This book absolutely lived up to all of the hype and then some. Wow. I stayed up so late to finish it last night, and cried several times at the end.

Many folks have said so many things about The Firekeeper’s Daughter that there isn’t much new I can say, other than to add my voice to the chorus of praises for Angeline Boulley and this wonderful, heartbreaking, uplifting, dramatic and beautiful story. Although this is YA, Boulley doesn’t soften the very heavy themes in it, so please check the content warnings in the comments.

In her author’s note, Boulley mentions that contemporary Indigenous stories aren’t told enough, and I agree with that. I think so often about representation and the impact it can have on us as readers. I’m so grateful for the variety of stories being published now, and I hope that this book reaches and resonates with young readers who want to see themselves on page. I also hope that the success of this book encourages publishers to seek out and continue to promote diverse stories told by the communities represented.

It *is* a privilege for us to be able to read about the Native customs and traditions in this book, and Boulley shared something incredibly valuable with the world in writing it. For that, I am thankful for the window she provided in this telling.

Although on the surface I have almost nothing in common with Daunis, the protagonist, I related so much to her and the environment she was in. She’s only a couple of years younger than me, and I, too, lived in a rural area devastated by methamphetamine in the early 2000s. It was a harrowing visit to a time in my life I hadn’t thought much about recently.