Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon

Content Tags: Horror, LGBTQIA+, Abuse, Alcoholism, Animal Death, Death, Racism, Fantasy, Nightmares (Hauntings), Violence, Self-Harm, Sex, Cult, Religious Trauma

Description from Storygraph:

Vern - seven months pregnant and desperate to escape the strict religious compound where she was raised - flees for the shelter of the woods. There, she gives birth to twins, and plans to raise them far from the influence of the outside world.

But even in the forest, Vern is a hunted woman. Forced to fight back against the community that refuses to let her go, she unleashes incredible brutality far beyond what a person should be capable of, her body wracked by inexplicable and uncanny changes.

To understand her metamorphosis and to protect her small family, Vern has to face the past, and more troublingly, the future--outside the woods. Finding the truth will mean uncovering the secrets of the compound she fled but also the violent history in America that produced it.

Rivers Solomon's Sorrowland is a genre-bending work of Gothic fiction. Here, monsters aren't just individuals, but entire nations. It is a searing, seminal book that marks the arrival of a bold, unignorable voice in American fiction.

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Possible spoilers ahead. I quote from the book, but I don't really think any context is given that would ruin anything. But here's a warning just in case.

I immensely enjoyed this book. It always feels weird when I say I "enjoyed" a book with absolutely awful content, but ya know what I mean. (Right??) The writing was so captivating and powerful. This book was science fiction, but had so much real world focus. It was such a unique way to discuss the absolute atrocities that have been perpetrated by the US Government on so many people - particularly those of Indigenous and African decent.

At no point was I entirely certain where the plot would go next and how deep everything would go. And I was kept on the edge of my seat the whole time. I loved how the topic of gender was approached with four of the main characters where it was less vital to the story and more a statement of reality. People exist how they exist and that's all that should matter.

The book opens with an Author's Note beginning: This story takes place on stolen land. This acknowledgement set the tone for the primary focus of the book which is that this country was built upon injustices and horrific acts that continue to this day. Vern wants to do something about that, wants to make life better for her children.

Speaking of her children - I cried so many times at the relationship developed between Vern and Howling and Feral. Vern may have had trauma, but she did her best to not take that out on them and to let them be kids and all that goes along with that. The following was one moment shared between Vern and Howling in particular that really stood out to me:

"Just remember to be kind." 

"I always am."

"And to fight," she said.

"I always do!"

This may seem small to some people, but to me it was so touching that not only was Vern concerned about how her child treated others, she also cared enough that her child took care of themself! 

There was so many moments in this book that I took note of because the words were so compelling and meaningful. Rivers Solomon is an impeccable writer and they were so thoughtful with how they tackled issues in this book. I loved how much I learned and experienced and connected with this story.

And now for some reflective questions:

What did you think of the writing? Are there any standout sentences?

As shared above, the writing was excellent! Here are two of my favorite quotes:

• "Was it really so much easier to pretend everything was good than to face the possibility that it wasn't? Folks fell as madly in love with the illusion of truth as they did with truth proper."
• "Vern would always prefer a difficult truth to an easy lie."

What did you Google while reading the book?

Operation Paperclip.