In the Night of Memory recounts the story of two sisters, descendants of an indigenous tribe in Minnesota, who are turned over to the American foster care system. Their narratives capture the decades of their lives in which they deal with abandonment and separation, racism that is both intentional and subconscious, and the ways in which institutions fail them. This is a heartwarming and heartbreaking read, with lyrical prose and beautiful imagery.
The story is complex blend of narratives and historical recitations, which makes sense seeing as our author is a professor of American Indian studies. You can feel the labor that went into crafting a story that both told a fictional narrative and didn’t stray far from historical accuracy. Through the mouths of her characters, Grover details many of hardships (and also, appropriately, celebrations) of Native Americans in the Minnesota territories. And, as we watch these two sisters grow up, their story holds tight to our hearts and shatters us, while also giving us beautiful moments of hope and recovery.
Azure and Rainy are the heartbeat of this piece. While I wouldn’t necessarily call this “character-driven,” it’s certainly a novel that relies heavily on the development of the main characters. A lot of “action” exists around them, but the way the story is told pushes those moments of self-discovery, introspection, and growth.
I loved many aspects of this book, although I feel that one of its shortcomings was the switching point-of-views. They weren’t frequent enough to create a pattern, and as a reader I had trouble keeping track of who was who, just based off of chapter headings. Also, while side characters’ stories furthered the plot, Azure’s narratives were so much stronger and more developed. I think the text would have been stronger if all of it had been told from Azure’s perspective.
In the end, this is an elegant story capturing an important narrative of American history. I recommend it to those who enjoy literary fiction, novels about family and history and origin, and to those who don’t mind having their heart broken by a story.
The story is complex blend of narratives and historical recitations, which makes sense seeing as our author is a professor of American Indian studies. You can feel the labor that went into crafting a story that both told a fictional narrative and didn’t stray far from historical accuracy. Through the mouths of her characters, Grover details many of hardships (and also, appropriately, celebrations) of Native Americans in the Minnesota territories. And, as we watch these two sisters grow up, their story holds tight to our hearts and shatters us, while also giving us beautiful moments of hope and recovery.
Azure and Rainy are the heartbeat of this piece. While I wouldn’t necessarily call this “character-driven,” it’s certainly a novel that relies heavily on the development of the main characters. A lot of “action” exists around them, but the way the story is told pushes those moments of self-discovery, introspection, and growth.
I loved many aspects of this book, although I feel that one of its shortcomings was the switching point-of-views. They weren’t frequent enough to create a pattern, and as a reader I had trouble keeping track of who was who, just based off of chapter headings. Also, while side characters’ stories furthered the plot, Azure’s narratives were so much stronger and more developed. I think the text would have been stronger if all of it had been told from Azure’s perspective.
In the end, this is an elegant story capturing an important narrative of American history. I recommend it to those who enjoy literary fiction, novels about family and history and origin, and to those who don’t mind having their heart broken by a story.