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A review by beforeviolets
Before the Devil Knows You're Here by Autumn Krause
This story adds a new voice to the canon of woodsy folkloric horror, and one that I think many YA readers will adore. Peachtree Teen continues to find some of the most unique stories emerging in the young adult world and this one was no different.
So first of all, I HAVE to say: this had Over The Garden Wall vibes. Despite it being July, I broke my sacred personal oath of only playing the OTGW soundtrack in the fall months to use it as a soundtrack for this reading experience. It has a poet's journey through a creepy forest led by a bird, episodic encounters with unlikely inhabitants of the woods, an elder sibling looking out for their younger sibling, American folkloric elements, and deals with a devil. And again: autumnal to its core. If that doesn't scream OTGW to you, I don't know what could.
For me, my favorite part of this story was its use of folklore. The seed of this story is nothing more than a simple apple. But the way Krause interrogates the apple's relationship to land and to people and to the history of America turns this seed into a blossoming tree with rich roots and extensive branches of folklore. All the elements of this story feel so interconnected and well-crafted. American folklore specifically is something that really interests me, especially in literature, but I don't tend to find it utilized as often as I'd like. But from Johnny Appleseed to indigenous history, this story is so full of Americana and folkloric wisdom. And the perspective of a Mexican-American protagonist added an even deeper layer here of culture and family and history.
Krause so clearly has a strong grasp not only on what this story is engaging with but how to engage with it. From its episodic structure and character archetypes to its logic and morality, this story clearly parallels the folklore and fairytales it references, reading like a folktale of its own.
My only complaint is that I wanted the writing style to be less direct and more poetic, especially with the way poetry is used so heavily in the story itself. I think some more similes, adorned language, and luxurious prose teetering on verse would've just taken this book to another level.
Thank you so much to the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
CW: death of father, death of mother (past), grief, kidnapping, violence, blood & gore, poison, animal death, child death, insects, vomit, fire, alcohol, colonialism
So first of all, I HAVE to say: this had Over The Garden Wall vibes. Despite it being July, I broke my sacred personal oath of only playing the OTGW soundtrack in the fall months to use it as a soundtrack for this reading experience. It has a poet's journey through a creepy forest led by a bird, episodic encounters with unlikely inhabitants of the woods, an elder sibling looking out for their younger sibling, American folkloric elements, and deals with a devil. And again: autumnal to its core. If that doesn't scream OTGW to you, I don't know what could.
For me, my favorite part of this story was its use of folklore. The seed of this story is nothing more than a simple apple. But the way Krause interrogates the apple's relationship to land and to people and to the history of America turns this seed into a blossoming tree with rich roots and extensive branches of folklore. All the elements of this story feel so interconnected and well-crafted. American folklore specifically is something that really interests me, especially in literature, but I don't tend to find it utilized as often as I'd like. But from Johnny Appleseed to indigenous history, this story is so full of Americana and folkloric wisdom. And the perspective of a Mexican-American protagonist added an even deeper layer here of culture and family and history.
Krause so clearly has a strong grasp not only on what this story is engaging with but how to engage with it. From its episodic structure and character archetypes to its logic and morality, this story clearly parallels the folklore and fairytales it references, reading like a folktale of its own.
My only complaint is that I wanted the writing style to be less direct and more poetic, especially with the way poetry is used so heavily in the story itself. I think some more similes, adorned language, and luxurious prose teetering on verse would've just taken this book to another level.
Thank you so much to the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!
CW: death of father, death of mother (past), grief, kidnapping, violence, blood & gore, poison, animal death, child death, insects, vomit, fire, alcohol, colonialism