I was excited to read this one after loving “before we were yours” by Lisa Wingate, a few years prior.
However, this one felt like it fell a bit short for me. I was more invested in the one storyline than the other. ( the one that took place in 1990) but didn’t enjoy the chapters set in 1909. I felt myself skipping over parts of the story and not being as interested in the girls storyline.
I did enjoy the park rangers storyline and think I would have enjoyed a whole book with that storyline more, than the back and forth.
This was an okay read for me but not something I would recommend as a favorite historical fiction pick.

Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate ⭐⭐⭐

wish I could have Given a higher rating but I couldn't. The reason being is that its a dual timeline and it felt like I was reading two different books all together.

Like her other books this was a rollercoaster ride with the orphan children who run away after being placed with Tesco who wasn't nice to them. It broke my heart just thinking about this little girls, what they saw and did just to survive. I just they did what they had to. I don't think I could have, could you?

Thank you Net gallery for the advance copy.

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.*

This book took me FOREVER to read. Partly because I was traveling and much more likely to listen to a book than to pick up my kindle and partly because parts of the story were a little bit of a struggle for me because they relate to child sexual and physical abuse.

Shelterwood is a story told in two timelines about 3 little girls whose Oklahoma land was stolen from them when their parents died by ruthless oil and land barons who became wards to native and local children when they were orphaned in order to gain control of their property rights. Of course the children were often abandoned. Simultaneously, in a timeline 80 years in the future, we meet a law enforcement ranger who works on the same Oklahoma territory where the girls grew up. She is attempting to solve the mystery of the bodies of 3 children found in a cave.

I enjoyed the history of this book as well as the writing. The abuse of the kids was tough for me to swallow. But it all comes out okay in the end.

*with thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for this honest review.

Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate is a beautifully written story. Bouncing between 1909 and 1990, she tells the story of two little girls and a female forest ranger. Lisa tells the story of what happened to Choctaw children in Oklahoma and the greed that surrounded that time. Ollie is a brave 11-year-old who takes it upon herself to save her Choctaw sister Nessie from the evil man her Mom married. The things these little kids went through just to survive is horrifying. I liked how the Forest Ranger Valerie didn't give up on finding out what was going on in the woods and didn't back down. Lisa did a great job wrapping up and intertwining the two stories at the end. The plight of the little kids broke my heart. To think small kids were thrown away so a grown man could steal their land is horrific. Lisa Wingate shows in Shelterwood that she is a great storyteller.

Lisa Wingate’s novels are either a hit or miss for me. Shelterwood, for the most part, was a miss. Set in the Winding Stair Mountains of Oklahoma, the story blends historical and modern narratives: 1909 and 1990. The historical plot follows eleven-year-old Olive Augusta Radley and a young Choctaw girl named Nessa as they flee from exploitation, showcasing their resilience and determination amidst threats from land barons and outlaws.

In the 1990 timeline, law enforcement ranger Valerie Boren-Odell contends with the demands of her career and single parenthood while uncovering hidden secrets in Horsethief Trail National Park. The discovery of a burial site and the mysterious disappearance of a teenage hiker added layers to this otherwise monotonous narrative.

What began well, fell into a slow and droning middle, only to end with the best part of the book. I suggest you read the first twenty percent, know that the middle seventy percent is about the horrible things greedy people did to native children and the resilience they had to muster, then read the last ten percent to learn how their lives played out.

I grew up camping just south of where this book is set in Oklahoma and many of my memories with my family have this landscape as the backdrop. So reading more about the history of the area in the context of this novel was extra fascinating to me.

Lisa Wingate is a master at creating unique voices in her novels. And paired with the excellent multi-voice narration, this book has personality in spades. I was so drawn to these characters that when the perspectives switched, I immediately missed the other one.

I will say that although this good is heavily researched, it does not delve super deep into the issue of children's land rights, but rather gives a snapshot of one story that represents the experiences of some. This is a character driven novel with a plot that at times meanders along. In fact, the historical timeline reminds me of some children's classics that are more languid in their storytelling.

I saw some reviews saying that the pacing of this book didn't work for them. And I get that as a person who generally likes a plot that moves. But the personality in this book endeared these characters to me and kept me invested when the story took it's time. So the whole book worked for me!

Thanks to Ballantine Books for the gifted book. All opinions are my own.

This book, first and foremost, was well researched, and shed a light on a time in history that not many people (myself included) are aware of or probably have heard of. The treatment of the Native American Children in this book is appalling, and it made me cringe to think of young children feeling like being alone in a forest is a better life than being with their parents. These children were used for their assets, but not really cared for, and they had no idea what was happening to them, or why they were so valuable.

Lisa Wingate really did well with her research, and truly thought up a creative story that will stand the test of time. I also loved the more "current" chapters, and the mystery that was threaded between the two time lines. The only part that got a little annoying to me was that every chapter was a cliff hanger, and since the timelines alternated, you also had to read another chapter before you found out what was going on. Although that is great sometimes, I felt like it was literally every chapter, and since I don't have time to continuously read for a longer period of time, I felt like a lot of those cliffhangers were lost to me (since I had to stop and start the book more than the average reader, due to life commitments, etc.)

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book is told in 2 timelines and highlights the plight of Native Americans after they were uprooted from their lands and pushed aside. Set in Oklahoma in 1909 (Olive) and 1990 (Valerie), bones are found in a protected area. Val is a forest ranger and wants to investigate, but is thwarted at every turn. The tale of elves in trees keeps resurfacing. As Olive tells the story of trying to protect her Choctaw adopted sister in 1909, Val's investigation intersects with Olive's story.
Very interesting, and a part of history I didn't know.

🎧 Shelterwood 🎧⁣
⁣⁣
⁣Length- 368 pages. ⁣
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⁣Genre- Historical Fiction. ⁣
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⁣My thoughts- Shelterwood is a captivating historical fiction about the women pioneers that fought to protect children caught in the storm of land barons hungry for power and oil wealth. It follows Olive, who escapes her abusive stepfather and helps set up a refuge with young Native American children in an area she calls Shelterwood. The kids survive by hunting, fishing and working odd jobs in nearby communities. Alternatively, the modern timeline follows Valerie, a widow who has moved to Oklahoma to work as a park ranger. She soon finds herself sucked into the investigation of three bodies found in a cave. ⁣
⁣⁣
⁣This book is heart wrenching and well researched! As a native Okie, I’m shocked that I didn’t learn about the abuses orphaned Native American children faced from people greedy to steal their land rights. I’m so glad that books like Shelterwood are coming out and telling these stories that have been ignored by history for too long! ⁣
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⁣Fours stars! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I recommend this book to fans of historical fiction. ⁣
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⁣Thank you to @netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of Shelterwood. It is available now.

Shelterwood
by Lisa Wingate (This review is from and ARC sent to me by NetGalley)
The author explores a centuries-long legacy of missing child cases and little-known history of the women pioneers
who fought to protect children who were caught in the land grab. “This reality was the legacy of the 1887 Daws Severalty Act through which
parcels of land under tribal control were systematically divided into allotment parcels and given to individual members” The eventual result
was the breakup of tribal lands.
Subsequently untold wealth of coal, oil, asphalt and timber made its way to land barons, oil companies and grafters.
The novel goes from chapters alternating between the years 1909 and 1990.
In 1909 in Oklahoma the story centers around two young sisters, Olive and Nessa, who escape abuse and find themselves in the wilderness of the Winding Stair Mountains, Olive faces all the challenges they encounter on their own and she will protect her sister Nessa. They encounter abuse and slave like labor. Often hungry and foraging for food. One of the heroes of the story is Kate Barnard as Oklahoma’s newly elected commissioner of charities and corrections rescues the “elf children”

In 1990. Law enforcement ranger Valerie Boren-Odell arrives at new Horsethief Trail National Park seeking a quiet place to balance a career and single parenthood. But no sooner has Valerie reported for duty than she's faced with local controversy over the park's opening, a teenage hiker gone missing from one of the trails, and the long-hidden burial site of three children unearthed in a cave.
Valerie soon finds out about the secrets and corruption of the land and the tribal peoples.
This is an emotional novel and covers a little-known history of Oklahoma’s period of corruption, land grabbing of tribal lands and the displaced children.

Shelterwood is a historical fiction that focuses on Native American land ownership, and more specifically, the stories of children who were abandoned and exploited by rich men who stole land that was inherited by the children. Told through dual timeframes of 1909 and 1990, the "current" time character, park ranger Valerie, investigates the story of the remains of three children discovered in the new national park she is assigned to. The flashbacks are focused on Ollie, who has run away from her abusive stepfather and has several Choctaw children with her as they learn to survive in their "Shelterwood" community.

While the premise is interesting and important - women pioneers fighting for the rights of the children - I found it difficult to become engrossed and invested in the story. I didn't love how the story developed or the pacing; it was pretty far into the story before you even know the plot. I never felt like the dual timeframes really meshed or came together very well in the end. That said, it is well researched and informative. I absolutely loved While We Were Yours and Lisa Wingate is a wonderful author, but this one just didn't hit me the same way.

Thank you Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine and NetGalley for the e-galley in exchange for a honest review.

Great Historical Fiction told in dual timelines that are both hanging with mystery and intrigue. This book tells a part of American History that is often left out. Many Indigenous were murdered to steal their land. This story needs told. The author used an intertwining telling that kept me interested. Don’t pass up the Author’s note, as it is a great story on it’s own!

I love how Lisa brings lost stories to life. This follows a group of children in Oklahoma in the early 1900s who were discarded but determined to make a life of their own.
I'm a sucker for a dual timeline story and the present timeline was just as entertaining for me. Loved the focus on the National Parks Service.
There were times that the story was a little slow but overall a great read.

This author is such a good writer. This story was so well written and i was hooked from the first few pages.

I have a penchant, for finding books about children being misused, mistreated and left to their own devices to figure out how to survive. Often these books are set in an earlier time in less than friendly environments, sometimes woods, sometimes mountains, but always challenging places. Wingate’s characters run from smart and brash to evil and cunning. Told in dual timelines I defy you not to be amazed by Olive Augusta Peele and her rock hard logic and quick to take action personality as she tries to survive her troubled home life in 1909. Sydney is her equal in the 1990 current timeline. As I was reading the 1990 timeline I kept wondering what was happening back in 1909 - the transitions were mostly well done. The parallels of the personalities and the plot are well defined. The ending was a sharp intake of breath - well done.

If you have read “Killers of the Flower Moon” you will recognize much of the history referred to in Shelterwood. If you have missed this and the subsequent movie you may have no idea or knowledge of the grafters , specifically in Oklahoma, who stole the land of the American Native. The Author’s Note offers an abridged version of just how shameless the treatment was of the Indian tribes, the elf children and Kate Barnard, a woman history has tried to forget.

Many thanks to Ballantine Books and NetGalley for a copy.

This is only the second book I have read by Wingate and I do enjoy her style. This was an interesting story and I enjoyed the historical aspect. Overall, it made me think and learn while reading it so I appreciate that in a good book! Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Lisa Wingate is a beautiful writer, and I appreciate how her stories are inspired by lesser-known historic events. It is evident that her research is extremely thorough, ensuring her readers feel fully immersed in the story. Wingate’s novel “Before We Were Yours” is one of my all-time favorite, so I went into this book with high expectations. Unfortunately, while interested in this story and the history, I found the book to be extremely slow and difficult to hold my attention, and ultimately I decided to not finish about 30% into the novel. In my opinion the pacing was holding back the story, and I felt myself getting lost because my mind getting drifting. Perhaps this was just not the book for me, and it will definitely be of greater interest to other readers!

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for my gifted e-galley of the book!

Lisa Wingate writes with such poignancy and sensitivity that I know immediately that I will be drawn into her books, and her latest novel is no exception. SHELTERWOOD is actually two stories, the first a 1990's tale of a young widowed mother who takes on a new park ranger position in an Oklahoma national forest, only to find that she must again fight to be accepted as a full-fledged law enforcement agent. When the old bones of three unidentified girls are found in a cave, only to be quickly removed without investigation, Valerie is unsettled. This only grows when a local teen and his grandmother disappear and no one offers any clear cut answers. The second story line brings to life the abundance of orphans, both Native American and non-natives who lived and died in the early 1900's, abandoned by those who were supposed to care for them. As Wingate relates in her notes, her novel shines the light on the work of the Federation of Women's Clubs and especially that of Kate Barnard who was elected to the US Congress in a time when women did not have the vote. If you like stories that delve into parts of our history which never make it into the history books (and if you liked Killers of the Flower Moon) then you will like this book.

Shelterwood by Lisa Wingate is a fascinating historical fiction novel that jumps between two timelines—1909 and 1990—rooted in true historical events. The story follows Val, a social worker in 1990 who’s completely burnt out and decides to volunteer at Shelterwood, a camp for troubled teens set on an old estate.

As Val tries to help these teens with their issues, we also get glimpses of the estate’s history back in 1909. These two stories are woven together, showing how the past and present connect in unexpected ways. It’s amazing how the history of the estate impacts Val and the teens, helping them heal and grow.

This book does a great job of mixing historical events with a touching story about finding hope, healing, and new beginnings. It’s a reminder of how the past can shape us and how nature and community can help us move forward.

This was a historical fiction/contemporary flashback novel I just could not put down!
The historical perspective of early 1900s Oklahoma was one I had never read about before, and it was both well-researched and enchanting. The characters were relatable, the plot was exciting, and the scenery/imagery were beautiful.
Those who enjoyed this book would also like reading Killers of the Flower Moon.