"And I understood as long as there are dreamers left, there will never be want for a dream."I love The Marrow Thieves! Cherie Dimaline mixed the perfect blend of dystopia with a bit of science fiction, love, and hope and created a beautiful story about the human condition.And the way they took care of Minerva 😭Read this if you like:• Indigenous fiction• Found family• Dystopian fiction
Good
Loved this book. Much like Tender Is The Flesh (by Agustina Bazterrica) The Marrow Thieves is a dystopian fiction that made me feel uncomfortable because I could see it happening.In a world where only Indeginous Peoples can dream, they are hunted and killed by the government to harvest their marrow, which allows others to dream again.You also had a coming of age story in a world where the MCs very existence is threatened when all he wants to do is form community and learn his past.
This book destroyed me and then mended me back more whole than I was before. The theme of the story is perseverance through loss; surviving the unsurvivable and finding new and old reasons to continue. I am mixed. Métis and Irish on my mom’s side and a bunch of everything on my dad’s side. Reading a book where I can truly identify is rare. The sense of culture loss and the slow trickle of more of that culture being erased by lack of opportunities to pass it on spoke so much to me. As did the scramble to fight to maintain and learn it. The sprinkling of words that Frenchie held onto like treasure… I felt that to my core. There’s so much to pay attention to in this book… so many important stories and threads that all create something so beautiful… and yet also it’s got hints of teen angst, first love, and jealousy… it all wrapped up into this book that is immediately one of my favorites.
This YA dystopian novel is one of the best things I’ve read all year. Brilliantly crafted, it ripped my heart out over and over again, and yet, the threads of resilience and hope are so artfully woven through that while you morn, you never despair. The last chapter had me sobbing like a baby in the best, most joyous way. I’m a little now just writing this.Read this book. It has five damn medals on the cover for a reason.
📚 120/100 (2024 Reading Goal)📖 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙬 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨✍️ 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲 𝗗𝗶𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲🎧 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝗴𝘄𝘂𝗻 𝗙𝗮𝗶𝗿𝗯𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗱:Post apocalyptic, dystopian, native/indigenous peoples’ stories, beautiful prose, first person narrative, found family𝗙𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗤𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗲(𝘀):“I watched his soul fold up on itself like a closing door. The light and warmth and humanity clapped shut in his eyes because he couldn’t protect the one thing that mattered. There was no coming back from that, even if he did manage to walk away later on, which he wouldn’t.”“So much laid to waste from the miscalculation of infallibility in the face of a planet’s revolt.”“And how quickly people would forget the art in the Indian and instead see only the commodity.”“‘…running only works if you’re moving towards something, not away. Otherwise, you’ll never get anywhere.’”𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄:“The Marrow Thieves” by Cherie Dimaline is an exquisitely crafted post-apocalyptic tale that deeply affected me, resonating long after the final chapter. Dimaline’s unique gift for world-building creates a setting that is both heartbreakingly desolate and hauntingly beautiful. The post-apocalyptic landscape is vividly depicted, immersing me in its stark reality and tender moments of hope.The story is more than just a dystopian adventure; it’s a poignant exploration of humanity’s resilience and the enduring power of connection. Each character is intricately developed, their struggles and triumphs painting a comprehensive picture of survival and love in a world gone awry. Dimaline skillfully interweaves the pre-apocalypse struggles of Indigenous peoples, highlighting their history of resistance, cultural richness, and the profound impact of their unique gift of dreaming.In this dystopian future, where the world has been ravaged and people have lost the ability to dream, the Indigenous peoples’ ability to dream becomes a coveted resource. They are hunted for their bone marrow, which holds the key to restoring this lost ability. This brutal reality adds a chilling layer to the narrative, underscoring the ongoing exploitation and marginalization of Indigenous communities. Dimaline’s portrayal of these harrowing circumstances is both powerful and deeply moving, shedding light on the resilience and strength of these communities.Cherie Dimaline’s prose is lyrical and evocative, making the story’s emotional impact even more profound. I found myself crying several times throughout the story, shedding tears of happiness during moments of hope and connection, and tears of immense sadness during the harrowing and heartbreaking scenes. Her ability to blend the harsh realities of a post-apocalyptic world with moments of beauty and tenderness is truly remarkable. “The Marrow Thieves” is a testament to her skill as a storyteller, offering a narrative that is as thought-provoking as it is heart-wrenching.The audiobook narration by Meegwun Fairbrother was nothing short of incredible. His voice brought each character to life with such depth and authenticity that I felt entirely immersed in their journeys. The occasional sound effects, such as the crackling of the campfire and the eerie sound of the wind during the most horrific parts of the story, added an extra layer of realism, making the listening experience even more captivating. The subtle nuances in Fairbrother’s performance captured the emotional weight of the story perfectly, enhancing the already gripping narrative.Overall, “The Marrow Thieves” is an unforgettable read, and the audiobook elevates the experience to new heights. It’s a story that lingers in your mind and heart, a beautiful yet devastating journey that I cannot recommend enough.
A horrifying, beautiful, and all too possible world is beautifully described in The Marrow Thieves. The hardest part was that I could imagine our world coming to this point. The book therefore serves as a warning. And a prayer to the redemptive power of love.
An apocalypse novel that’s harsh but also full of hope and poetry and wonderful characters and imagery. Great addition to growing genre of informed indigenous sf. Also, a fun and gripping read!
The Marrow Thieves is an excellent Native American tale of suspense. The writer immerses the reader in feats of fantastic worldbuilding in a wonderfully realistic but futuristic story. I enjoyed the writing enough to put it on my A- list of re-reading!
Good book to read- indigenous science fiction that deals metaphorically with the extermination of native peoples. A bit simplistic, but I stayed with it.
The Marrow Thieves is a captivating look at how Indigenous people survive and try to thrive despite being hunted by white people again, this time for their ability to still dream, after the climate apocalypse.**POTENTIAL SPOILERS BELOW**Ms Dimaline is a true storyteller. Her world-building is horrifyingly realistic, given the subject matter. Her characters are fully realized and your focus is instantly drawn to them. She is uniquely capable of making you care deeply for all of them. I love her descriptions of the bonds batween virtual strangers who are still family because of their shared history. I cried in several places and the ending was perfect for the story. It leaves you with hope, despite it not really being a resolution.
I really wanted to love this book. It's a very dense read with an enticing storyline. However, the writing style doesn't move the action forward in a meaningful way. The author focuses on details in a way that can be distracting.
Dystopian fiction. If you enjoy native stories this is a good read. I live in New Mexico, USA and like cultural characters from all walks of life. The first page had me. I related to the characters of the book and the nuances of native connections. I am an educator and have shared the book with many people. It would be a good read aloud for middle school and high classrooms. It would also be a possibly good discussion book for a 5th grade classroom, the vocabulary is not particularly high, but the concepts are. I hope it is made into a movie. I love the comparisons of the book to boarding school life. There were many boarding schools in NM that forced children into changes that did not promote growth but resentment and bitterness. The book has a positive outcome after a harrowing ride through it's pages.
This story had a slow start. I almost DNF’ Ed it. But then the plot picked up around the second half of the book (when they run into the traders. That being said I enjoyed the metaphors in the book. It’s not my normal cup of tea (I like my books with a faster pace) but I can appreciate the message the author was trying to convey. Our roots (speaking as Afro Caribbean person) our important. One has to learn from the past in order to navigate the future.
This is such an amazing book and I highly recommend the audio book. I saw a review on goodreads about how ridiculous the premise of people not dreaming led to such a scenario in this book- but they didn’t understand the cultural significance of dreams (or language), and to a lesser note the psychology of how important dreams are to cognitive processing. So to me, as a Nish person myself the plot line makes perfect sense and the story is so well told. It speaks to our years of enduring genocide, coming full circle, and the resilience of the people to hold tight to culture, language and the truth of such things as important and central to the spirit, all richly told in an emotive and inspiring fictional story telling.
Not exactly what I expected, I guess I wasn't sure what I expected. The world is in a state of physical upheaval, from misuse, and it's own state of flux. As the blurb stated white people have lost the ability to dream and having discovered the ability to do so can be found in the bone marrow of indigenous people. They set about harvesting it.FrenchIe is the last of his core birth family. He is rescued by a group that takes him in and helps him learn how to survive physically. All have their secrets, their fears, and their perceived failings. They must deal with those who would turn them over for profit, or to delay their own downfall, and a hope they will meet with others like them trying to find a way to move on.This is my first by the author. I have just finished and am still digesting. Keep in mind Frenchie is a sixteen year old male, and the book is told from his point of viewThis is not a story with a mythological "monster" but the very real one of the way treat other people, and how easy it can be to cross and blur lines.
The power of story, the power of language, the power of dream: these form the core of this novel. It is more about these than the apocalyptic, speculative future. The beauty of this novel is the power with which the author evokes the heartache, loss, and hope.I am still grappling with the end and I may rate it higher after some time.I am haunted about 5he thoughts of what we lose when we eviscerate culture, and the realization that what we destroy may be the only thing that can save us
This book imagines a North America after the kind of horrific devastation detailed as a likelier than not near future in this week's federal report on climate change. One consequence of this environmental collapse is the loss of an ability to dream among non-First Nations' people, and as has so often happened across the history of Anglo-First Nations relations, the First Nations' people find themselves in possession of yet another precious resource that Anglos seek to exploit. As the historical residential schools were designed to stamp out Native identity, a new generation of residential schools is established to literally drain the bodies of Native children and adults. What results is a devastating story of depredation and resistance, with allegorical implications for countless historical - and sadly current - exploitations and erasures of First Nations' culture, language, identity, and voice.
Mixed Native here...Oneida/Lakota.I'm also from Canada,(SixNay).This is a story of Hope and Journey.It's told in a beautiful lyrical voice and offers an understanding of how many of The Peoples see dream as an extension of reality, just as real as the world we contact with our outward senses.It's also about Journey in the sense of walking through and toward the future and life.How we are surviving how they take and take and take....and that we must fight them taking the last of what we have.I hope that there's more of this Story. I hope this is the beginning of a series of books.It's WONDERFUL and VALUABLE to have another Native Voice that can speak to our youth.It may just inspire them to learn Language, accept Culture.And maybe even offer some insight to nons....they might not GET all of it, but it will remind them that We Are Still Here.
An excellent story with good character development, plot pacing and narrative construction. Dimaline not only manages to weave a hopeful and deeply touching story out of tragic circumstances, but does it in a way that subtly yet powerfully weaves Indigenous politics and culture from Turtle Island/North America together with issues of ecological collapse and renewal.I used this in my undergrad course on indigenous environmental politics to give students a more contemporary literary perspective on many of the issues we have been discussing. It provides a nice change of pace from more scholarly focus on Indigenous issues, but without sacrificing any intellectual weight or critical analysis of the world today (or in the imaged future).Aside from these reasons, it is genuinely an excellent and enjoyable book, and would recommend it to anyone. Don't let the YAF label turn you off!
