In the Night of Memory: A Novel

by Linda LeGarde Grover

Two lost sisters find family, and themselves, among the voices of an Ojibwe reservation 

When Loretta surrenders her young girls to the county and then disappears, she becomes one more missing Native woman in Indian Country’s long devastating history of loss. But she is also a daughter of the Mozhay Point Reservation in northern Minnesota and the mother of Azure and Rain, ages 3 and 4, and her absence haunts all the lives she has touched—and all the stories they tell in this novel. In the Night of Memory returns to the fictional reservation of Linda LeGarde Grover’s previous award-winning books, introducing readers to a new generation of the Gallette family as Azure and Rain make their way home.

After a string of foster placements, from cold to kind to cruel, the girls find their way back to their extended Mozhay family, and a new set of challenges, and stories, unfolds. Deftly, Grover conjures a chorus of women’s voices (sensible, sensitive Azure’s first among them) to fill in the sorrows and joys, the loves and the losses that have brought the girls and their people to this moment. Though reconciliation is possible, some ruptures simply cannot be repaired; they can only be lived through, or lived with. In the Night of Memory creates a nuanced, moving, often humorous picture of two Ojibwe girls becoming women in light of this lesson learned in the long, sharply etched shadow of Native American history.

Genres: Fiction, Indigenous, Contemporary, Native American, Literary Fiction, Adult, Adult Fiction

177 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 2, 2019

About the author

Linda LeGarde Grover is a professor emeritus of American Indian Studies at the University of Minnesota Duluth. She is coauthor of A Childhood in Minnesota: Exploring the Lives of Ojibwe and Immigrant Families 1880–1920 and author of a poetry chapbook, The Indian at Indian School. Her 2010 book The Dance Boots won the Flannery O'Connor Award for Short Fiction as well as the Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize. Her novel The Road Back to Sweetgrass is the Wordcraft Circle of Native Writers and Storytellers 2015 fiction award recipient. Linda's poetry collection The Sky Watched: Poems of Ojibwe Lives has received the Red Mountain Press 2016 Editor's Award and the 2016 Northeastern Minnesota Book Award for Poetry. Grover’s essay collection Onigamiising: Seasons of an Ojibwe Year received the 2018 Minnesota Book Award for Memoir & Creative Nonfiction as well as the Northeastern Minnesota Book Award for Memoir, her novel In the Night of Memory the 2020 Northeastern Minnesota Book Award for fiction as well at the UPAA (Upper Peninsula Publishers & Authors Association) U.P. Notable Book Award.

Grover is an enrolled member of the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe.

Reviews

[Angela M · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first chapter of the book is so sad that I almost put it aside for another time, but the prose was beautiful so I kept reading. I also just had to know how the lives of two little girls abandoned to the County by their alcoholic mother would turn out. This first chapter is told by Azure Sky, the youngest of Loretta’s two daughters . While most of the alternating narratives are Azure Sky’s, the points of view of a cast of Ojibwe women of the Mozhay Point Reservation in Minnesota, where Loretta is from, tell much of the story of their people’s past as well as Loretta’s . The relationships seemed complicated and it was hard to tell how the characters were related - was it as blood relatives or by “the Indian way”? It didn’t matter. These connections, these ties that the women had for their own are ties that bind, ties that reflect love and care and belonging and concern, concern and hope that Azure Sky and Rainfall Dawn would not become like other lost girls of their people, like their mother, Loretta.

Their mother gave them the of gift of beautiful names and a single beautiful memory to sustain them through some very hard times, both when in foster care and when they are taken into the heart and home of Dolly Johnson. Azure Sky is a character I won’t soon forget. She is smart and strong and that is evident from the beginning as she cares for her older sister Rain who suffers emotionally, mentally and physically. It hard to say more without giving more plot details. So I’ll just say that this is more than a story of two little girls who grow up in the shadow of their mother’s life. It is more than the story of the people of the Mozhay Point Reservation. It is in many ways a story reflecting the history of Native Americans. It is a heartbreaking story that uplifted me and I’m glad I stuck with it. I hope to read other books by Linda LeGarde Grover.


I received an advanced copy of this book from U of Minnesota Press through Edelweiss.

[Fran · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the 1890's, the Mozlay Point Indian Reservation Lands were divided into allotted acreage near Duluth, Minnesota. Displaced Indians were promised a settlement along the Miskwaa River. The Miskwaa residents were a forgotten people, "falling into the cracks", ignored by the federal government. The winters were bitterly cold. Life was a hardscrabble existence. The people needed to trap, harvest and might participate in the illegal liquor trade just to prevent starvation.

Loretta Gallette was born in a tar papered dwelling along the Miskwaa River. As a youngster, Loretta was constantly uprooted living with whomever could take her at the time. She might have been sent to Indian Boarding School where children were "schooled, ate, slept, punished, locked up, beaten and abused". In her late teens, she "adopted out" a son and presently lived with her two small daughters, Rainfall Dawn and Azure Sky, 4 years and 3 years, respectively. That is, until she was forced to surrender the girls to St. Louis County Foster Care.

Azure and Rain cherished memories of their mother, Loretta. They seemed to recall sitting on the back porch fire escape, wrapped in a blanket, viewing the Northern Lights. They visualized Loretta swaying and dancing toe-to-heel in the traditional style of Ojibwe women. Azure and Rain were now entered in the foster care system. What would their experiences be? Would their mother remember them? Look for them?

In 1978, the Indian Child Welfare Act was passed. Appeals to the Mozhay Point Business Committee were made requesting the return of Loretta Gallette's children to a family member. Many children like Loretta remained lost. Hopefully, Rain and Azure could become acquainted and reside with their family and tribe.

"In the Night of Memory" by Linda LeGarde Grover is a novel exploring the plight of displaced children and adults living on the fringes of society, the effect of Indian Boarding Schools and the impact of the Indian Child Welfare Act. Native American heritage might be embraced the Indian way by children returned to their families.

Thank you University of Minnesota Press and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "In the Night of Memory".

[Paltia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loretta, the mother, is ill prepared to provide much for her two daughters. She offers them one memory before relinquishing them to foster care. They all stand on a tiny porch. The girls wrapped in a blanket look to the night sky as their mother points to the northern lights. Transfixed, they watch and listen as she sings and dances, illuminated by the colours. The memory is of a song. A song that later in their lives returns to carry them all. Until then, the girls are left to find a way to survive and keep their heads above water as the tidal wave of foster care rolls over them. Despair, humour, hope and the aching need to find someone to truly care for them are all wrapped up in this contemporary look at what family means and where it can eventually be found.

[angela · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been on a mission to read books outside my culture and experience. And after reading There There by Tommy Orange, I have been on the lookout for more books about native culture written by native Americans. So when I saw In the Night of Memory by Linda LeGarde Grover, I knew I had to pick it up. Growing up in Minnesota and spending a lot of time in northern Minnesota, I could imagine many of these scenes, which added to my experience of the book. This was enjoyable read. The author particularly shines when describing elements of native culture. Prior to reading this book, I was unaware of the Indian Child Welfare Act. I could see how powerful this act was for native children placed in non native homes, to be returned to their families and culture. This both gave me a lot to think about. If you are interested in learning about other cultures, I recommend this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book

[Jackie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this in a Goodreads giveaway. It’s an interesting book highlighting the struggles in the Native American communities. I wish at the beginning or end of the book there was more information on the subject and maybe some books/websites to checkout for further study. A good, insightful book.

[Kim Bakos · Rating 2 out of 5]

Have you ever listened to an older family member tell you about something/someone in the family, the story rambles, bit and pieces are given that don't quite connect, and half of the people in the story you're too young to have ever met and don't remember? But you know that they are trying their hardest to tell you something that they think is important to pass on, so you try really hard to figure out that point, but never quite get there? That's what it is like reading this book.
It is supposed to be fiction but reads more like a disjointed memoir. It is neither plot driven (there is no plot) nor character driven (you never really get a feel of anyone in the story - you know a little about them, but never get to know them).
I was looking forward to something written in the voice of a modern Native American, a voice that is sorely lacking in fiction today. I was also curious to read something about the epidemic of missing Native American women. Unfortunately, this doesn't really satisfy either of those desires of mine which led to wanting to read this story.
If there was a 1.5-star rating, I'd give that to this book. I didn't hate it, which to me is a one, but can't say I actually liked it, which would be a two. It is somewhere in between - is there an "I couldn't care less" rating?

[Monica Hills · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel was one that I had a hard time putting down once I got started. The novel hooked me at once as I had to know what happened to Loretta's girls once she gave them up to the county. The next couple of chapters lost me a little as it gave a back story to what Loretta faced growing up. There were many different characters and it was told from different view points so I had some difficulty following. However once the story got back to the girls, Azure Sky and Rainfall Dawn, I couldn't stop reading.
Azure and Rain are put in the foster system and do not have an easy time of it. My heart went out to them. Theirs is a story of perseverance and the power of family.
This was a short read and very engrossing. I highly recommend this book to any reader. It was not a book I would have typically picked for myself but I definitely wanted to find out what would happen to the girls.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I was immediately captivated by the story of the Native American family portrayed in the early pages of this story - that of a mother, Loretta, releasing her two daughters into state custody to enter into foster care. The writing in the first section is lyrical and beautiful, the characters are fully formed, and the plot intriguing. However, the more I read, the more disoriented I became and, thus, less invested in the story. After the first section of the book, the story is told from the perspectives of various women in the Ojibwe tribe. There is a shifting timeline and while Loretta occasionally appears in this next section, she is sometimes a girl or a young woman without children. Despite the family tree at the beginning of the book, I found myself stopping every few pages to figure out the relationships of various characters to Loretta (strangely, Loretta is not listed in the family tree, and some of the characters are very distant relations). Loretta's daughters don't reappear until after more than fifty pages (of a short book). I expected this novel to explore Loretta's disappearance and her daughters' experiences in foster care. Instead, the various characters share tangential stories. In a different mood, I might have finished this book, but I was not invested in all of the characters and was disappointed that the book did not match its synopsis.

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a story about Loretta, an Indigenous woman—a daughter, mother, and cousin—and the way her disappearance reverberates throughout her family tree. She is one of many missing and murdered Indigenous women, a genocidal epidemic that spans Canada and the United States.

This is also a story about the Indian Child Welfare Act, and the significance of family and reunification for Indigenous children like Loretta’s two daughters, Azure and Rain.

Despite the book’s complicated family tree, the author writes each character with respect and wisdom, reminding the reader of each woman’s place within this universe. I am excited to read Grover’s other novel that takes place on the same fictional Mozhay reservation.

At ~200 pages, this book is a quick read yet packs a tender punch. It informs issues like MMIW and ICWA though the soft strength and loyalty of these women.

I didn’t know this book existed until Barb selected it for book club. Thanks, Barb!

[Jen Juenke · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book all in one sitting. I could not put it down. I was born and raised in Northern Minnesota. Reading the Ojibway words, the PowWows, the talk of the ladies, brought memories of my childhood flooding back.
The book is multi layered and there is so much depth that it is hard to describe exactly how this book touched me.
The story is of two little girls, Rain and Azure. Their mother, Loretta, gave them to the County because she could not take care of them.
Rain and Azure's story is told by them, relatives, and even their mother.
From foster home to finally getting a good home with relatives, their story is a must read for anyone living in Indian country.
I thought that the author did a great job with making the story female dominant, writing some in Ojibway and talking about recognized and unrecognized tribal members.
Overall a great book!

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Azure Sky was the storyteller who kept the visual memory alive for her elder sister Rainfall Dawn. Their mother Loretta had roused them from their bed on the couch, and wrapping them in a blanket, took them outside to see the northern lights flashing in the night sky. Loretta folded her blanket and drew it across her shoulders, chanting and dancing in the old way. The next morning Loretta left the girls at the county, unable to care for them, hoping that rehab would change her life and reunite her family.

Azure and Rainy never saw their mother again.

They were two halves of the same sister, stronger together than apart. But the county did part them. Azure survived; Rainy was broken. When they were teens their extended Ojibwa family tracked them down and through the Indian Child Welfare act returned them to their people.

In the Night of Memory by Linda LeGarde Grover is hauntingly beautiful and achingly heartbreaking. Different voices tell the story of Loretta, Azure, and Rainy, which is the story of a community broken by colonialism and the removal of native children. And how, having lost Loretta, they determine not to lose Loretta's children but bring them back home.

It was a long, hard, road to the Indian Child Act, and though it's not perfect, it's what we got. from In the Night of Memory by Linda LeGarde Grover

I received a book from the University of Minnesota Press through Bookish First in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the Night of Memory brings together so many facets of the issues faced by Native Americans. It is heartbreaking and yet shows the resilience of the characters in the book as well as I am sure of those who experience it.

The descriptive writing enlightens everyday life for the two young girls. I was continually amazed at their ability to cope with their situations and yet continue to hope that one day they would see their mother again.

The author not only weaves the story into a vibrant cloth, but also succeeds in educating all of us in the injustice done and the lack of compassion toward the Native Americans. I would like to read more and become more aware of the issues faced by the Native Americans, past and present.

Thank you to Bookish and the publisher for the copy. I will share it with others.
Exquisite!
In the Night of Memory brings together so many facets of the issues faced by Native Americans. It is heartbreaking and yet shows the resilience of the characters in the book as well as I am sure of those who experience it.

The descriptive writing enlightens everyday life for the two young girls. I was continually amazed at their ability to cope with their situations and yet continue to hope that one day they would see their mother again.

The author not only weaves the story into a vibrant cloth, but also succeeds in educating all of us in the injustice done and the lack of compassion toward the Native Americans. I would like to read more and become more aware of the issues faced by the Native Americans, past and present.

Thank you to Bookish and the publisher for the copy. I will share it with others.
Exquisite!

[Rebecca Reeder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Powerful and Unique This novel is at once unique and powerful and unforgettable. It is overwhelmingly sad at times yet twinged with a ray of hope because the daughter who narrates the story loved her mother and had felt loved in return. Although this story may not be anything at all like a reader's life experience, the author manages to describe everything in such a way that you feel a viable part of the situation. This novel provides some insight into the life experience of some Native Americans while also reminding readers of the importance of family. What could be sadder than being a mother who loves her two daughters and gave them the prettiest names she could think of but can not afford to feed them? How does a parent struggling with poverty and alcohol abuse ever escape the cycle of destructive poverty? Is there no way to help families and keep them together at the same time? The intense emotions of In the Night of Memory grab the reader immediately and never let go.

[John Benson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Linda LeGarde Grover is an Ojibwe writer from Duluth, where this novel takes place. Her books help give a strong sense of current Ojibwe culture in a positive and realistic way. This novel tells the story of Loretta, a young Native women, who puts her two young daughters in foster care and then promptly disappears. Loretta's story is shared through the remembrances of various women within the Ojibwe community near Duluth. The young girls, Azure and Rain, story is mainly told through the voice of Azure as they grow up in several white foster homes before finally being reunited with people who grew up with and knew their mother. The author brings out the power and kindness that this community shares with the two girls. It is a sad book detailing the very real and current issue of the disappearance of Native women, but it is hopeful in how she brings out the strength of the Ojibwe community in embracing these two young girls.

[Kala (ReaderthenBlogger) · Rating 4 out of 5]

What I loved most about this story was how each point of view that it was told from gave you an insight of the girls as well as their family history. This isn't brightest and sunniest story but the love and lives that they end up experiencing are much better than what they started out with.
Azure and Rainy have the most beautiful relationship with each other and serve as backbones for one another throughout everything they experience. Azure falls into the role as the older sister even though she is the younger sister. They share a single memory of their mother that stands out to both of them. As they get older, you see the effects of what they have been thru and how it has effected them, especially in Rainy.

See full review:
http://readerthenblogger.com/2019/04/...

[Karla Strand · Rating 4 out of 5]

Linda LeGarde Grover presents us with a new generation of Gallette girls in this new family drama, At once sad, humorous, hopeful, and heartfelt, this book had me hooked from beginning to end. The voice of Azure is dynamic and believable; strong yet fallible women characters will make this candid story of family relationships appeal to many readers. Those who enjoyed Future Home of the Living God or Bastard Out of Carolina would enjoy this one.

[Deb M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I read books by Linda LeGarde Grover, I find the written pictures too be vivid, and filled with emotions. I can see the joyful moments even when there is sadness. "In the Night of Memory" brought me back to Duluth. Brought me back to things I know to be true. I got lost in the book, I cried, and I smiled.
This story began at the beginning and went full circle with the ending being right back at the beginning like most life stories seem to be.
Thank you, Linda, for another most excellent book.

[Jypsy · Rating 3 out of 5]

In The Night of Memory is a story about two little girls who are surrendered by their mother and placed up for adoption. The difference between this story and similar adoption stories is that these two little girls are Native American children. As you can probably imagine, their heritage puts both of the girls in a different type of situation when it comes to the matter of someone adopting or fostering them. Many people are not open to the idea of caring for children who are from a different racial background than their own. Because of this situation, both of the girls are treated poorly by abuse, neglect, etc. Eventually the girls land with native family. Now,they can learn more about their heritage. 
Based on an excerpt only

[Makayla MacGregor · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was a lot of rich information and scenes depicting Ojibwe culture. I haven't read many contemporary Native American books so I was looking forward to reading this. I think that the most powerful part was the very beginning and the very end; Rain's story was so sad and I would have loved for her struggles to have been more of a focal point of the novel. It was also interesting to learn about the Indian Child Welfare Act, something I hadn't known about before reading.

Sadly, though, this book just wasn't it for me. The narrations of different Ojibwe women (which I appreciated in one sense because it was female voices and different snippets of time) were largely disjointed and confusing. I couldn't distinguish Azure's voice from Girlie's from Beryl's; they all had the same personality with not much depth. In other words, characterization was definitely not a leading quality of the novel. Even with the family tree provided, I couldn't keep track of who was who, because there were so many names dropped in the novel, and each character was given minimal time to be understood by the reader. It made for an unemotional reading for the most part, since I wasn't able to get invested in any of the characters' lives. I wish that I could have gotten to know them better - the foster care system and the powwow were settings that could have produced really powerful interactions between characters, for example.

The plot was also not really there. After reading each chapter I tried to discern how it connected to the larger picture, but not only could I not see how each scene mattered in the grand scheme of things, but I didn't even know what the grand scheme of things was, aside from the theme of lost children being returned to Native culture. There weren't any stakes, rising action, or conflict, really. If there was conflict, there was no tension - it sprung out of nowhere and then was resolved within a couple pages.

Overall, two stars because I enjoyed the themes and the potential, plus I learned about Ojibwe culture.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the Night of Memory is a profound story about the lives of Azure Sky and Rainfall Dawn, young Native American women who are removed from their mother's care as small children and placed into foster care. After living through ups and downs they are tracked down, taken in and brought back to their home community as teenagers. I imagine that while this story is fiction, it has many undertones of reality in regards to some of the struggles the Native American community has faced. This book is beautiful, but it is sad, at some points it is devastating. These people had their homes, their land and their children taken away from them. Many lived in poverty without much means of advancing themselves. But one of the most inspirational things I took away from this book was the willingness of people in their community to take care of their own, or in Dolly's case, be taken care of as an adopted member of the community. Most of the story is told from Azure's point of view, but there are occasional chapters that briefly tell the story from another character's perspective. This both adds and detracts from the overall story for me, but overall it was a great book with emotional storytelling.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the Night of Memory by Linda LeGarde Grover
Available April 2nd from University of Minnesota Press

In the Night of Memory is a heart breaking story of love, loss, and family. When Loretta surrenders her two daughters to the County, the daughters are left with only vague memories and a hope of one day being reunited. After a series of foster homes and several years separation, it is through the persistence of a distant relative and the help of the Indian Child Welfare Act, the sisters are placed together again with family members. Through love and acceptance, the girls learn more about their heritage and family history. Unfortunately for the girls, their new found security is short lived. When tragedy strikes the family once again, the girls do what they can to stay together.
Incredibly well written, the story of Azure and Rain draws you in from the first line. Told from multiple points of views across several generations, we are given the complete history of a family, including all their heartbreaks and happiness. I loved this story of family and hope.

Thank you to Bookish and the publisher for the advanced copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

[Jessie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book, about two Ojibwe girls and their lives after their mother Loretta is forced to surrender them to the state, after which she simply disappears into the ranks of missing and murdered Indigenous women, is a powerful read. Azure Day and Rainfall Dawn are separated into the foster systemic, reunited in the same system, and eventually returned to their families with the passing of the essential Indian Child Welfare Act (what is happening currently with challenges to this law is yet another crime against the Indigenous Peoples of these territories). This book is about the love of blood family, and chosen family. Of the healing power of culture and community. But also of the grief and trauma that spans generations over the repeated theft of Indigenous children from their families, and the far reaching implications of this ongoing genocide. I held my baby close reading this one at night, and made more than a few trips down the hallway to check on his sleeping sister. Thank you Netgalley for this ARC, opinions are my own.

[Toya (thereadingchemist) · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I read an excerpt of this book, I thought my heart was being ripped out of my chest. The book opens with Loretta surrendering custody of both Azure and Rain to the state because she is no longer able to care for them. The entire situation was utterly heart wrenching. I wasn’t sure if I should continue with the book, but I HAD to know what happened to those girls.

The rest of the plot was not what I was expecting. I was disappointed because I thought that we would pick up focusing on the lives of these little girls, but instead the story is told through a series of interactions that people previously had with Loretta. Don’t get me wrong, the writing is absolutely beautiful, but the plot just fell flat for me.

Thank you to University of Minnesota Press and Bookish for the advanced copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.

[gwendalyn _books_ · Rating 4 out of 5]

http://gwendalynbooks.wordpress.com


In the Night of Memory by Linda LeGarde Grover
From University of Minnesota Press

A story of the struggles of two Ojibwe Indigenous women.

A compelling story of a journey home of two girls, Azure and Rain . Their hardships and struggles after being placed in the foster care system.
With its creative multi layered different points of view, the story moves along beautifully.
A powerful and poetic story that is Heart wrenching. A realistic fiction.
The characters are well developed and the story style flows.
A moving and sometimes tragic look
look at the years of foster homes and separation . With the help of the family members and the Indian Child Welfare Act , they eventually reunited.
The story is gripping and thought provoking.

Thanks for this complimentary copy for an honest review
BookishFirst and University of Minnesota Press

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have never read Native American fiction before and honestly, and sadly, I don't know much of their life. This was a good look into what I imagine is life for children in the foster care system. Azure and Rainy are very good characters and I was always rooting for them. I think the author did a great job filling you in on important backgrounds of the characters. I loved how the book was divided into 7 parts which were each different places in the girl's lives and each part had chapters. Those chapters were each told by a different character, which I feel is crucial in order to get some back story. I also appreciated the family tree since it involved a big family. This is a light, quick and easy read. It's worth it.

[Jill Hamilton-Krawczyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

At first I wanted to describe In the Night of Memory by Linda LeGarde Grover as a slow read. But that didn't sound right. Gentle is a much better word. There isn't a lot of action, suspense, twists or drama in this book because that's not the story it is. Instead, it is a gentle and subtle tale of two sisters, their lost mother, hardships, family, love, life and memories.

Native American foster children, Azure Sky and Rainfall Dawn, are bounced from home to home after their mother gave them up. The two sisters stick together and eventually find their way back to their Indian family. We learn about their lives along the way.

The author did a wonderful job writing about the girls thoughts and feelings – good and bad – and developing their characters. The writing was very poetic, heartfelt and touching. I enjoyed this book much more than I thought I would going into it.

[Kris Favreau · Rating 4 out of 5]

Linda LeGarde Grover created a lovely portrait of life in Minnesota, and the longing that comes with a separated family in In The Night Of Memory. It is a very clear example of the broadness of the institution of family, that it is defined by whatever might be valuable socially. We find family everywhere.
The characters and settings are so well drawn, and one finds themselves empathizing with them almost immediately. What she has created here is a true work of art, intent on tugging the heartstrings in a unique and interesting perspective.
Her prose style is lovely, and I continued to turn pages in delight.
I would recommend this book to most people I know who enjoy a pointed read. I was very satisfied.

[Dina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book although some parts were very sad to read. I liked how the story was told from different perspectives throughout the book. I did not want the book to end. I just wanted to know more about Azure’s story especially how she started dating and then got married and had a child. I also wish they could have found their mother Loretta but I was happy that they ended up loving with family. I look forward to reading more books by Linda LeGarde Grover. She just has an amazing way with her prose.

[Karen]

This story follows the trajectory of two sisters, Rain and Azure, who were placed in foster care when their mother makes the decision to get clean. However, they never see their mother again. Following the passage of the Indian Child Welfare Act, the two sisters were sent to live with family. I enjoyed the story of Rain and Azure. It was in many ways heartbreaking, but worth the read. Thank you to University of Minnesota Press and NetGalley for the advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Hannah Boyd · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was full of longing, sadness, but yet also immense happiness. I loved the way it was written, in so many different perspectives, but it also showed beautifully how some can thrive after trauma and how some cannot. It was beautiful.