Book Review: Elatsoe

DNF. This felt more like a middle grade novel that had their MC aged up to market better? I have no doubt that a young teen would like this book more, but I was having a tough time believing that she was 17. I did appreciate the supportive, healthy family dynamic, though there was a bit of awkwardness when addressing the indigeneity of her cousin’s Hispanic wife, who very well might have been of indigenous North American decent but was bluntly described as not “Native” (pg 57). It wasn’t handled very well, in my opinion, and came off as policing indignity but I’m guessing the history between the Apache and Mexicans is why it was brought up in the first place. I also found it hard to believe that, with so many “supernatural things” being overt and undeniable in this version of the universe that we would still have places like Texas. I don’t think that, for instance, if it were impossible to deny such supernatural aspects like ghosts and the Fae (from Europe) and vampires that Christianity would have had such an impact that it did across the globe or that, therefore, colonialism would have still happened. I don’t think the world would be so similar as it was represented in this book. I found that hard to reconcile. But what I did love was her ghost dog, Kirby. That will rip your heart out.

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