The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

The Berry Pickers

Author: Amanda Peters

Genre: Fiction, Indigenous Fiction

Format: Physical

Publish Date: October 2023

Read: August 2024

Favorite Quote: When you’re an only child, semi-imprisoned, books become more than paper between hard cardboard, more than the alphabet organized into words and printed on a page.

Story Synopsis: In the 1960s, a Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq family would go to Maine every summer to pick blueberries in the fields. When their four-year-old, Ruthie, disappears, they do their best to move on, some assuming she died, others assuming she’s still out there.

Norma grew up in a strict household, never allowed to be alone, run around, and explore her world. She found comfort in her Aunt June and the therapist who helped her manage her nightmares. As she grew and her parents aged, pieces of her life story fell into place, creating a tragic and unthinkable image.

Why does this book beguile? Told from multiple points of view, The Berry Pickers creatively shares how Indigenous people were treated through one family’s story. The Berry Pickers spans forty-to-fifty years of life for these characters, while Peters weaves threads continuously connecting them.

I wanted to love this book, but it fell short of amazing for me. It was quietly powerful but, unfortunately, held no twists or surprises. The Berry Pickers touches on themes of white supremacy, white saviorism, mental health, and feminism in significant ways, but I feel they could get lost in the quietness of the characters.

Rating: 4/5

Link*: The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters

If you’re interested in this, read*: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi