Reviews

Heart Berries: A Memoir by Terese Marie Mailhot

courtharman's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

colleend's review against another edition

Go to review page

reflective sad medium-paced

3.5

karimorton33's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

I expected to like this book a lot more than I did. I suppose in the end I just didn’t enjoy the writer’s style, I usually struggle with stream of consciousness type books. There were some really poignant bits of this book, but overall it didn’t amount to what I thought it would I guess. (Read for Feminist Book Club)

christinecasey's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

I loved some parts of this. It was beautifully written, and I could feel the pain and power in her writing.
However, maybe it was the unreliability of her as a narrator when she was struggling through her mental illness, but I just couldn’t get behind her love story.
Not all stories need to be tied up in a neat bow. But I was left feeling unsatisfied. Did she get her happy ending?

whatchareadingheather's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

Listening to this was equal parts heartbreaking and inspiring at the same time. Mailhot is not afraid to share the messy parts of her life, and very much doesn't sugarcoat anything. It's a breath of fresh air to hear someone outright say that while they have been dealt some crappy hands in life that they are not broken, and even more so coming from an indigenous voice. 

zhisa's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

rcgarcia's review against another edition

Go to review page

I couldn’t finish it. I thought it would be more narrative, but it’s more poetic. Just not for me.

arrowheartemoji's review against another edition

Go to review page

2.0

memoir is hard to rate because everyone deserves to tell their story and i am so glad she found whatever she did in creating this. just didn’t hit for me ! 

flying_monkeys's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

tjwallace04's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

 "Heart Berries" is a brief but powerful memoir that will crack your heart open. Terese Marie Mailhot cuts to the bone with her descriptions of mental illness, abuse and neglect, difficult romantic relationships, motherhood, loss, and art. I was especially moved by her thoughts on her own mother, who did not parent particularly well, but whom Mailhot seems unwilling to condemn, loyalty and love taking the upper hand in her memories. And her letters to her romantic partner (now ex-husband, I believe) were particularly powerful. The raw need, love, and feelings of betrayal and jealousy are all delivered viscerally and unforgettably. It was also very moving to see her complex and even contradictory feelings about being a Native woman - sometimes proud and sometimes filled with self-hatred, describing herself as a "squaw," dirty and untouchable. Mailhot has a powerful talent. I would like to read more by her.