... 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.
