Reviews

Read for class- but I am starting to be really glad I took this class. Nanapush's chapters were a 4 star, but Pauline was so insufferable it brought it down a full star. It was so fun to see the origins of characters we learned about in love medicine. I really loved Fleur- I think the decision to never see her from her own perspective and rather through the eyes of Nanapush and Pauline was an interesting choice. It preserved this ethereal quality she had, like she was a creature out of a legend rather then an actual person. Erdrich continues to impress with her writing and interweaving different themes and ideas. I have noticed she really seems to like birthing scenes, which is... interesting, to say the least.
"Many times in my life, as my children were born, I wondered what it was like to be a woman, able to invent a human from the extra materials of her own body. In the terrible times, the evils I do not speak of, when the earth swallowed back all it had given me to love, I gave birth in loss. I was like a woman in my suffering, but my children were all delivered into death. It was contrary, backward, but now I had a chance to put things into a proper order."

dllh's review against another edition

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3.0

This is good old classic Erdrich, telling the story of some of the characters who pop up elsewhere in her work. In particular I like Nanapush, who plays a prominent role in this one.

finchwing's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective tense 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? Yes

5.0

What a beautiful book. It took me until maybe halfway through the book to understand how to read it, so I will be rereading it soon. A gorgeous yet painful exploration of love, family, meaning, religion, power, and the struggle of the transition from native american to colonizer control over land.

Content Warnings