indigenouspeoples

Fire Exit | Morgan Talty

January has been a heavy month…in ways expected & in ways that have blindsided me. Friends & family are engaged in some pretty dramatic fights for their health. As a consequence, I‘ve found myself reaching for lighter books.

All that to say, I made it through 4 books from @Christine ‘s #AuldLangSpine list (and no more). My clear favorite was Fire Exit. I‘m listening to “Says Who?” at the moment, which is providing both levity & substance.👇🏻

monalyisha @Christine I‘m still planning to read the 4 I didn‘t get to (at least)! Black Orchard, Very Nice, Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts, and See No Stranger. I can‘t predict when they‘ll hit my radar again; certainly, it will be this year. I‘ll tag you whenever it happens! Thank you for curating such a thought-provoking selection. Many of the books were new to me, and I love that breath of freshness and novelty! 6d

Ruthiella Sorry to hear about your family and friends with health issues. ❤️ 5d

monalyisha @Ruthiella Thank you. Some of it has been more manageable. Some has been uncommonly awful. My best friend‘s wife, for example, had a seizure. She‘d never had one before. They thought it was due to a fever, since she had the flu; ran some MRI‘s just to be safe. She has brain cancer. It sounds like she‘ll be able to take a recently-approved drug to keep it from growing, which is amazing. But she‘s in her early 30‘s. His mom just died. It‘s beyond. 5d

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monalyisha @Ruthiella And this is after our mutual best friend‘s mom was *just* diagnosed with terminal brain cancer, which I mention because some #AuldLangSpine participants donated to her GoFundMe. She — Jody — is doing well, all things considered. She‘s living her life while she still feels relatively well. She‘s currently driving solo around California, because she‘s never traveled alone before and longed to. She booked a horseback ride on the beach! 5d

monalyisha @Ruthiella So, there have been bright spots. But January has not been light. 5d

Lesliereadsalot So sorry to hear all this. Such rough going for you right now. I thought you might be interested in listening to a podcast with Anne Curzan that‘s so interesting. See if you can find Chicago Humanities Tapes on Spotify and other platforms. It‘s the episode from December 17th. My daughter is the host on these podcasts! 5d

monalyisha Thanks, @Lesliereadsalot — that‘s such a fun connection to the text! I‘ll make note to take a listen. 🤩 5d

AnnCrystal Prayers for your family and friends 🙏💝. 5d

monalyisha Thank you, @AnnCrystal 💎 5d

Christine I‘m so sorry to learn of what you and your loved ones are going through, Alyisha! 😔 Holding everyone in my thoughts. I‘m sorry my list probably didn‘t provide nearly enough opportunities for levity! But Says Who? immediately jumped to mind for that so I‘m glad to hear it did for you, too. 4d

Christine And I only made it through two of yours in January! 🙃 (Will be posting about that soon.) My reading ground to a near halt in the last third of the month. I absolutely will be reading many more of your wonderful picks throughout the year, though! 4d

monalyisha Thank you, @Christine ! Says Who? is great fun (that‘s “fun” as a noun, mind you). I still can‘t get over the fun fact that “silly” used to mean “nice!” And, I know Bambi was released long after the meaning morphed but “If you don‘t have anything nice to say, don‘t say anything at all” takes on a whole new vibe. 😅 4d

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pdxannie

Fire Exit | Morgan Talty

pick

There needs to be a rating above Pick for a book like this. Morgan Talty‘s writing is soooooo good. Even though he writes about painful topics (like dementia, alcoholism), it feels like a gift to be able to read his words. Fave read of 2025 and the bar is set high.

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monalyisha

Fire Exit | Morgan Talty

pick

Despite being raised by a Native man and accepted fully into his family by the tender age of 2, Charles must leave the Rez the moment he comes of age because he does not have Native blood. When he fathers a child with a Penobscot woman he‘s been friends with since childhood, she leaves him and begs him to keep his parentage a secret — “for their daughter.” This secret turns his own life to ash and burns through the lives of others. 👇🏻

monalyisha 1/3: The author‘s identity is important. This is an OwnVoices novel. The tone of the message, which explores the idea of what we are *allowed* to keep (land, rights, love), and what is stripped from us, could feel *very* different, otherwise. Talty‘s sentences range from simple and viscerally blunt to poetic. 4w

monalyisha 2/3: Charles is surrounded by selfish people — people who need (and deserve) help but also people who rarely (if ever) express their gratitude or show him his worth. He never stops giving, and the moments when he stretches himself too thin always have disastrous consequences. (edited) 4w

monalyisha 3/3: It‘s a sad and chronically lonely story, lifted by what could be a new beginning. Still, endings and beginnings are always bound up together (isn‘t that the way?). Grief is the kindling for this novel and it‘s written deep into the bone fragments that are left behind. (edited) 4w

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monalyisha Thank you, @Christine! This is my favorite of your #AuldLangSpine selections thus far. I‘m creating a new “Best of 2025” shelf in its honor! 4w

Tamra I started this on audio and realized I need to read it in print. 😁 I didn‘t want to miss anything. 4w

Chelsea.Poole Lovely review. 3w

Christine What a review! So glad you appreciated this one. And good idea, @Tamra ! I would love to reread it via print. 3w

Suet624 Great review!!! 3w

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monalyisha

Fire Exit | Morgan Talty

“Louise,” I said. “Do you know where you are?”
She looked at me again. “Where I am?” she repeated.
“Yes,” I said. “Do you know where you are?”
Never before had I heard such certainty in a voice. “I‘m in my bones,” she said, and she rolled back onto her side.

#AuldLangSpine @Christine

Hooked_on_books I liked this one a lot and feel like it flew under the radar a bit. Good to see people are reading it. 4w

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M.Marvins

The First Blade of Sweetgrass | Suzanne Greenlaw, Gabriel Frey

“Look, Uhkomi, I have sweetgrass!”

M.Marvins

The First Blade of Sweetgrass | Suzanne Greenlaw, Gabriel Frey

This book would be an awesome edition into Native American culture. And would be an excellent addition to classroom library.

M.Marvins

The First Blade of Sweetgrass | Suzanne Greenlaw, Gabriel Frey

pick

Illustrations in this book are amazing. The contents of the story were also really good. Overall I would recommend this book for a classroom library.

Sagei.9

The First Blade of Sweetgrass | Suzanne Greenlaw, Gabriel Frey

pick

A story about Musqon learning to pick and braid sweetgrass from her grandmother. This was written by Suzanne Greenlaw, who is Maliseet, and Gabriel Frey, who is Passamaquoddy (both are groups of native peoples from around Maine).

Sagei.9

The First Blade of Sweetgrass | Suzanne Greenlaw, Gabriel Frey

“'Our people have been coming here to pick sweetgrass for generations. We call it welimahaskil, and we use it in ceremony as well as baskets. Sweetgrass is a spiritual medicine for us.'“