very graphic, one scene in particular made me put the book down for a few days. But none of the book is gratuitous, I never felt like it was sensationalistic. Life is very intense for a lot of people. I want to hear those stories too, I just sometimes need to take them in a little more slowly.
The writing is sharp, funny and evocative. I loved the weaving in of the spiritual elements. And in spite of the chaos swirling around Jared, I found it really hopeful. I am pulling for Jared and all his friends and family. And there are so many laugh out loud moments, Ms. Robinson is really, really funny.
I will definitely finish the trilogy, and look forward to reading another of her books, Monkey Beach.
P.S. how are the top two liked reviews of this book two star reviews?.?? What the what? Come on people, let’s ‘like’ the more positive reviews and move them up to the home page for the book.
So, the book. It is so good. Jared is such a great character. Funny, smart, vulnerable, tough, kind, fucked up, together, such a rich portrayal of a complicated kid. All the other characters are fantastic too. And as a parent of young adults, she writes realistic teen dialogue. It just snaps.
It is a very intense book. It deals with the sequelae of residential schools, addiction, violence, dysfunctional families, and just the general fallout of our colonial system. Some of the violence is very graphic, one scene in particular made me put the book down for a few days. But none of the book is gratuitous, I never felt like it was sensationalistic. Life is very intense for a lot of people. I want to hear those stories too, I just sometimes need to take them in a little more slowly.
The writing is sharp, funny and evocative. I loved the weaving in of the spiritual elements. And in spite of the chaos swirling around Jared, I found it really hopeful. I am pulling for Jared and all his friends and family. And there are so many laugh out loud moments, Ms. Robinson is really, really funny.
I will definitely finish the trilogy, and look forward to reading another of her books, Monkey Beach.
P.S. how are the top two liked reviews of this book two star reviews?.?? What the what? Come on people, let’s ‘like’ the more positive reviews and move them up to the home page for the book.