Customer Reviews

The Tree People

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When brutal murders plague the placid Olympic Peninsula rainforest after a sacred cedar is cut down, Tribal Sheriff Tidewater must pit her own shamanic training against a mysterious killer. At about the time Columbus' ships were being built in the Old World, along the Pacific coast, lived an already ancient society, with perceptions, emotions & rituals so complex European languages could only hint. In this society, however, the same struggles between evil & good, shadow & light, revenge & courage raged on with the added dimensions of shape-shifting & time walking. An impressive first novel, fascinating, scary & delightful. A must read! Living by a rainforest I thoroughly enjoyed this author's skill at describing the land & the energy here.

I was totally intrigued by this book and couldn't wait to find her others. The story carries you through the cultures and traditions of the people of the Olympic Peninsula and teaches a reverence for our natural rescources. I loved the relationships within the family. I would love to have a reader's guide for discussion with my book club.

She sends you into a real world with which characters actually seem to be living in the Pacific NorthWest as you read. The reader will grow an amazing hold on nature and Native American ritual never known to them before.

A most captivating story, majestic tale and mesmorizing journey! I was thoroughly entertained and fascinated by this book. An easy read, containing the elements that all profoundly impacting books possess, including but not limited to intricate details of human emotion and unblinking edge of your seat suspense. A fast moving book, hardly boring, with an elaborate plot and character development, part of the backbone of this book in my opinion, along with the cultural significances and mysticies of course. It was a LITERAL breath of fresh air to read this inspiring book of intrigue and insight, but not in the typical self help book type of way, obviously this is a fictitious novel intertwined with historical truths and internal contemplations and mentalities. One of the central themes behind the book is nature, its magnificence and our essential, not only need and desire, but oneness with it. I have an even greater new found appreciation for this most unique and spiritual planet, attributed solely to this book. I couldnt put the book down. I read in 5 days but could have read easily in 2-3 days. Its about 520 pages in length. I eagerly anticipate reading her follow up, "The Listening Ones". Cant go wrong with $such a cheap price. Bottom line: if you have an internal yearning for the spiritual, for the unknown, possess an open mind, love a great cultural story with incredible twists and turns and dont mind finding yourself living right alongside the characters, all the while letting your emotions take you for a ride, than this might be a terrific and worthwhile read for you. Not intended for kids due to some explicit content.

I HAVE SPENT TIME IN THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST BUT NOT UNTIL I READ THIS BOOK DID I REALIZE THE OLYMPIC PENINSULA EXISTED. THE DESCRIPTIONS IN THIS BOOK ARE ENOUGH BUT THE STORY WAS AN EXCELLENT READ AS WELL. THE TREE PEOPLE COMPRISE OF TREE HUGGERS, TREE LOGGERS, AND INDIANS WITH SPRITUAL CONNECTIONS TO THE FOREST. ONCE YOU READ THIS BOOK A VISIT TO THE PENINSULA IS A MUST. TRY LAPUSH FARTHER NORTH OF QUINALT, TOO.

The story made me realize that Lake Quinault and the rain forest are beautiful place the spend time. The Indian culuture is also interesting. A must read!

If you like your murder mysteries surreal, you'll find lots to like in this book. The sense of weird -- or should I say wyrd? -- that surrounds the plot is successfully creepy. The characters are real enough, and the descriptions of the physical surroundings are magnificent. I could almost smell the air surrounding the old cedar.

The trouble is, I was hoping for something with a little more grounding in real history rather than history that was created to further the plot. For one thing, in some reviews it was compared to Tony Hillerman's work. I know that if Hillerman describes a Navajo ceremonial in one of his novels, it might not be a completely accurate or detailed account of the ceremonial, its history and/or its purpose, but that will be a sin of omission, not an outright fictionalization.

I realize Stokes lists lots of reliable sources for her information about the belief system of the Quinalt, and she appears to make a valid claim for her research. However, the following piece from near the beginning of the novel left me unable to trust any other information for the rest of what was otherwise an enjoyable novel:

"In her private life Aminte served the spirits, as had her ancestresses before her. Some she called. Others she placated. Her actions made sense to Aminte, for she knew the spirits were not to be trusted."

(intervening description of her preparations for ritual omitted to save space)

"When the smoke from her ceremonial fire drifted through the branches of the huge conifers that ringed her house, she began to dance, a rattle of barnacle shells in one hand, her Spirit Catcher in the other.

"Around and around the fire she danced, first with slow, stalking steps, then faster, even faster, until she would have seemed almost a blur to any watching eyes. Then she slowed and began to sing:

"We are the flow; we are the ebb We are the weavers; we are the web

"Her voice rising, she threw up her arms in a gesture of entreaty and sang louder:

&quo! t;The earth, the water, the fire,the air Returns, returns, returns, returns"

(remaining verses and ritual omitted to save space)

The first of those two songs, which we are lead to believe (although Stokes never actually makes this claim) are part of a ritual passed from mother to daughter over centuries of villainesses, was written during the latter part of this century by Shekhina Mountainwater. I'm not sure who wrote the second one, but I've heard rumors it was Starhawk. Regardless of who wrote it, however, given the necessity for the rhythm and wording to be complementary, I find it hard to believe that the original was in the language of the Quinalt, a language which Stokes herself says is one of the most difficult languages to master.

Little cheats like this, however harmless they might be to the story as a fictional account, detract from my willingness to suspend disbelief. And in a novel that concentrates on melding the surreal with the real, that suspension of disbelief is key to enjoyment. I'm sure a case could be made for the idea that Aminte has already been presented as an opportunist making her living off the New Agers, where she might have learned those songs, but since she is portrayed as being a little contemptuous of New Agers, I'd find it hard to swallow that. Perhaps we are supposed to believe that she wrote them and that someone else took credit for them. Most likely, though, is that Stokes didn't think anyone reading the books would recognize the chants. This was a bad assumption, since they are commonly used in Neo-pagan, Wiccan, and feminist spirituality ceremonies across the country.

I think, that slip-up not been there, I would have ranked this as one of the best novels of its type I'd ever read. I would not have used it as a research tool on the belief system of the Quinalt, or even on the procedures and practices of a logging operation. But I would have enjoyed the feeling that I had gotten a glimpse into another world that exists on my planet. As it is, I feel t! hat I have read a pleasant piece of science fiction/fantasy that was inadvertently mislabeled as a mystery.

This novel was a perfect selection for my son's 8th-grade report. I'd read it years ago while staying at the Quinault Lodge, Olympic National Park, WA. It has love, lore and a bit of magic that kept me reading all the way through. My son enjoyed this book, as he learned a lot about a culture near to us: The Quinault Nation.

A truly enjoyable book. Having been to the PNW, the Olympic Penninsula, Neah Bay, the Rain Forest, and having seen the complete rape of the forested areas, this book made me aware all over again. The majority of the population has no concept of what has transpired on our forested lands, and maybe the majority just doesn't give a crap about the trees we have lost, or the landslides resulting from these losses. After all, it's not like it's in their backyard if they live in the Midwest or Southwest, or even the East. Ms. Stokes has woven a neat little mystery in with a history lesson, and an ecological statement. And, she has done a fantastic job.

First, I really enjoyed this story, it was unique, detailed, and complex, a one of a kind book to read in a few sittings. It had an important message and avoided black and white thinking.

Part of the way through the book, a problem presented itself. I am a pro writer and editor, and very concerned about copyright. I have had battled with those who have illegally published my poems and songs and caused me all kinds of problems. My enjoyment of the book was seriously impaired when I saw, on page 47 , one of Shekinah Mountainwater's songs ( "We are the flow, we are the ebb....') being sung by the "evil witch" character. The song is not traditional, not in the public domain, and is not attributed. With all the research the author did, she should have given Ms. Mountainwater credit for her song. Years ago I did copyright research for a book that later became "Songs For Earthlings" and we did not publish a single song or chant whole or in part without express permission of the author and went through a huge amounts of effort to obtain that permission.

This kind of thing really bugs me. It is unprofessional. To have it sung by an evil character, when Ms. Mountainwater follows a positive path, is doubly irritating. Naomi Stokes is an intelligent writer who did tons of research, 30 seconds on a search engine would have turned up the author of this song, a little more research would have outlined up the life path and intent of the song's author. To not credit it and have it used by a negative character in a negative way is a slap in the face to the creator of this lovely chant. If you don't believe me, check out this website http://www.skilledwright.com/ChantsRitualMusic.htm and I believe Ms. Mountainwater has her own website.

And yes, this kind of thing is a "big deal" to a writer who deserves not to have her song's intent misrepresented, and at least to be properly recognized as the author of the work. I'm afraid that I just did not enjoy an otherwise excellent story after seeing what was basically a rip-off, and it made me wonder if other things I was reading had been properly researched and attributed.