futurehomebuddyread

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

While I befell what is likely bronchitis (YUCK!) I fell behind in #FutureHomeBuddyRead but-

if you have also finished up I'd love to hear your final thoughts. If you felt satisfied or dissatisfied and if you'd read another by Erdrich. 🤔

FernsAndFairyTales, Lola, wrenaymuhree, EmilyM, Redwritinghood, nomadreader, kate_reads, bookloo, RebelReader

CocoReads I‘m sorry you have the dreaded bronchitis! I‘ve been sick for weeks with it, on my second round of meds and I think I‘m finally starting to turn the corner. 7y

CocoReads All of which is my way of saying, feel better soon and don‘t put off going to the dr like I did! 7y

mrozzz @CocoReads thanks for looking out! I've been checked. Trying antibiotics and seeing improvement. Not much to do other than rest and not cough too hard lest the pain exhaust me. Also frequent breaks during the walking part of my commute. 😪 7y

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wrenaymuhree Oh nooooo! I used to get bronchitis and/or pneumonia every winter. You have my sympathy! Feel better soon. 💙 7y

CocoReads @mrozzz yes, my rib cage is so sore from all the coughing. I‘m finally starting to see improvement as well. Hopefully we‘ll both be in the mend in no time! 7y

wrenaymuhree Also, I was vaguely disappointed w/ the conclusion...perhaps mostly apathetic? The conclusion felt rushed and kind of anticlimactic, given the 300-pg buildup that led to it. I don‘t have issues with the choice of resolution, but wish she‘d have given readers a bit more of an ending. 7y

jbhops Nooooo! Feel better soon! 😔 7y

Lola I‘m so sorry you‘re sick! 😕I seem to be in the minority about this book. I really liked it-it left me with a feeling a dread, a feeling that these events were real-and that, despite a few holes (the devolution that was never really explored in depth, the idea that you would be safe up North/in Canada, even though that was a global situation-were enough to make it a 4 ⭐️ read for me. It‘s my 3d Erdrich- I‘ll definitely read more. 7y

Lola @CocoReads Oh no! Wishing you a speedy full recovery from the ickies. (edited) 7y

tammysue Feel better soon!! 🌈 7y

Books88 Awful! Feel better soon! 7y

RebelReader @mrozzz @CocoReads I hope you both are on the mend and feel much better soon. @wrenaymuhree I agree the ending was disappointing. I have read several other Erdrich novels (she's an institution here in Minnesota) I like some better than others. I admit this wasn't my favorite, but I didn't hate it either. 7y

DebinHawaii Hope you feel better soon! 💜 7y

Redwritinghood Hope you get better soon. On the book, I was not impressed, but I will try some of her other books. 7y

ghosthost I hope you feel well soon! 7y

readordierachel Oh no! Take care. 7y

bookloo Get better Mel. :/ And I DNF‘ed it, I honestly hated everything but the style. I tend to like stream of consciousness/letter form, but the narrator was so infuriating it just wasn‘t worth it to me. And I had such high hopes for this book. 🤷🏾‍♀️ 7y

Megabooks I‘m sorry about the bronchitis!! This is one of the worst BOTM books I‘ve read all year! How do diary entries have that much dialogue? Weird. (edited) 7y

youneverarrived Hope you feel better soon ❤️ 7y

mrozzz @wrenaymuhree thank you!! It's awful 😫 just taking walking slow (although that's hard in NYC) and trying to rest a lot. I also felt like the ending was rushed/didn't exist? I feel like her whole starting to write this 26 years ago and then picking it up again 1 year ago to complete it shows through and did NOT work in her favor. 7y

mrozzz @jbhops @whatshesreadingnow @AJBowers @DebinHawaii @ghosthost @ReadOrDieRachel @youneverarrived ahhhh you're all so sweet. ☺️💜💜 Thank you all for the well wishes!!! 7y

mrozzz @Lola I lean towards agreeing with you but those holes... I can't believe there wasn't more work to fill the gaps & extend the story because like you I was actually interested! @RebelReader that's good to know... I've had La Rose on my TBR for awhile. 7y

mrozzz @Redwritinghood Thank you!!! ❤️ If you find one in particular that is better reviewed, let me know! As mentioned, I have La Rose but I don't think I want to push through it any time soon. 7y

mrozzz @bookloo Thank youuuu 💜 That's so interesting that you didn't like the story but DID like the style. It's a shame it was a miss for you. The narrative style was very weird.... I'm of the mind of @Booksandcooks the sheer amount of dialogue broke the illusion for me every time another date stamp arrived or Cedar addressed her baby and I remembered this was a collection of journal entries. 7y

readordierachel La Rose is my book club's next pick. I'm nervous after seeing everyone's comments on this one...🤞 7y

mrozzz @ReadOrDieRachel but it also seems like Erdrich is a solid writer, just didn't do so well with this book. Didn't it win a critics award?

Larose

(edited) 7y

readordierachel Yeah, you're right. The response LaRose seems much warmer. Maybe it's just the attempt at speculative/dystopian that didn't work. 7y

mrozzz @ReadOrDieRachel I hope so 🤞🏻 7y

Lola @mrozzz @Booksandcooks Definitely another issue for me. This was NOT a journal. Why invoke that device and then not go with it? There a few sections I could buy as journal entries but definitely not the majority of the book. 7y

Lola @ReadOrDieRachel This one is excellent

The Round House

Lola @mrozzz LaRose won the https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Book_Critics_Circle_Award in 2016 7y

Lola @mrozzz I didn‘t realize you were in NYC 😍I was there last weekend. 7y

mrozzz @Lola yes I work here but live in CT so it's basically my playground. Did you have a ball?? 7y

Lola @mrozzz I did! Was was there for a very short time-in Friday, out Sunday-but it was great! 7y

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mrozzz

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

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"Womb volunteers" are forced to carry to term frozen embryos and be artificially inseminated from frozen specimens... aside from eerie similarities to Handmaid's Tale, do you wonder why those in charge think they can prevent the evolutional backslide taking over the planet?
Or if any of this is too extreme a measure to use to "save" the planet?

#FutureHomeBuddyRead

FernsAndFairyTales, Lola, wrenaymuhree, EmilyM, Redwritinghood, nomadreader, kate_reads, bookloo, RebelReader

Redwritinghood Wishful thinking maybe? 7y

Lola I actually thought they were more trying to get as many normal babies born as possible in an attempt to keep the human population in the form as we know it stabIe. I didn‘t think that the reversal of everything else in nature was really being addressed-not by the characters and not as part of the story itself. Going north or escaping to Canada wasn‘t going to do anything to address the reversal, just get ppl away from the US govt-I thought that (edited) 7y

Lola was a flaw in the story. 7y

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wrenaymuhree 👆👆👆👆 everything @Lola just wrote. Seriously—WHY ARE THEY TRYING SO HARD TO ESCAPE AMERICA?!?! Isn‘t the degenerative evolution a global thing? HOW WILL CANADA SOLVE THIS ISSUE?! 🤔😒😩 Clearly I‘m bothered by this flaw in the storyline...haha. 7y

EmilyM I agree about the Canada thing...I also wondered why the reservation seemed to be a safe place that no one bothered with. Is it just history repeating itself where the Native Americans were forgotten about? 7y

mrozzz Ooooooh @EmilyM brought up a great point. And I have no idea why they're going to Canada. I guess I just assumed that the government there was being less obtrusive and perhaps not abducting people. @Lola @wrenaymuhree 7y

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mrozzz

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

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Do YOU trust ANYONE? #FutureHomeBuddyRead

FernsAndFairyTales, Lola, wrenaymuhree, EmilyM, Redwritinghood, nomadreader, kate_reads, bookloo, RebelReader

Redwritinghood I do think Cedar has been a bit of an ungrateful brat throughout, so no surprise that she continues to be so. I do, however, think it wise to be suspicious of people considering Phil‘s actions. 7y

Lola @Redwritinghood Again, I agree with you. So hard to trust anytime yet she has to trust someone-she can‘t survive/escape alone. 7y

wrenaymuhree Ugh. I just hate the dynamics of her relationship with Sera in general. She comes across as a bit ungrateful, but it feels more forced to me as a reader—like Erdrich really wants us to think she‘s ungrateful—and it didn‘t come off the page as natural or super believable, in my opinion. Does that make sense? 7y

mrozzz @wrenaymuhree definitely makes sense. Seems like Cedar had to "write" about it to make it more obvious even though it is already... 7y

14 likes4 comments

mrozzz

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

I was bowled over by Tia (this whole part really). 💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻
#FutureHomeBuddyRead

FernsAndFairyTales, Lola, wrenaymuhree, EmilyM, Redwritinghood, nomadreader, kate_reads, bookloo, RebelReader

Redwritinghood I don‘t know about surprises - there were so many weird things going on. I do find it hard to believe that, unless she is mute for some reason, that she would never speak. That seems like it would be hard to do. 7y

Lola I really liked the bit with Tia but wouldn‘t the staff question the disappearance of all those blankets? 🤔 7y

EmilyM @Lola I thought the same thing about the blankets!! 7y

mrozzz @Lola @EmilyM definitely weird that didn't come up... 7y

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mrozzz

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

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SERA?!!! Were you surprised by her reappearance?

Or Phil's apparent betrayal?

#FutureHomeBuddyRead

FernsAndFairyTales, Lola, wrenaymuhree, EmilyM, Redwritinghood, nomadreader, kate_reads, bookloo, RebelReader

RebelReader Yes! Where did Sera come from? I'm suspicious of her so I'm anxious to see if I'm right. She seems like she doesn't want Cedar's baby to be born? Why? 7y

Redwritinghood Yes and yes. It seemed that Sera had taken off and was in hiding for some reason. Never thought Phil would turn on her. 7y

Lola I really don‘t know what to make of Sera. What‘s her agenda? She does seem to have one. I‘m not sure I believe her about Phil. 7y

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RebelReader @Lola @redwritinghood I don't think Phil turned on her either. Sera is just too fishy for me. 7y

wrenaymuhree @RebelReader I‘m suspicious of Sera, too; but only bc I felt like she disappeared a bit too conveniently at the start! I think her reluctance for Cedar to have the baby is purely based on the mania/fear, though. And, I suspected Phil wasn‘t altogether trustworthy initially. He seemed sketchy as 💩! He seemed a bit stalkerish early on. 7y

EmilyM I am puzzled by Cedar's dad's (Sera's husband) disappearance. 7y

mrozzz @EmilyM right? Totally weird to have him in just to cut him out... maybe Sera is only "with" the government because they threaten him in some way ??‍♀️ 7y

mrozzz @RebelReader @Lola I hope @wrenaymuhree is right and she's just scared too and running on adrenaline or something and not going to threaten Cedar's baby! But also... I feel like absolutely anything could happen next. I was not suspicious of Phil to begin with and I'm still not sure if his story can be believed... @Redwritinghood 7y

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mrozzz

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

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"Come to think of it they must be giving me drugs. My experiences are enchantingly visual and spookily intense."

At this point, can her recollection still be construed as truth? Does an unreliable narrator here enhance or hinder the story?

Reaching the inevitable fight or flight moment of potential capture, would you have done as Cedar did and comply or utilize the small arsenal Phil had built up at home?

Is it real??

#FutureHomeBuddyRead

FernsAndFairyTales, Lola, wrenaymuhree, EmilyM, Redwritinghood, nomadreader, kate_reads, bookloo, RebelReader

RebelReader I would like to think I would have fought back, but until you are actually in a situation you can't be 100% sure if your actions! 7y

Redwritinghood Unreliable narrators can be tricky. I think in this case, though, she was only unreliable while on the drugs. 7y

Lola I didn‘t really think of her, even at that point, as an unreliable matter. Like @RebelReader, I‘d like to think that I‘d fight back...I think at this point, Cedar was so mentally and physically exhausted, that she just didn‘t have it in her to fight back. 7y

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Lola @Redwritinghood I agree 7y

wrenaymuhree I‘m not so certain I‘d fight back. I mean, she has to know she‘s in danger if she resists the force, right? And compliance seems to be, at least initially, the best way of immediately protecting her baby. 7y

wrenaymuhree I also agree w/ @lola — I didn‘t particularly think of Cedar as an unreliable narrator while on drugs, though I suppose she was. I felt she was more unreliable when she became paranoid of those around her (though admittedly I‘d be the same way). 7y

EmilyM I agree that, technically, she is an unreliable narrator, but she is believable. I trusted her throughout the story...not sure why, but I did. 7y

mrozzz I'm on par with @EmilyM although there is just so much that is disturbing which is why I might be finding myself hoping it can't be real! @Redwritinghood @wrenaymuhree 7y

mrozzz @RebelReader you're totally right... I thought she might have had more because of her growing mama instincts but @wrenaymuhree also has a good point. 7y

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mrozzz

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

I understand why so many people did not believe in evolution. It means perfect physical harmony, grace, and endless beautiful forms resulted slowly from agonizing failures. In their eyes rvolution makes life on earth a scenario of bloody, ham-handed, ruthless, tooth-and-nail struggle. So they point to a miraculous structure... and say: There, how could that be done piecemeal? How could anything produce perfection? Impossible. #futurehomebuddyread

mrozzz @wrenaymuhree @Lola @EmilyM @fernsandfairytales @bookloo @Redwritinghood @nomadreader @RebelReader @katekrug Questions coming up tomorrow!! 7y

wrenaymuhree I flagged this quote, too! 7y

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Redwritinghood

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

so-so

I finished this well ahead of schedule for the #futurehomebuddyread, but not because I found it terribly compelling. I do not feel that the diary format was a good choice here. Also, while we get vague hints at how the society is changing, we don‘t actually see anything unusual in the story. I did like the point the author makes that, when things start to go wrong, people often just carry on doing normal things. This was just ok, but a quick read.

MrBook Great review for one of today's #TBRtemptation selections 😁👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻! 7y

TheLibrarian I just started this and am now contemplating picking up a different book. 7y

Redwritinghood @TheLibrarian It‘s a great concept, but I feel like she didn‘t try very hard to make it work. Or maybe I was expecting more. Anyway, if it‘s any consolation, it is a really quick read. 7y

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Redwritinghood @MrBook Thanks! 7y

TheLibrarian @Redwritinghood Thank you! I‘ll keep reading it then - trying to pick quicker reads to try and finish my Goodreads challenge this year (I‘ve been slacking). 7y

mrozzz A recent interview between Margaret Atwood and Louise Erdrich was telling.... in writing this book, actually started years ago, she felt compelled in the last year or so (that damn election) to finish it. I'll probably agree with you in the end that it seems if not rushed, just not final. 7y

UrsulaMonarch @mrozzz ooo that sounds like a good interview pairing!! 7y

mrozzz Oh totally! @Lkelly 7y

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Lola

Future Home of the Living God | Louise Erdrich

Finally getting a chance to sit down with this one. I‘m behind for the #buddyread but hopefully this will suck me in and I‘ll catch up fast 🤞🏻#BOTM #FutureHomeBuddyRead @mrozzz @katekrug @nomadreader

mrozzz 😃😃😃 7y

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