Wow. Just wow. Atmospheric. Heart-breaking. Beautiful.

The story of a girl. Of a man. Of a family. Of tragedies and how to bear up under them.

The sweet tale of a man’s love for his only child. The story of a man with a tragic past. A tale of a girl growing up. Interspersed with the background of our leading man starting life anew with his sweet young wife.

Highly recommended. Bring your tissues.

P.S. This author truly brings the Pacific Northwest to life. As well as life on Oregon’s river.

Let the “bookover” commence. 😢

I guess Lewis moved to Disappointment Oregon since it fit his description. Yes he had a hard childhood but he was so unfair to his daughter. I wanted to shake him a time or two so he would get his act together. I think it sounds like the very best life to be a fishing guide with a lovely wife and child. He should of became a better person than he was. I loved Gray, she was a typical teenager with so much going for her that made her shine. The camping out under the stars was awesome and I highly recommend this book and stick with it even through the sad stuff. Great read and explains a lot of how families during the 60's all had rough childhoods. Do you agree?

I couldn’t get into this book. To be honest it’s a little boring for me. I had to put it down. I kept on getting distracted. I couldn’t focus on what I was reading.

Lewis Yaw grew up in far back east and his did not start out well when he lost a mother at a very young age and had to grow up with a who regrets him every day. Lewis's father abuses often even more so when Lewis witnesses his father at his weakest moments. His father believes that physically fighting your own child as acceptable as it is just another form of communication. Thanks to a teacher that sees a chance in Lewis he is referred to a therapist which turns out to be a boxing gym. Lewis finds that this can be place of escape and ends up being a somewhat successful boxer. He finds within this environment he realizes he can be something more. Eventually Lewis finds his way out and ends up in Disappointment, Oregon where he has exchanged the life of a fighter for the life as a fishing guide where he and his wife Janey who is the sun in his world try to make a better life. When they have their child and see's that it is not the son he hoped for. He heads the advice of a nurse in the delivery room when he mentions how he wanted a son and now what is he going to do, and she tells him teach his daughter and she will do these things better than any man. While Lewis raises his daughter he is haunted by his past as he does not want to repeat the past and be like his father, does not want to be that guy. This is the type of read that compels you to finish it in one day and it has been a while since I have had a book do that but be warned there are some dark spots in this story and in my opinion gut-wrenching at times. I do not know if my review does this book justice but i will definitely recommend this book to everyone i know. Give it a read.

The way this was written, I really felt bad for the characters throughout the story. It seemed like they just couldn't catch a break. Just when something sad happened and I'd think they'd be in recovery mode for a bit, they'd get hit with something else.

The only thing that I didn't care for was how in depth it got with the details of fishing. To be fair, the main characters are fishing guides and that's stated in the synopsis, I just didn't expect to go into so much detail of fishing. I have no interest in fishing, so these parts didn't add anything for me, but I'd imagine anyone who knows/enjoys fishing would enjoy them.

Some books you just don’t personally vibe with and that was the case for me here it was written well and the deep dove into the trauma was really well done. I just didn’t think it would be SO detailed into all of the hunting/bears/ etc.

I enjoyed this book. Heartbreaking, full of character, but a hard book to read. Reminded me of Legend of a Suicide. This author has immense talent and I look forward to more.

Cape Disappointment, Oregon is a beautiful and dangerous place. It’s a favorite for tourists looking to experience the wilds of Oregon’s Pacific Coast. It’s an “end of the world” place for hardcore drifters, seekers, survivalists, and lifers who put their lives on the line every day.

C.B. Bernard’s striking debut novel “Small Animals Caught in Traps” centers on the grandeur and peril of Disappointment, seen primarily through the eyes of the Yaw family - Lewis, Janey, and Grayling. Mom and Dad are Massachusetts transplants ending up in Cape Disappointment at the end of their quest to create as much distance as possible from their roots.

Bernard teaches us a great deal. We learn about Oregon, fishing, bears, guns, boats, boxing, arrogant Californians, trivia, and literature. Often we learn through clever, witty, dry dialogue that is laugh out loud funny.

But what “Small Animals Caught in Traps” is really about is struggling to overcome trauma, despair, abandonment, and pain. Is recovery possible? Can we control ourselves sufficiently to learn and improve? Bernard pulls no punches (pun intended) in the stories he tells. Some are graphic in detail. Each time the reader settles in confident that the corner has been turned, Bernard tells us, “Not so fast”. However at the end of the day, “Small Animals Caught in Traps” is a hopeful tale and a wondrous read.

Thanks to Blackstone Publishing and NetGalley for the eARC.