Litsy

Lullabies for Little Criminals | Heather O'Neill

pick

This book kind of had the vibe of a Tom Waits album from the perspective of an 11-year-old girl. The reader meets a ton of characters living on the edges of society. The tale is fast-paced and everyone is unique. I started to hope Baby would make it through relatively unscathed…and then the wheels fell off the bus. Her drug-addicted man-child father is drowning and his decisions and attempts to teach or punish his daughter throws her to the wolves

TheAromaofBooks

JoeMo Things get ugly. It gets easy to hate characters‘ actions, or the characters themselves due to their actions. Yet, the protagonist‘s perspective never comes off as harsh towards the people around her. The author has said that fans often think she is Baby, that she survived these hardships, and I get it. I‘d love a phone call with the author so that I can hear she‘s okay. These types of stories are why I don‘t work in child protective services (edited) 5d

JoeMo #bookspinbingo 5d

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 4d

37 likes3 comments

BookishTrish

Watch Out for Her | Samantha M. Bailey

so-so

The token genre pick on this year‘s #CanadaReads shortlist. I‘ll bet it gets voted off first or second.

Blueberry I agree. 2mo

TheKidUpstairs I keep forgetting that the debates start on Monday. I'm hoping they are more engaging than the selections. It was a pretty underwhelming year, IMO, I liked a couple but didn't really love any of them. I was kind of excited to see a thriller pick, but did not like this book at all. 2mo

BookishTrish Prediction = confirmed 2mo

Blueberry I'm really enjoying the debates this year. Everyone is pleasant and respectful to each other and knowledgeable about all the books. They all give convincing arguments in favor of their books. 2mo

35 likes4 comments

BookishTrish

Jennie's Boy: A Misfit Childhood on an Island of Eccentrics | Wayne Johnston

so-so

Not nearly as wonderful as Johnston‘s fiction. This was a bit of a slog honestly, and I don‘t have high hopes for it on #CanadaReads. I think it‘ll be voted off first or second.

Blueberry This is the only one of the shortlist that I have been unable to get. 2mo

BookishTrish Prediction = confirmed 2mo

32 likes2 comments

BookishTrish

A Two-Spirit Journey: The Autobiography of a Lesbian Ojibwa-Cree Elder | Ma-Nee Chacaby

pick

Holy moly did Ma-Nee live through some terrible terrible shit. Her empathy, compassion, and generosity shine through. I found the tough parts really tough to listen to and so it‘s my third pick for #CanadaReads winner this year.

38 likes

BookishTrish

Dandelion | Jamie Chai Yun Liew

so-so

Im not one to read about estranged mothers so personally this was not a read I enjoyed. I‘d say this is my second choice for #CanadaReads winner for the year. It was pretty straightforward but I think it‘ll resonate with a lot of Canadians. Many of us deeply understand the feeling of not being fully one culture or another.

42 likes

BookishTrish

Etta and Otto and Russell and James | Emma Hooper

pick

Having read all of the #CanadaReads shortlist, this is my pick for the 2025 winner. I‘m unsure if it‘s passing similarities to last year‘s winner will hurt its chances (serious social topic + elements of fantasy / social justice). I listened and will have to reread soon - there‘s a lot to unpack with this one.

Blueberry I agree 😄 !! 2mo

38 likes1 comment

melissajayne

The Book of Negroes: A Novel (Movie Tie-in Edition) (Movie Tie-in Editions) | Lawrence Hill

pick

4.5⭐️ I really enjoyed this book (liked it so much that I spoke for 15 minutes on the book on my YouTube channel [mjreadings on YouTube if you‘re interested]). The only thing that didn‘t make it a 5⭐️ was that it was slow paced in the beginning. I read it about 10+ years ago for another #bookclub and reading it again now blew me away once again. #2025 #historicalfiction #fiction #africanamerican

melissajayne #canadareads #africanamericanloyalists #slavenarratives 2mo

melissajayne The book is published in the United States under the title Someone Knows My Name. 2mo

29 likes2 comments

Jess861

Indian Horse | Richard Wagamese

No surprise that Indian Horse was the best book I read in February and that it topped West with Giraffes. The rest of the books I read in February were just ok and while West with Giraffes is good - Indian Horse is in a class of it's own.

Note: Not my template - off Pinterest.

#ReadingBracket #ReadingBracket2025 #BookBracket2025 #BookBracket

43 likes

CarolynM

Indian Horse | Richard Wagamese

#BookReport for February

My favourite this month was Indian Horse.

melissajayne Indian Horse is such a sad, but beautiful story. 2mo

66 likes1 comment

Jess861

Indian Horse | Richard Wagamese

This post contains spoilers

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Saul is such a strong character. I don't think many would make it through what he goes through at such a young age and then all through childhood. To have such focus on a sport while he is being abused and his culture and way of life have been completely ripped away from him shows a strong will to survive.

Thoughts on Saul?

Pictured is a Birch Bark Canoe - one of the main forms of transportation for the Ojibwe.

Jess861 @lauraisntwilder @KathyWheeler @Ruthiella @CarolynM @LapReader @kwmg40 @Readergrrl @JenlovesJT47 @Tamra @PurpleyPumpkin @Kitta @DogMomIrene @Blueberry @BiblioLitten #OhCanada 2mo

Ruthiella My heart broke for him. I did like, however how the book opens with him already on a healing journey because reading the rest and not knowing if he‘d make it through would have been tough. 2mo

Jess861 @Ruthiella I agree. I also like how Wagamese subtly hinted at the abuse but didn't confirm it until closer to the end. It really made you think again at the end of the book about everything he'd been through. 2mo

See All 9 Comments

Jess861 Birch was critical to the Ojibwe lifestyle. It is interesting to read about if you are interested. Another interesting fact is that Birch Bark Canoes were a great transportation form for the inland waterways. It is thought that the Europeans would not have been able to discover and explore much of the land without this type of transportation. The boats they had weren't made for inland waterways. 2mo

Tamra The revelation was startling, even though there were hints, but they were easily dismissed. 😔 Speaks to the survival strategy of victims and craft of Wagamese‘ writing! (edited) 2mo

Kitta @Ruthiella agreed, I liked having the certainty that he would pull through. I missed or dismissed quite of few of the hints that abuse was occurring tbh. I even thought partway through the novel that it was strange other kids were being abused but not Saul 😆 2mo

DogMomIrene Saul was so real. Agree that the opening pages help me cope with the set up that this character will survive. I had the same thought “strange he‘s not abused” and dismissed it. Makes me think that may be Wagamese‘s point in hinting at abuse. I think people, me included, tend to not see abuse and dismiss the hints, even when we shouldn‘t. I want a sequel, even just a short story, to know that Saul‘s okay. 2mo

Jess861 @DogMomIrene Sadly, Wagamese passed away in 2017 so we will never get a sequel. 2mo

kwmg40 Saul was a great character. I love how Wagamese makes us care so much about characters who are usually marginalized or disdained by society. I loved his novel Ragged Company about four homeless people. 2mo

13 likes9 comments

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