Warrior Girl Unearthed (Firekeeper's Daughter, #2) in Book of The Month

Jan 13, 2024 Lindsey Gandhi rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-i-own, botm, 2024-ng-reading-challenge

I loved Angeline Boulley's first book Firekeeper's Daughter. I could not put that one down! Warrior Girl Unearthed is a good story, but not quite as great as her first novel. This one is a slow burn that really catches fire the last 25% of the novel. That's when it was hard to put down. What I appreciate about both novels is all the culture, traditions, language and ancestry you learn about Native Americans. I dare say I felt like I learned more history of the Native Americans and tribes than I ...more

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Feb 04, 2024 Trisha rated it really liked it

Shelves: goodreadschoice2023

An amazing, eye-opening, and possibly enraging story.

I loved Perry. She's feisty and I loved her energy. I loved her smelly, poor-mannered doggo and her twin that she loves. I loved learning about her family, her ancestors, and her rage at the universities and museums collecting the pieces of her heritage.

I flipped this story right in the beginning from a physical book to the audio and it was wonderful. The narrator was great and the switch really pulled me in to the story. Just be ready to be ...more

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Jul 06, 2023 Shruti morethanmylupus rated it it was amazing

This was such a great book but it made me SO ANGRY! This book covers a lot of very important topics around how we STILL treat Indigenous tribes as well as their remains and artifacts. Everyone should read this book, because I think a lot of people don't know the extent to which this mistreatment continues. It's absolutely heartbreaking to read, especially the parts about the hoops Indigenous tribes are forced to jump through and the challenges they face trying to have museums return what they sh ...more

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May 18, 2023 Shannon rated it really liked it

3.5 stars

Warrior Girl Unearthed is the follow-up to Ms. Boulley's outstanding debut Firekeeper's Daughter. In this story, we are alongside Daunis's neice Perry Firekeeper Birch as she embarks on a quest to reclaim the remains and artifacts of ancestors pillaged and sold among private collectors, as well as those unjustly held by academic institutions claiming loopholes in the law. This book is part coming-of-age story, part thriller, and all call-to-action on an issue many readers (especially of 3.5 stars

Warrior Girl Unearthed is the follow-up to Ms. Boulley's outstanding debut Firekeeper's Daughter. In this story, we are alongside Daunis's neice Perry Firekeeper Birch as she embarks on a quest to reclaim the remains and artifacts of ancestors pillaged and sold among private collectors, as well as those unjustly held by academic institutions claiming loopholes in the law. This book is part coming-of-age story, part thriller, and all call-to-action on an issue many readers (especially of course non-Indigenous) may not be aware of.

Through Perry's journey, we learn about NAGPRA (Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act), and how it has failed to effectively return vast numbers of Indigenous remains to Native tribes. Through Perry's eyes, we see the impact this has on Native communities, the suffering and anger, feeling powerless as their ancestors are denied being put to rest with honor, tradition, and healing back home. We also observe other ways the bodies of Native women are dehumanized, often at the whims of men who view them as objects to collect and control. I really appreciated these strong and important themes, as well as the development of Perry's character as she is confronted with these disturbing injustices to her community and her maturing into a young person with purpose and courage to advocate against the harms. The Author's Note at the end lends more insight on the inspiration for this book and enhanced my appreciation for the story.

There are some aspects of the book that fell a bit short. I won't get into any spoilers, but the plot takes some implausible turns and seemed a bit rushed and slapdash at the end. The writing style is more juvenile than FKD, and I realize this is a YA book, but it wasn't as polished as its predecessor. Even with these flaws, I'm glad to have read and learned from this book. I was super excited that it was an add-on for Book of the Month so I could obtain a copy matching the FKD Book of the Month edition.

I look forward whatever Ms. Boulley puts out next! Thank you, Henry Holt and Company, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, and Netgalley for my e-ARC! ...more

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Jun 12, 2024 Chrissy Paperback Treasures rated it it was amazing

At sixteen Perry is floating through life. She is seen as the "bad" version of her twin sister Pauline. When she wrecks her car to avoid a bear, she is forced to join her tribes internship program and learn about different aspects of the inner workings of the tribe. Cooper Turtle is pretty kooky, many in their community avoid him, so when Perry is partnered with him working in the museum she doesn't expect to actually find something she is passionate about. Meeting the Warrior Girl, the remains At sixteen Perry is floating through life. She is seen as the "bad" version of her twin sister Pauline. When she wrecks her car to avoid a bear, she is forced to join her tribes internship program and learn about different aspects of the inner workings of the tribe. Cooper Turtle is pretty kooky, many in their community avoid him, so when Perry is partnered with him working in the museum she doesn't expect to actually find something she is passionate about. Meeting the Warrior Girl, the remains of a member of her tribe, makes her feel connected to her people like she never has before and soon she is working with a whole team of "misfits" to try and bring the Warrior Girl back home where she belongs.

Firekeeper's Daughter lingered in my mind all throughout 2023. At the most random times parts of the story would come into my mind and I would start thinking of what ifs, and what next. I have no doubt that Warrior Girl Unearthed will be just as stuck for me as Firekeeper's Daughter.

Angeline Boulley is an incredible writer. She has an ability to fully encompass you within a story right from the start. Her characters are hyper realistic to the point that when things are happening to them, you fell like it is happening to someone you know and care about. I love when authors include real life historical elements into a story and bring them to life for readers who may never have heard about that event before. This was the case for me with Warrior Girl Unearthed. I had never heard of the Native Americans Graves Protection and Repatriation Act before reading this and now I will forever be following the news and supporting the rights of the Indigenous Americans to reclaim their people who were stolen from them so long ago.

It should come as no surprise to anyone that I gave this book ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐. I personally believe that both Angeline Boulley and Tommy Orange books should be required reading for students. They say history is written by the victors, and I am so incredibly disappointed with the amount of education I am getting reading about events that took place in history that we never learned about. If you want to learn a little about Indigenous history through a fictional event, I can not recommend these books more. ...more

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Mar 05, 2023 Jaime rated it it was amazing

The Firekeeper’s Daughter has been my #1 recommended book since it came out so I was thrilled to read the next book! It focuses on Perry, Daunis’s cousin, as she spends her summer doing an internship and finding her path. I absolutely loved this book and learned so much!

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