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Review: Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley

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Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

Firekeeper’s Daughter
Angeline Boulley
Henry Holt & Co.
Published March 16, 2021

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About Firekeeper’s Daughter

As a biracial, unenrolled tribal member and the product of a scandal, Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in—both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. When her family is struck by tragedy, Daunis puts her dreams on hold to care for her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother’s hockey team.

After Daunis witnesses a shocking murder that thrusts her into a criminal investigation, she agrees to go undercover. But the deceptions—and deaths—keep piling up and soon the threat strikes too close to home. How far will she go to protect her community if it means tearing apart the only world she’s ever known?

My Review

Firekeeper’s Daughter has been on my reading list since the book came out in 2021. I read Warrior Girl, Unearthed in 2023, which has some of the same characters in it. There are also a few spoilers for this book, so I was prepared for a couple of the things that happened, but I still found the story and Daunis as a narrator especially compelling.

The story follows relationships between Daunis and her friends, family, and community members. These relationships add so much richness to the story. Daunis has connections to elders who share wisdom about tribal life and values. She meets a handsome hockey player who makes her question her views about relationships and whether guys can be trusted.

Her love for her community drives her forward, and that love comes through in every move she makes, even in her most conflicted moments. She has strong relationships with several women. Some of these help her when she needs them. Others need her help.

The story explores how law enforcement can neglect or harm tribal communities, especially Indigenous women. One of the things Daunis wrestles with is whether her role in the criminal investigation will help or hurt her community. She’s determined to make sure she helps, but so many pieces of the investigation stand outside her control.

Conclusion

Firekeeper’s Daughter created a lot of buzz the year it came out, and justifiably so. The story had me completely captivated and pulled me into the heart of an Indigenous community grieving over the loss of young lives and the people working hard to understand why it happened. It’s a powerful story with a lot of suspense and a bit of romance.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 16 up.

Representation
Daunis is biracial. Her mom is white, and her dad is Ojibwe. Most major characters are indigenous.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Some F-bombs and other profanity used fairly frequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. References to sex. At one point, a boy and girl have sex– only sparse details are included. Someone prepares to assault a girl. The assault is implied and not described, but it’s referenced later. A boy kisses a girl without consent. A boy makes a sexual comment about a girl. Someone brags about sexual exploits.

Spiritual Content
References to prayer and tribal practices such as making offerings at river crossings. References to tribal teachings, stories, and medicines.

Violent Content
Someone attacks a girl. A boy punches another boy after he makes a sexual comment about her. References to a fatal car accident. A girl punches a boy in the face. Someone drugs a girl. A girl finds the body of a missing person. A group kidnaps two people and threatens them. Someone causes a car accident.

Drug Content
References to alcohol and drug addiction. References to creating methamphetamine and distributing it. Someone gives Daunis a beer at a party.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: Visitations by Corey Egbert

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Visitations
Corey Egbert
Farrar, Straus, and Giroux
Published December 17, 2024

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About Visitations

Inspired by true events, this haunting yet hopeful young adult graphic novel weaves together family dynamics, mental illness, and religion―perfect for fans of Hey, Kiddo.

Corey’s mom has always made him feel safe. Especially after his parents’ divorce, and the dreaded visitations with his dad begin. But as Corey grows older, he can’t ignore his mother’s increasingly wild accusations. Her insistence that God has appointed Corey as his sister’s protector. Her declaration that Corey’s father is the devil.

Soon, she whisks Corey and his sister away from their home and into the boiling Nevada desert. There, they struggle to survive with little food and the police on the trail. Meanwhile, under the night sky, Corey is visited by a flickering ghost, a girl who urges him to fight for a different world―one outside of his mother’s spoon-fed tales, one Corey must find before it’s too late.

Drawing inspiration from his own upbringing in the Mormon church, Corey Egbert welcomes readers on an emotionally stirring, nuanced journey into the liminal spaces between imagination and memory, faith and truth.

My Review

I think the thing that breaks my heart the most about this story is the way that Corey’s mom used religion to isolate him and his sister from Corey’s dad. There’s more to it than that, but it was honestly heartbreaking to read some of those scenes where Corey’s dad tries to be as normal as possible around kids who’ve clearly been instructed to freeze him out.

Corey wrestles with some heavy questions about his faith in the midst of some pretty wild circumstances. There’s a lot to process for him. His mom basically kidnaps him and his sister. At first, he has confidence in her faith. But as time goes on and their situation becomes more dire, things get weirder and weirder.

We watch him and his sister trying to figure out how to respond to this situation in which they suddenly have real questions about the person they’ve believed is the most trustworthy. Where is the tipping point at which you push back and stop listening to this person? How does that work when they are the adult and you’re the child?

The book explores some really heavy ideas like that, but it also celebrates the complexity of family relationships. The author is careful not to demonize the character with mental health issues but doesn’t minimize the harm that untreated illness causes.

Visitations offers a critical window into a high-control religious family and what that looks like from within. While that experience may be foreign to a lot of readers, the characters’ expressions and dialog between characters make it easy to empathize with Corey.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Representation
Corey and his family are practicing Mormons. One character has mental health issues.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
References to child sexual abuse. (Nothing happens in-scene.) Corey has a crush on a girl at school. He feels ashamed about his attraction to her. He feels uncomfortable while in the parking lot of a place where there are sex workers present.

Spiritual Content
Corey and his family are Mormon. They pray together and he learns verses and stories from the Book of Mormon. Corey’s prayer experience is sometimes illustrated to show him confronting a character that represents his perception of God as an old man with white hair.

Corey has been taught to believe that when things go wrong, it’s the enemy obstructing Heavenly Father’s plan.

Violent Content
Corey’s grandfather is arrested for abusing a child. (Nothing shown in the scenes of the book.) Corey’s mom worries that someone has abused Corey’s sister. Scenes show kidnapping and hiding from police.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: 49 Days by Agnes Lee

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49 Days
Agnes Lee
Levine Quierido
Published March 5, 2024

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About 49 Days

Day 1

Gotta get up. Gotta keep moving. This map – it says I have to cross over here. Wait, what’s that…?

And so begins a graphic novel story unlike any 49 Days. In Buddhist tradition, a person must travel for forty-nine days after they die, before they can fully cross over. Here in this book, readers travel with one Korean American girl, Kit, on her journey, while also spending time with her family and friends left behind.

Agnes Lee has captivated readers across the world for years with her illustrations for the New York Times Metropolitan Diary. Her debut graphic novel is an unforgettable story of death, grief, love, and how we keep moving forward.

My Review

One of the things I love about this book is how immersive it is. Kit wakes up on a beach and swears, so I knew things were not good. It took several pages for me to feel like I found my feet in the story, but I think that was the author’s intent. It emphasizes that Kit is in a new space, figuring things out on her own. As her experience triggers memories from her life, we see those memories play out in short scenes. We see her family light incense and pray as they grieve their loss. When the story shifts from those prayer scenes back to Kit on her journey, it seems the prayers have fortified her and helped move her forward on her journey.

The panels and scenes are often understated in muted grayscale with tan colors. The characters’ emotions also often seem understated. It’s clear Kit’s family misses her, but they seem somber at first. As the story progresses, they experience moments of intense grief that create powerful moments. I think I cried like three times reading this book.

Another wonderful thing about the book is the way that food connects the characters. As a girl raised in a big Italian family, this resonated with me so much. I love that making food together was a connection between Kit and her mom, and that it becomes a vehicle through which her family celebrates their love for her even after she has passed.

The author includes a note after the story concludes explaining her intent and her decision to keep Buddhist practices vague in the text to respect the different ways people practice faith. She names the rituals and practices represented in the book, too.

I actually heard about this book because I read a wild review by someone who I think didn’t get the book at all. It made me curious enough to track down a copy, and I’m really glad I did.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Kit and her family are Korean American.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
One F-bomb and a small number of other expletives.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Kit dies before the story begins, and the story follows her 49-day journey between life and rebirth, called bardo, as part of the Buddhist faith. Her family lights incense and prays, following funeral rites called cheondojae.

Violent Content
References to death, though we do not see how Kit died. In her 49-day journey, she has several moments where she resets following what would have been a fatal choice.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: The Judgment of Yoyo Gold by Isaac Blum

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The Judgment of Yoyo Gold
Isaac Blum
Philomel Books
Published October 15, 2024

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About The Judgment of Yoyo Gold

A smart and powerful story set in the Orthodox Jewish community about what it means to fit in, break out, and find your own way, by the award-winning author of The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen. This book is Gossip Girl + My Name Is Asher Lev + I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter.

Yoyo Gold has always played the role of the perfect Jewish daughter. She keeps kosher, looks after her siblings, and volunteers at the local food bank. She respects the decisions of her rabbi father and encourages her friends to observe the rules of their Orthodox faith. But when she sees her best friend cast out of the community over a seemingly innocent transgression, Yoyo’s eyes are opened to the truth of her neighbors’ hypocrisies for the first time. And what she sees leaves her shocked and unmoored.

As Yoyo’s frustration builds, so does the pressure to speak out, even if she can only do so anonymously on TikTok, an app that’s always been forbidden to her. But when one of her videos goes viral—and her decisions wind up impacting not only her own life but also her relationship with the boy she’s falling for—Yoyo’s world is thrown into chaos. She is forced to choose which path to take, for her community, for her family, and most importantly, for herself.

Award-winning author Isaac Blum returns with a new novel that asks what it really means to be part of a community—and what it means to break free.

My Review

I feel like this is one of those books whose sum is greater than its parts. It’s a girl’s exploration of her faith and what it means to her. It’s a dry, funny story about growing up and falling in love.

One of my favorite things about the book is all the moments in which Yoyo responds to a situation with some unexpected, funny aside. Sometimes it’s a quick after-the-fact joke. Those moments consistently took me by surprise and added levity to the scene.

I also like how much of the story centers around female relationships with one another and the power of those connections to protect or destroy. The girls could be cruel to one another. In a close community like Yoyo’s, rumors could be devastating. But that same close community meant that girls holding space for one another and offering support or understanding also had a huge impact.

At this point, I think we’ve all read books about faith deconstruction in which the main character grows up and discards the beliefs and values they were raised to hold. The message is usually something along the lines of exposing hypocrisy and casting off faith which held one back from living a fuller, more authentic life.

This isn’t that story. It’s frank in its assessment of the strictures of the Orthodox faith. Yoyo’s questions are genuine, and her struggle is real. But it isn’t a binary question of whether she will embrace her faith or discard it. Her path forward isn’t simple, but it does lead her toward greater authenticity and a greater understanding of what her role in her family and community and her faith mean to her.

I can tell I’m going to be thinking about this book for a long time, and I’m really excited to read more by Isaac Blum. I have his debut novel, but hadn’t gotten to it yet. I’m going to have to fix that very soon!

Readers who enjoy faith exploration or stories about someone’s journey toward a more authentic life will want to read this one.

Content Notes for The Judgment of Yoyo Gold

Recommended for Ages 14 up.

Representation
Most characters are Jewish. One of Yoyo’s friends is Korean American and Jewish.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
A very small number of swear words.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. References to touching over clothes.

Spiritual Content
Yoyo is part of an Orthodox community and adheres to strict faith practices and beliefs. Through the story she explores her relationship with her faith and with those rules. Is she doing things because she wants to or because it’s expected? Does she agree with the values of the community? What happens when someone breaks the rules? The story references Shabbos services, holidays, and other Jewish traditions.

Violent Content
Some references to antisemitic comments on Yoyo’s social media. Reference to sexually violent comments. (Yoyo doesn’t repeat what commenters said, only that it’s explicit and violent.)

Drug Content
Yoyo and other teens drink alcohol at a party. Yoyo sees someone using a vape pen.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: The Shape of Lost Things by Sarah Everett

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The Shape of Lost Things
Sarah Everett
HarperCollins
Published October 24, 2024

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About The Shape of Lost Things

From the award-winning author of The Probability of Everything, which has been called “one of the best books I have read this year (maybe ever)” (Colby Sharp, Nerdy Book Club) and “Powerful” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review),comes a heartfelt exploration of family and change as twelve-year-old Skye reunites with her older brother, Finn, after he spent four years on the run with their father.

Skye Nickson’s world changed forever when her dad went on the run with her brother, Finn. It’s been four years without Finn’s jokes, four years without her father’s old soul music, and four years of Skye filling in as Rent-a-Finn on his MIA birthdays for their mom. Finn’s birthday is always difficult, but at least Skye has her best friends, Reece and Jax, to lean on, even if Reece has started acting too cool for them.

But this year is different because after Finn’s birthday, they get a call that he’s finally been found. Tall, quiet, and secretive, this Finn is nothing like the brother she grew up with. He keeps taking late-night phone calls and losing his new expensive gifts, and he doesn’t seem to remember any of their inside jokes or secrets.

As Skye tries to make sense of it all through the lens of her old Polaroid camera, she starts to wonder: Could this Finn be someone else entirely? And if everyone else has changed, does it mean that Skye has to change too?

My Review

I was looking forward to reading this book, and then I read a couple of reviews about how great the story is, and I couldn’t wait to read it even more. My expectations were high, and they were met!

One of the things I noticed about this book is that it’s the first I’ve read that features a formerly kidnapped character in a nonwhite family. I think the other stories I’ve read about kidnapping have centered around white characters. So I am really glad to see new readers get to see themselves represented in a story like this.

While the characters’ race isn’t a huge component of the story, there are moments that it intersects with what’s happening in the story. I think the author did a great job balancing those instances and letting them have space but keeping the story accessible to young readers.

I loved Skye as a character. She is in the midst of middle school friendship transitions, and that’s compounded by the fact that her mom is in a new relationship, and her brother has returned home after a four-year absence.

Her reactions made so much sense. I especially loved the scenes showing her in therapy and how she was both guarded against being drawn out and yet so clearly needed a space to talk about her life that sometimes she opened up despite herself.

Her relationship with Finn is great, too. His behavior made so much more sense looking back from the end of the book. I thought the author also did a great job keeping Skye centered as the main character but making space for Finn’s trauma, too.

All in all, this is a deeply moving story about family trauma and sibling relationships. I highly recommend this one.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 8 to 12.

Representation
Skye’s family is Black. Her dad has an undiagnosed mental illness.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Skye has a crush on a boy in school.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Skye’s dad kidnapped her brother years earlier.

Drug Content
None.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

Review: A Constellation of Minor Bears by Jen Ferguson

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A Constellation of Minor Bears
Jen Ferguson
Heartdrum
Published September 24, 2024

Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads

About A Constellation of Minor Bears

Award-winning author Jen Ferguson has written a powerful story about teens grappling with balancing resentment with enduring friendship—and how to move forward with a life that’s not what they’d imagined.

Before that awful Saturday, Molly used to be inseparable from her brother, Hank, and his best friend, Tray. The indoor climbing accident that left Hank with a traumatic brain injury filled Molly with anger.

While she knows the accident wasn’t Tray’s fault, she will never forgive him for being there and failing to stop the damage. But she can’t forgive herself for not being there either.

Determined to go on the trio’s post-graduation hike of the Pacific Crest Trail, even without Hank, Molly packs her bag. But when her parents put Tray in charge of looking out for her, she is stuck backpacking with the person who incites her easy anger.

Despite all her planning, the trail she’ll walk has a few more twists and turns ahead. . . .

Discover the evocative storytelling and emotion from the author of The Summer of Bitter and Sweet, which was the winner of the Governor General’s Award, a Stonewall Award honor book, and a Morris Award finalist, as well as Those Pink Mountain Nights, a Kirkus Best Book of the Year!

My Review

I’ve heard so many great things about Jen Ferguson’s books that I’m only sorry it took me so long to read one. This book tackles some complex issues through characters who struggle to communicate their thoughts and feelings in ways that aren’t hurtful or difficult. (So relatable! Especially thinking of myself as a teenager.)

I really appreciated the author’s content note at the opening of the book, which offers some context for and information about the difficult topics (fat abuse, fatphobia, ableism, and racism) that the story includes. Those things often stay on the fringes of the novel but could still be really difficult for some readers. The author also includes a note at the end of the book in which she shares more about how our culture responds to fatness, disability, and our relationship to the traditional unceded lands of Indigenous people. There’s great stuff to be read in those notes.

The novel also contains some great stuff. At its core, it’s about the relationship between Molly, her brother Hank, and their best friend Tray. The relationships have become more strained since Hank’s climbing accident, and it’s unclear whether they can reconcile.

The narrative mostly shifts back and forth between Molly and Tray’s perspectives. Occasionally, Hank’s AITA posts appear between chapters, describing his thoughts and feelings and commenters’ responses. The book is divided into parts labeled according to the parts of a song. Tray is a songwriter, so some of his conflicts are resolved with and through music. Molly is a science girl, so she thinks about the science of injuries and healing. She thinks about stars and facts.

Ultimately, A Constellation of Minor Bears is a book about dealing with the unexpected. It’s about how relationships change, and how we need each other, but not always in the ways others want us to need them. It’s about figuring out how to listen to one another without judgment.

Plot-wise, the story starts off a little bit slow. Molly and Tray are so uncomfortable together. Once Brynn joins the group, the pace and energy really pick up, and I wanted to read from there all the way through to the end.

Content Notes

Recommended for Ages 15 up.

Representation
Tray and Molly are Métis. Molly’s brother Hank is white and disabled after a climbing fall. Molly is bisexual. Hank is gay. Other minor characters are queer. Molly and another character are plus-sized.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
A fair number of f-bombs and other profanity. The crew have a joke that when someone says something ridiculous, they’ll call it out as bear sh**. Someone responds by clarifying that they mean no offense to any bears. It adds some lightness to difficult conversations and situations.

Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing between boy and girl. References to kissing between two girls.

Spiritual Content
References to Métis spiritual practices, rituals, and stories.

Violent Content
Contains some ableist comments. Contains instances of abuse and fatphobia (most happen off-scene). References to anti-Indigenous comments and actions.

Drug Content
Characters drink alcohol. References to side characters smoking weed. One character is hospitalized after drinking far too much.

Note: This post contains affiliate links, which do not cost you anything to use but help support this blog. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.