rseykora's review against another edition
4.0
The writing is poetic. I appreciated how the author incorporated birds, dictionary meanings and gun violence with her personal experiences with trauma, abuse, and life as a BIPOC woman.
missrhinnan's review against another edition
3.0
First off, the cover of this book is gorgeous. That said, I was really looking forward to this book. I love it when authors read their own books, especially memoirs of personal essays. Unfortunately the author’s reading in this case was a distraction: sometimes in a somewhat sing-song rhythm, often just in an inscrutable cadence that both detracted and distracted from the content, with rises and falls and flats in places in the sentences that I just could not understand. I realize that she is a poet and this could explain some of that but I just had a hard time focusing on the content bc I found her reading cadence so distracting. Additionally, I realize that this is a collection of essays, some previously published, but there was also a lot of repetition.
gemini_love3's review against another edition
4.0
I'm surprised how much I did enjoy the book. There were difficult parts but how else does one write about the horrors of domestic, gun, and state violence. It was honest and brutal. A story worth reading and digesting.
juliadejong's review against another edition
3.0
3.5* probably my own fault for taking so long to finish it
mrsdarcylynn's review
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
4.0
I listened to the audiobook, which I think lended some power to the narrative. A very important book on contemporary America. There were some quirks to the writing that I had a really hard time with (the repetitive use of “in this, our America”) but otherwise I really enjoyed the book.
petra_reads_07's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
5.0
awhipp17's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
she has a writing style and uses writing techniques that feel very much her own. at least a stamp on this book. she weaves the snippets of each essay so beautifully and even the essays in the book are arranged in such a way as to come full circle, to feel connected and woven together. after all, they are connected, she are all about her life, and her perspective, experiences and context are carried with her throughout her life as she encounters new. she shows us how people and experiences in her life affect her as their distance in time moves on, as her relationship with the people evolves. she shows us without panic or overdramatization what it is like to live through scary things. how she processes these things. how she carries these things. she isn't overly judgmental, she isn't trying to show herself in a good light or a bad light, she is reflecting and reporting the imperfectness of herself, of the moments, of what has happened to her. she is sort of out-of-body. she doesn't report too much on her emotions, or maybe she does but they somehow aren't meant to try to make me feel like i'm right there with her, but i am affected by her writing. i do feel emotions. she helps me to see the quilt, how its all connected. what a special kind of writing. her stories are entrancing. i feel like i trust her. i trust that the story will wrap up in a circular way. there is comfort in that, even if there is pain the story she told. they make me reflect too. showing so many facets to the issue of abuse, violence, guns, and Indigenous experiences. what a great book.
ckkurata529's review against another edition
5.0
Heavy and hard to read because of the themes of violence and complicated love. The use of language was eerily beautiful and I got a glimpse into an America I so rarely see: rural, south, midwest, conservative. Topically, I can’t think of a more relevant book that intersects race, gender, what it means to be American….
mcait9's review against another edition
5.0
“The taking by force of our land has always been twinned with the taking by force of our bodies.”
A powerful account of intersection of identities and of experiences.
A powerful account of intersection of identities and of experiences.
shananergan's review against another edition
5.0
The best writing I’ve encountered in a long time. This book will be in the collection of books I readily recommend to any aspiring CNF writer.