Nate's Book Reviews

By Nate Feldman Plot Summary: It is the winter of 1789-1790 in Maine, and a dead man has been discovered in the Kennebec River.  The man turns out to be Joshua Burgess, a reviled rapist who had run afoul of many people in the community.  Martha Ballard, a midwife who has delivered most of the town’s babies, is certain upon seeing his body that the cause of death is hanging and not an accidental drowning.  However, who was responsible for this is uncertain.  Ballard learns that her eldest son, Cyrus, had a fight with Burgess the night of his death at a local dance function when the latter acted inappropriately with one of her daughters.   Meanwhile, one of the women Burgess raped, Rebecca Foster, is taking her case against Judge Joseph North, who she says raped her along with Burgess.  Martha Ballard, a close friend of hers, is willing to testify on her behalf in court.  However, in a town, and at a time, where the voice of women is limited in an e...

  By Nate Feldman The Berry Pickers is a 2023 debut novel by Amanda Peters.  The story is narrated by two characters, Joe and Norma.  They are Mi'kmaq Native Americans from Nova Scotia whose family went to Maine each year to pick blueberries.  Norma was originally Ruthie, but she was abducted while her family was berry picking in Maine by Frank and Lenore, a local couple that had a history of miscarriages and wanted a child.  Joe was Ruthie's older brother, and he was supposed to be watching her when she vanished.  This event haunts him for most of his life. The story goes back and forth from Joe and Norma, each telling what their lives were like from childhood up until Joe is dying from cancer in his mid-50s.  In addition to losing his sister, Joe's brother Charlie is killed at a carnival by local Native Americans, another traumatizing event that sends him into a world of despair where becomes an alcoholic, an abusive husband, and an absent father who...