Reviews

Moon of the Turning Leaves by Waubgeshig Rice

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lizbeachy's review

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adventurous sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

elenahasashelf's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Evan’s death had me like “For real? Wait for real???” even though I knew this was not the kind of story to do a fakeout 😭 RIP MY DUDE

Definitely similar to the first book in that it felt very real. The focus on one community in a world with no internet or phones makes it so that you discover the world through the eyes of the characters. It both keeps you hooked and makes the pacing feel so true to life. The descriptive writing is also really beautiful. Characters are so loveable though I would have loved to have learned more about them and seen them develop more.

The bitter sweet ending felt so true to the spirit of this series.

tetrootz's review against another edition

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Switched to the hardcover!

photopotamus's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

clemrain's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

I picked this up not knowing it was a sequel. Regardless, I don’t think it’s necessary to read the first book (though I intend to) because I didn’t feel lost.

This book made me cry. It was written so softly and always punched you hard when you’re not expecting it. The pacing is brilliant. Slow in the following of the journey, tense and fast in difficult situations. It flows well. I didn’t find myself bored at all.

The characters mean a lot to me. I wanted them safe. And each brutality to them hit me. I’m happy with the ending but it is bittersweet. Leaves room for another book but I wouldn’t say it’s a necessity.

I really appreciated how Indigenous cultures and ideas took center in this book. It wasn’t an apocalypse more than it was how people thrive and follow their beliefs even in hard times. There’s a lot of talks about “land being reclaimed” in the apocalyptic genre, but I’ve found they create an antagonistic caricature of tribal cultures. This book is what I would expect realistically what cultures who connect with the land would do.

The white man being an oppressor is never going to end it seems. I couldn’t find the addition of white supremacy in these times unrealistic. It could’ve been easy to create savages of these white groups just as much as it is for white literature to do the same to Indigenous cultures. However, I didn’t find that to be the case. As much as these characters weren’t centred, they were still more than just a foreign entity. And a realistically scary one too.

Overall, this book doesn’t have much in terms of plot. It’s very similar to The Road. There is a journey, and the story isn’t about the destination. You have to care about the journey. And I did. Great read.

Content Warnings