Reviews with content warning for Animal death - Elatsoe

This was such a beautifully written story filled with so much Indigenous history!

Sadly, I didn't become as invested as I hoped to which impacted my overall enjoyment. I think this is a book I personally need to physically read at a slower pace to fully appreciate whereas I listed via audio rather quickly.

I definitely plan on picking this book up again when I'm in a different headspace to truly admire it!

Content Warnings

minervacerridwen's review

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adventurous mysterious relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

I've been wanting to read Elatsoe since it came out in 2020 (a couple of weeks before my own ace book!), and now I finally got around to it thanks to my book club. Even after anticipating the read for so long, it delivered. I really hope this will become a new children's classic, because there is so much in this story that I feel is of great value. The way the prejudice against the Lipan Apache people is touched upon, the way the 17-year-old main character is actually believed by the adults in her life when she tells them she is asexual. Those aren't big elements in this story at all, but they are remarkably well done. And then there's the mystery itself, which maintains its tension throughout and yet doesn't leave you hanging at any point because you're discovering just enough new information at just the right times. It reminded me of some of my favourite (Dutch-language) books of my childhood, but with an extra sparkle of magic and so much more soul. And then there's all the cute animals! The way stories are used to transfer important cultural knowledge! The beautiful illustrations by Rovina Cai that add an entire little story of their own to each chapter!
I'm definitely going to read the prequel too.

Content Warnings

hanjssick's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Daria cinco estrelas pra esse livro, se não fosse pelas histórias contadas com aquela letra diferente. Já me incomoda quando isso é feito com a letra cursiva, com essa é pior ainda.

Me apaixonei pelo Jay, extremamente carismático e impossível de não amar. Gostei muito de todos os personagens, mas ele em específico me cativou.

É uma fantasia que mistura sobrenatural com elementos culturais Lipan Apache, acho isso muito interessante pra variar das fantasias genéricas que vemos por aí.

Além da diversidade étinica, temos protagonismo assexual. Eu gosto muito mais quando o fato do personagem ser LGBT+ fica explícito e eles usam as palavras, mas acontece de forma natural com apenas uma ou duas frases sendo necessárias. Se você lê um livro só por ter uma personagem assexual e espera que por isso a obra inteira seja focada apenas na sexualidade dela, o problema está em você.