Scan barcode
thewickermage's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Ableism, Hate crime, Incest, Racism, Sexual content, Religious bigotry, and Murder
kk_gotit_goinon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.0
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Death, Incest, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual assault, Violence, Religious bigotry, Murder, Gaslighting, and Colonisation
rei_reads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Ableism, Incest, and Murder
Moderate: Racism, Rape, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Animal death
brynpemery's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Incest, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, and Deportation
Moderate: Child death, Murder, and Pregnancy
r_o_s_e's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Incest, Racism, Colonisation, and Classism
Moderate: Child death, Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, and Pregnancy
serendipitysbooks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This Other Eden tells the story of a community on Apple Island and its eventual destruction. It is inspired by actual events. In 1792 a formerly enslaved man and his Irish born wife set up home on a small island just off the coast of Maine, and begin to establish an apple orchard. Over a hundred years later their descendants remain, along with some newer arrivals, ekeing out a subsistence living. They are poor but seemingly happy. Eventually their community attracts attention from the mainland, initially a well-meaning missionary with a white saviour complex. Racism combines with the eugenics movement and self-interest, and the state evicts the residents from the island committing some of them to insane asylums.
I expected to like this book a lot more than I did. The author focuses on the community as a whole so we meet a lot of characters, but don’t necessarily spend much time with any of them. This and the fact that the story is told from a third-person perspective meant I didn’t form an emotional connection with any of the characters, and I missed that. The book is structured in three parts. The first part is the story of the island and its inhabitants. Next we follow Ethan, a young boy who can pass for white and has a talent for art, who has been selected for an opportunity on the mainland. Then we return to the island to witness the destruction of the community. I felt Ethan’s section wasn’t well integrated. I would have loved to have seen more of Ethan and to have heard from him directly. And then there is the lack of resolution. Since Harding is focussed on the community once it is disestablished the novel essentially ends. But I was craving more and would have loved to know what happened to at least some of the residents, to have followed them on their post-island life.
I did like the fact that this novel shines a light on a little known event in American history. I appreciated the empathetic way the characters and their lives were sketched. I also liked the balance. Harding highlighted the wrongness of eugenics and of the state’s actions but didn’t neglect problematic aspects of life on Apple Island, such as incest and its impacts.
Graphic: Racial slurs and Racism
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Ableism and Incest
carrieclothwright's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Minor: Ableism, Animal death, Incest, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Murder, Colonisation, Classism, and Deportation