The Berry Pickers

De: Amanda Peters

Narrado por: Aaliya Warbus, Jordan Waunch

A four-year-old Mi’kmaq girl goes missing from the blueberry fields of Maine, sparking a tragic mystery that haunts the survivors, unravels a family, and remains unsolved for nearly fifty years

July 1962. Following in the tradition of Indigenous workers from Nova Scotia, a Mi’kmaq family arrives in Maine to pick blueberries for the summer. Weeks later, four-year-old Ruthie, the family’s youngest child, vanishes. She is last seen by her six-year-old brother, Joe, sitting on a favorite rock at the edge of a berry field. Joe will remain distraught by his sister’s disappearance for years to come.

In Maine, a young girl named Norma grows up as the only child of an affluent family. Her father is emotionally distant, her mother frustratingly overprotective.

Norma is often troubled by recurring dreams and visions that seem more like memories than imagination. As she grows older, Norma slowly comes to realize there is something her parents aren’t telling her. Unwilling to abandon her intuition, she will spend decades trying to uncover this family secret.

For fans of The Vanishing Half and Woman of Light, this showstopping debut by a vibrant new voice in fiction is a riveting novel about the search for truth, the shadow of trauma, and the persistence of love across time.

©2023 Amanda Peters (P)2023 HarperCollinsPublishers

sad but beautiful

I did not expect to love this this but I did. this shows how the childhood trauma of this one event effects everyone.

Moving story

Joe's reflection about death was profound. Also very moving was the journey toward forgiveness

well done

while the story was heartbreaking, the beautiful story was embedded with love for family

Family stories sad and beautiful

It was a beautiful story with a touch of sad reality. Written well. Easy to follow. I like the back and forth point of view.

The PAIN of the TAKEN CHILD and her TWO FAMILIES

I liked the slow unfolding of the puzzling story of the child, Norma, and her strange dreams.

Character development

Interesting story that probably happened and the characters were simple but strong and interesting. A good listen!

Emotional

I loved the characters, even though at times I hated their behavior. They were human with faults and the feelings of forgiveness was felt throughout the story

I loved this book

This book caught my attention from the very first chapter. The narrators were excellent. I couldn’t put it down. ❤️

Berry Pickers

Was a very good book to listen to and I want more!!! I want to hear about her auntie meeting her family and the new memories they’re making together! I will be buying to have the book in my library of favorites thank you

Too predictable

The layout of the book made it too easy to see how these two narratives would arc and come back together. It was well written but not spectacular. The life of the main character Norma felt flat. All in all not a bad read but not something I would recommend to a friend.