Review: The Marrow Thieves

Title: The Marrow Thieves
Author: Cherie Dimaline
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction
Publisher: Dancing Cat Books
Source: Purchased
Format: Paperback
Release Date: May 10, 2017
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In a futuristic world ravaged by global warming, people have lost the ability to dream, and the dreamlessness has led to widespread madness. The only people still able to dream are North America’s Indigenous people, and it is their marrow that holds the cure for the rest of the world. But getting the marrow, and dreams, means death for the unwilling donors. Driven to flight, a fifteen-year-old and his companions struggle for survival, attempt to reunite with loved ones and take refuge from the “recruiters” who seek them out to bring them to the marrow-stealing “factories.”

Review:

This is an amazing story that mixes the ancient Native Canadian culture with a futuristic dystopia.

In the world of this novel, Native Canadians were being rounded up so they could be studied. They were the only people who still dream, and everyone else wanted to take that ability back from them. It was unclear why they were the only people left with the ability to dream. The characters in this story had to run away into the forests to escape capture.

This story was character driven, with a very strong cast. Their only goal was to go north, so they kept walking. There was a group of kids and adults, who were not related, but lived together because they had lost the rest of their families.

The characters had detailed backstories, which were devastating to read about. There was a lot of pain in their individual histories, which was reminiscent of the real history of Native people in Canada. Many parts were difficult to read, but it is important to know these stories because they represent our real history.

This book had a beautiful ending, which made all the pain worth it. I loved the story!

What to read next:

Have you read The Marrow Thieves? What did you think of it?