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miriam_h's review against another edition
5.0
This book is hard to describe, but it’s a beautiful journey, that twists and turns and meanders into deep explorations of humanity. One part road trip, one part family dysfunction, one part immigration, all parts lost. Full of acute observations of the little movements of life. I’ve never read anything like it.
jozienw's review against another edition
5.0
This book made me cry when I finished it. Don’t really know what to read after this for a little while, it’s a novel I want to keep with me for a while, to think about. Beautifully written, well-structured and a very necessary book for the times we live in.
heatheremurray's review against another edition
4.0
This book has an unusual narrative style and often feels meandering, but there are parts of the story, especially towards the end with both sets of children in the desert, that are just devastating. We have all heard stories about the migrant children crossing into the United States but this is the first thing I've read that tries to imagine that journey from the side of the children. Those moments of this novel are heartbreaking and those are the pages of the book I will carry with me moving foward.
karlijntje_mandarijntje's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
coparda's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
hollyannsa's review against another edition
4.0
A hard book for me. Intense. Hard histories and a marriage falling apart, separating the children.
annamoss's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars. Wonderful in so many ways - beautifully written, complex construction, references to the larger literary landscape. I know it is nerdy, but I find it deeply satisfying when an author is able to subtly yet recognizably reference the larger literary landscape - particularly in a novel not about the white men of our cannon.
The novel takes a family falling apart on a road trip and looks at unaccompanied children crossing the border and Native American history. It's a sometimes messy intersection of stories, but feels manageable and, at times, breathtaking.
I like the double meaning of the title - the archives in the book and also the book itself as an archive.
The novel takes a family falling apart on a road trip and looks at unaccompanied children crossing the border and Native American history. It's a sometimes messy intersection of stories, but feels manageable and, at times, breathtaking.
I like the double meaning of the title - the archives in the book and also the book itself as an archive.