Reviews with content warning for Confinement - The Things She's Seen

This is an excellent YA novel. The story is a mix of mystery, culture, and an examination of grief. The story alternates between the pov of Beth and Catching. Beth is a sixteen year old mixed race Aboriginal girl who has died. Her white father, who is stuck in his grief, can still see her and speak with her, so she is avoiding ‘passing over’ to help him heal. Her father is a murder detective and has been sent to an outback town to investigate a suspicious fire. While he is investigating the fire, and the deaths associated with it, they meet Catching, a teen Aboriginal girl who has been through a horrible ordeal and may be the key to the mystery. Catching tells her story in a way that seems to be interpreted through Aboriginal understandings of the world.

I really enjoyed this whole book. Beth’s pov and Catching’s pov were so different that it kept my attention, and the way they resolved those differences later was lovely.

I was familiar with these authors (they are sister and brother) because they have written many picture books for young children. However, I will definitely look for other novel length works. I found the storytelling quite lovely, and so full of heart.

This book has been released in the US with the title “The Things She’s Seen”. Since “Catching Teller Crow” is the perfect title for this novel I think that was a weird choice.

Highly recommended.

Very vague CW spoilers below.

There are big heavy topics in this novel. The crime they are investigating is Bad. Because much of the crime is described via a story based on Aboriginal legend the bleak horror is relayed through representation, without gory specifics.

Content Warnings

careinthelibrary's review

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

I finished The Things She's Seen (known as Catching Teller Crow in some countries) by Ambelin and Ezekiel Kwaymullina today. It's one I've owned for a while and finally got around to it.

On the surface it's a YA ghost story and mystery, but there is so much bubbling under the surface here. The "enduring strength of Aboriginal women and girls" despite facing disproportionate, horrific violence, the direct and indirect impacts of the Stolen Generations which I want to learn more about, ancient storytelling of Aboriginal peoples. A ghost story, a crime thriller, found sisterhood, father-daughter growing their relationship beyond the barrier of death.

It's a lot wrapped up in a short, fast novel. This hits the ground running and the pace rarely lets up. Its wide array of genres and themes makes me think it would appeal to a lot of different kinds of readers. I wish it had a more striking cover that captured the themes and tone of the book better.

Death is only the beginning. And the end is the beginning that hasn't happened yet.

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emily_mh's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

The mystery storyline of this book was great and kept the plot moving, but I also loved that the mystery wasn’t the point of the book. Its significance lay in its exposure of the brutality of colonisation, and its beautiful and heartbreaking exploration of grief.

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viccro's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I didn't put all the pieces together until they were revealed, but it wasn't quite satisfying as a mystery; I felt as though I hadn't quite been given all of the pieces to the puzzle in a such a way that I *could* have ever solved it.

I really appreciated the Aboriginal lore and storytelling tradition though!

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serendipitysbooks's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Catching Teller Crow was unique and memorable - fabulous powerful aboriginal story telling. It’s a story involving ghosts, a mysterious fire in a small town children’s home which leads investigators to far greater horrors that connect back to the stolen generation. It explores grief, love, family, colonialism,sexism, child sexual abuse, racism and more, all through an aboriginal world view. The mixture of prose and poetry made for an unforgettable reading experience. It’s a slim volume but really rich in terms of language (the imagery was amazing), themes and emotions. Despite the heaviness it managed to end on a hopefully realistic note. Stunning.

Content Warnings

bookcaptivated's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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lilcoppertop's review

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad 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

3.0

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