Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

Firekeeper's Daughter is Angeline Boulley's debut novel. It's also the 2022 Printz Award winner and it did not disappoint. 

Daunis is a biracial teenager whose birth was a scandal. She doesn't fit in with her white family and since her father's name isn't listed on her birth certificate, she's not enrolled with her indigenous tribe. Daunis does her best, though, muddling through and trying to keep her family together after a series of tragedies. But then she witnesses a murder and soon she's involved in an investigation that could change the entire course of her community.

The Good: I just really liked how Boulley interweaved different aspects of tribal living into day to day life, from the prayers Daunis says before she runs to the pinch of herbs she sacrifices to the river when she's crossing the ferry. I liked how Daunis is clearly a non-native speaker of the language, but she peppers her words with words taken from her indigenous roots. I also liked the Michigan references, because I grew up there and it was fun to hear about Ann Arbor as the "big city" and how people mispronounce Sault Ste. Marie. 

The Great: The writing was riveting. I was really propelled by the writing in this book. Boulley is a bureaucrat (former Director of the Office of Indian Education) and I was a little surprised at how lyrical the prose was here. 

Also, I just loved that Daunis was so competent.  She was smart and used it to her advantage. However, she was also just a regular teenager, making stupid decisions teenagers make and then having to face dire consequences for those decisions. I also really thought Boulley was very brave to tackle so many difficult topics for indigenous peoples - drug and alcohol abuse, tribal enrollment, violence against women, and intergenerational trauma -  but I also felt like it was naturally synthesized into the plot and not just hammered home to make it some sort of morality tale.

The Glorious: I gather that the ending is polarizing. I loved it. I don't want to spoil anything, but the author went in an unexpected direction and I thought it was gorgeously done.

This is easy to read in one way because it's sort of crime thriller, propulsive, turn the page, you have to get to the next chapter kind of book. But it does tackle a lot of challenging issues and, in that way, might be a little harder to read than your average YA thriller.  Regardless, I highly recommend this and if you get a chance to read it, you won't regret it.

5/5 stars

Lines of note:

Part of me wants to be in bed with my cat, Herri, whose purrs are the opposite of an alarm clock.  (page 6)

This is me every moment of every day.  I'd almost always rather be on the couch with my cat.

"My girl, some boats are for the river and some are for the ocean."
I think Granny June is right. I just don't know which one I am. (page 14)

I really liked how Boulley wrote this so that you really feel how torn Daunis is between worlds.

When someone dies, everything about them becomes past tense. Except for the grief. Grief stays in the present. (page 24)

And so it is.

"Even inaction is a powerful choice." (page 394)

This line resonates hard right now with the cavalcade of terrible SCOTUS decisions coming down and watching democracy crumble right personal liberty at a time.

Curiosity killed the cat. Doubt tore her to pieces. (page 396)

Preach.