This book wasn’t for me. I found that the characters made poor life decisions and had to stop during a scene of animal brutality. I was hoping for more of a coming of age story but couldn’t get through the grittiness presented in living conditions, as well as life choices. Sorry, as I was hoping for much more

Ezzy and Grey have a problem. And their own problems. With alternating chapters given to each of them, we learn what brought them together, what motivates them (or not - Ezzy is not motivated by anything, that I can tell), and how each of them has been affected by colonialism.

I wanted to love this book, and there were parts that were very alive. But for most of the book, I felt like Grey was a caricature and Ezzy was just moping his way through life, taking what came. No depth of personality.

The scenes with the bison were the most "alive", and I was disappointed that they were such small scenes.

Read the book of you want to understand Canada's indigenous peoples' struggles, but don't expect great characters.

I had difficulty finishing this book because the plot seemed to jump all over the place. It feels like the book was not edited before it was published. I am submitting a review because I get rated on the percentage of the books that I review, not whether the books are readable or not.

Early on this story felt disjointed. It may have been partially caused by the formatting of the Kindle version I was reading: Paragraphs running together and sentences parsed as separate paragraphs required me to go back and rereading part of the immediate story to determine who was saying what to whom. There is probably another reason that the story felt disjointed, and for this I apologize to Conor because it was not his fault. I just happen to come down with a miserable head cold while packing our home to move from AZ to OK. Sorry Conor, these circumstances may have cost you that coveted fifth star.

I'll start by saying this story is difficult to read because the main characters-Ezzy, Grey, Auntie May and Ol' Joe - are trapped in a world where they are culturally marginalized as "indigenous" natives. You want to pull for them to succeed but you also come to understand that they need to avoid co-opting into "normal" society or they will lose who they really are as a people group. So they accept what is ("It is what it is.") their role in life and move forward with what they can control to live a life that honors their ancestral past. Their goal is to primarily hold on to their language, traditions, history and culture so as to preserve these for future generations.

Living in AZ I have served with various service ministries on the Dine (Navaho) Nation, having had the privilege to share breakfast with the, then, President and Vice President of the Nation. I saw the constant struggle these proud people have with keeping the youth involved with their heritage. Many drift away for work or collage or become prodigals looking for the "good life" and never return.

I've also been involved for the past 13 years with mentoring a correspondence Bible study program for prisoners. I've mentored over 200 students, and many have shared their stories of abandonment by family and friends as they serve their time. More marginalization.

Nevertheless, Conor understands this world, and despite all the obstacles "polite society" has placed at their feet, he has given us real people living through real situations where they strive daily to keep their heads up and move forward. Well played. This book is real life at its heart.

Conor uses the Bison as a metaphor for a life once shared among the various Native nations that roamed across the Plains. The bison and the hunt is the metanarrative of their existence, as much as the Exodus is the metanarrative of the nations of Israel.

ugh, unfortunately this one did just not do it for me. the premise sounded sooo promising and I loved the idea of the themes explored but the execution was just... lacking for me - maybe my expectations were too high.

2.5 rounded up to 3 for the review.

Definifely dark and about the racism that has affected First Nations communities in Canada throughout the ages. Thanks for the ARC! Going up one month pre publication

This book had a fresh perspective and voice that is not often heard. While the reader may wish for a happy ending wrapped up in a bow, it was fitting that this book left one with a sense that this story cannot be complete until hundreds of years of injustice are rectified. There was such a strong sense of place that I felt like I was witnessing the story develop. The characters and touchpoints with history really immerse you into the book.

Thank you for the arc of this upcoming read. However, this just didn’t do it for me. I’m not sure what I expected but this didn’t land.

Thank you to University of Minnesota Press and NetGalley for this ARC of Prairie Edge by Conor Kerr.

I very much enjoyed this novel set among the modern-day Métis people in Edmonton and surrounding area.

The cousins - driven mainly by Grey's quest to reconnect with the culturally and spiritually vital bison - capture and release a herd of the creatures in a downtown Edmonton park. There is definitely some humor to be found in the relationship between Ezzy and Grey in particular but this is a dark novel which explores the historical crimes against the First Nation people, the bison, and how that both carries on into the 21st century and has affected the lives of the generations in between and up to the present day. The book includes racism, violence, neglect, exploitation, and abuse and it's heartbreaking in that respect.