... moving and monumental ... Epic in its sweep, The Seed Keeper uses a chorus of female voices to recount the intergenerational narrative of the U.S. government's deliberate destruction of Indigenous ways of life with a focus on these Native families' connections to their traditions through the seeds they cherish and hand down ... the reader experiences an interwoven tapestry of oppression and resistance ... Wilson opens her book with the poem The Seeds Speak, in which the seeds declare, 'We hold time in this space, we hold a thread to / infinity that reaches to the stars.' This novel illuminates that expansiveness with elegance and gravity.
The story of a bold, strong Dakhóta woman named Rosalie Iron Wing unfolds in captivating ways ... The women in Rosalie’s family and family-by-choice are fascinating, and each offers her own perspective on both the story and the setting in which it unfolds, adding depth to our understanding of Rosalie and the complexities of her character. It’s a rich tale of trauma and choice, history and meaning-making ... The contrast between how white colonizers use the land and Native Americans care for it viscerally demonstrates the inextricable connection between the earth and the people who love it ... the writing sings in compact, careful sentences, lending a timelessness to the narrative and making it clear that this compelling story is not just about these characters but also about culture, landscape and how we can—and often cannot—understand each other. Haunting and beautiful, the seeds and words of this novel will find their way into your world, however far from the Dakhóta lands that might be.
... a deeply empathetic portrayal of a character grappling with a vibrant heritage complicated by pain, loss, and dysfunction. Ultimately, Rosalie comes to terms with who she is, understanding that for her, survival itself is a remarkable feat.
Told through the voices of strong, albeit fractured, women across generations, The Seed Keeper is a novel about legacies, generational trauma, and the inescapable call of one’s roots ... With a focus on women who carry the scars of the past alongside hope for the future, The Seed Keeper is a profound novel about resilience and rebirth.
Dakota writer Wilson’s depiction of Rosalie would be story enough, but her debut novel sweeps generations and also encompasses the War of 1862, when the Dakota were ultimately removed from their land in Minnesota. Through the voices of other women from past and present, Wilson deepens the reader’s understanding of what loss of language and culture has done to Indigenous people. In depicting the way Rosalie’s ancestor Marie Blackbird and other women sew seeds into their clothing as the war breaks out, Wilson shows these women’s relationship to and reverence for the land: a sharp contrast to 'a country that destroys its soil,' using the methods of modern agriculture and its effects upon waterways. A thought-provoking and engaging read.
Uprooted from their land, the seeds Dakhóta women carried with them were not just a source of sustenance, but their link to the past and hope for the future, a symbol of their profound bond with the Earth. They provide a powerful symbol for Rosalie’s rediscovery of her lost family and the ways of 'the old ones' ... A thoughtful, moving meditation on connections to the past and the land that humans abandon at their peril.
... deeply moving ... Wilson offers finely wrought descriptions of the natural world, as the voice of the seeds provides connective threads to the stories of her people. This powerful work achieves a deep resonance often lacking from activist novels, and makes a powerful statement along the way.
