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Gutter Child
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
15 posts | 9 read | 1 reading | 4 to read
A fierce and illuminating debut from FOLD founder Jael Richardson about a young woman who must find the courage to determine her own future and secure her freedom Set in an imagined world in which the most vulnerable are forced to buy their freedom by working off their debt to society, Gutter Child uncovers a nation divided into the privileged Mainland and the policed Gutter. In this world, Elimina Dubois is one of only 100 babies taken from the Gutter and raised in the land of opportunity as part of a social experiment led by the Mainland government. But when her Mainland mother dies, Elimina finds herself all alone, a teenager forced into an unfamiliar life of servitude, unsure of who she is and where she belongs. Elimina is sent to an academy with new rules and expectations where she befriends Gutter children who are making their own way through the Gutter System in whatever ways they know how. When Elimina's life takes another unexpected turn, she will discover that what she needs more than anything may not be the freedom she longs for after all. Richardson's Gutter Child reveals one young woman's journey through a fractured world of heartbreaking disadvantages and shocking injustices. Elimina is a modern heroine in an altered but all too recognizable reality who must find the strength within herself to forge her future and defy a system that tries to shape her destiny.
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review
Zephsomething
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
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Pickpick

Truly a wild ride from start to finish. I genuinely loved this book, sorrow filled though it was. It‘s ends with a bittersweet sort of hope that felt more real than how I‘d hoped it would turn out, but in a way that means I can pretend like the end I wanted will still happen for them, just a little later. It‘s a good reminder in any case, change is slow but it‘s still change. The world can yet by put to rights, or close to as we can get.

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janeycanuck
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
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Pickpick

Not a genre I typically go for so most of this wasn't really my cup of tea but the writing was clear & easy and Richardson clearly shines when it comes to character development.

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BenitaB
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
This post contains spoilers
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I wonder why the main character only had one 'x' carved in arm while all the other Gutter kids had two. What's the reason behind them getting it carved into them anyway?

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BenitaB
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
This post contains spoilers
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'Everything's different now'
I can relate to this text in the book. It is like how this whole quarantine thing is new to me. Different, rules, ways of doing things. It's not all the same. :(

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Lindy
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
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Pickpick

Dystopian coming-of-age in an alternate Earth, with injustices that mirror and amplify our own, including a caste system based on skin colour, and the colonial oppression of Indigenous people. Vivid characters and setting, plus a strong plot, make up for the didacticism. Perfect for fans of Malorie Blackman. #Black #CanadianAuthor #BHM

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quote
Lindy
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
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“Gutter folk are poor in position, but don‘t nobody do family like us,” she says. “And we don‘t have to be family to be family, if you know what I‘m saying. Wherever we are, we find family.”

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Lindy
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
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I feel forewarned. I‘m diving in, regardless. 🌊

Soubhiville I‘ve seen a few of these types of author‘s notes lately and I really appreciate them! 4y
Lindy @Soubhiville I had to take a few emotional breaks while reading: 4y
Cathythoughts I remember taking a few emotional breaks from the Kite Runner ( the movie ) 4y
Cathythoughts I really like this authors note ❤️ 4y
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Lindy
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
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Delivered today by one of my local bookshops. Novels, nature writing, and poetry. It‘s hard to decide which one I should dive into first …

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Thatashyounge
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson
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Mehso-so

I was really excited for this book - written by FOLD founder Jael Richardson - but feel underwhelmed upon finishing. It provides excellent social commentary, but the writing felt a bit weak, slow, and repetitive. Had this been marketed as a young adult novel (the main characters are teenagers, and the writing and pace is a bit basic and slow,) I might not feel as disappointed.

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BenitaB
Gutter Child | Jael Richardson

I have read 12 chapters now and the author started the book of with no background information of the character in the book. As I read more I slowly got more information and began putting this together.I think the author wanted more interesting beginning and to bring curiosity to the reader