I was not fully prepared for the emotional punch of the first two chapters of this novel. I knew going into it that it was the story of a Native American family dealing with the tragedy of an attack on their mother, but I wasn't really ready for the violence and trauma that ensued. That isn't to say I didn't enjoy it or that it doesn't deserve the praise heaped upon it, but many women are tired of reading/watching/hearing rape narratives, so consider yourself warned.

The story is told through the narration of the son of the woman who was attacked, which mostly functions as a brilliant storytelling method, but I couldn't shake this feeling of wanting more at times. As a reader, we never venture inside the mind of the woman who was attacked, and as a character, she gets very little development, in part because after her attack she largely shuts herself off to her husband and son. It made me feel like a piece of the story was missing, as strong as the narrative was otherwise.

This is my first experience with Erdrich, and I'm looking forward to reading her other novels. Have any of you read her books yet?