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Firekeeper’s Daughter (Firekeeper's Daughter, #1)

Angeline Boulley

Start date: October 1, 2021

Finish date: September 30, 2021

Discussion: Monthly Bonus Reads

Why we're reading this: October Bonus Read- Indigenous Resistances or Halloween

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley…more
[close] October Bonus Read- Indigenous Resistances or Halloween

Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

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What Members Thought

Aug 12, 2021 Kristy rated it really liked it

Shelves: botm, swapped-back-on-pbs, ya, a-real-book-wow, read-in-2021, mystery, thriller, teens, read-what-you-own, henry-holt

An expansive and lovely #OwnVoices tale

Daunis Fontaine feels torn between two worlds--growing up worrying about her Mom and dreaming of becoming a doctor and then being an unenrolled member of the Ojibwe tribe. Her late father was a member and so is her half-brother, Levi. When Daunis' uncle dies and she decides to stay home and attend local community college to take care of her mom, she feels trapped. But the arrival of Jamie, a new member of Levi's hockey team, is a bright spot. The two become An expansive and lovely #OwnVoices tale

Daunis Fontaine feels torn between two worlds--growing up worrying about her Mom and dreaming of becoming a doctor and then being an unenrolled member of the Ojibwe tribe. Her late father was a member and so is her half-brother, Levi. When Daunis' uncle dies and she decides to stay home and attend local community college to take care of her mom, she feels trapped. But the arrival of Jamie, a new member of Levi's hockey team, is a bright spot. The two become fast friends. However, everything changes when Daunis witnesses a horrible murder, and she becomes an informant for the FBI. Suddenly, everything she knows about her hometown and the tribe changes.

"I learned there were times when I was expected to be a Fontaine and other times when it was safe to be a Firekeeper."

This is an excellent book--more mystery than I thought it would be. It covers a lot of topics--sometimes more than seems necessary. Racism, tribal issues, sexual assault, depression, drug abuse, FBI informants, romance, murder... there's a lot packed into this book. However, it does a great job looking into how meth and drug abuse affect the Native American community (as well as sexual assault). It's heartbreaking at times, but also compelling and educational.

"My mother's superpower is turning my ordinary worries into monsters so huge and pervasive that her distress and heartache become almost debilitating. I can protect her from that hurt."

Daunis is a very sympathetic and likeable character. She's dedicated to her family, to her tribe, and her community. She takes on a lot for a kid her age. Sometimes it felt like the informant plot was a little much, a little contrived, but overall, it didn't take away from my enjoyment of the book. It was wonderful to read an #OwnVoices book of such quality and scope, and I look forward to what Boulley does next.

I read this book as part of my new reading project--choosing books off my shelves based on their Goodreads rankings. This is my fourth book of the project, forcing me out of my comfort zone and to try books in genres I don't usually read!

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Nov 17, 2022 Melissa Rochelle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ebook, read-2022

Wonderful. Beautiful community, tight family, baby mama drama, and a serious love of hockey. I will never forget that fairness is not one of the Seven Grandfather teachings.

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