Cbr15bingo In the wild (shifters) features characters that are shape shifters
Thistlefoot is a story of generational trauma that is part fairy tale and part history. The fairy tale part borrows from the Russian tales of the witch Baba Yaga. The history is that of the Jewish people, specifically the pogroms that occurred in Eastern Europe in the first half of the 20th century. This is a novel about the violence that destroyed Jewish communities, the fear that feeds that violence, and the vital importance of remembering, of saving the stories and the culture of the persecuted.
Thistlefoot is set in the contemporary world but with some interesting twists; it is not unusual for objects such as houses or modes of transportation to sprout eyes, wings, feet or gills, and they do so in response to danger/trauma. The main characters are siblings Isaac and Bellatine Yaga. They come from a theater family, a family of puppeteers, but each of them has run from the family business for different reasons. Isaac, aka the Chameleon King, ran away as a teen for a life riding the rails out West but, for reasons revealed later, he carries grief and guilt. Isaac is on the run from his memories and responsibility. He also possesses an unusual talent that helps him survive; he can morph into the exact image of any person he encounters. This allows him to both entertain a crowd and pick their pockets without getting caught. Meanwhile Bellatine, age 20, has found work as a carpenter up East. She is creative and talented and gainfully employed. Still, Bellatine both misses and resents her brother for leaving her behind. Bellatine also possesses an unusual talent of her own; not only do her hands create beautiful objects from raw materials, they also have a power called “embering.” Bellatine’s hands can animate objects, such as puppets, that carry some kind of inner soul and memories. Doing so, however, is painful, causing burns to her hands. And Bellatine carries her own painful memories and shame related to her abilities. A death in the family brings Isaac and Bellatine back together when they learn they have inherited a house that had been their maternal great-grandmother’s (Baba Yaga) in Russia (modern day Ukraine). It is not an ordinary house; this modest building has chicken legs and has some kind of intelligence and life force, but how it got this way is a mystery the siblings will have to uncover in order to prevent the repetition of a terrible tragedy.
The house, named Thistlefoot, is itself a character and one of the narrators of this novel. The house carries memories and stories which it can tell to us, the readers, but not to Isaac and Bellatine. Isaac views the house, which has qualities that lend itself to stage performances, as an opportunity to make money. He proposes a deal to Bellatine: she can have the house all to herself after the two of them spend a year on the road in it, traveling the country and performing their family’s old puppet show. Bellatine wants the house, feeling a strong connection to it from the start, and while she hates this deal (and her brother a bit, too) she begrudgingly agrees. But almost from the start there is trouble. A shadowy figure is stalking them, leaving violence and destruction in its wake. Moreover, Bellatine’s embering power puts her and those who are close to her in danger.
The entity that is following the Yagas is known as The Longshadow Man, and he has a dark and ugly history of his own. He seems intent on destroying the house but why is a mystery. Yet his methods of coming after the house and the Yagas should sound familiar to anyone paying any attention to the news and to our history. The Longshadow Man preys on fear, weaponizing it so that seemingly good and ordinary people commit violent and atrocious acts. The scenes with the Longshadow Man are creepy and frightening not because he creates monsters but because he simply unleashes the worst that is found within humans.
“His weapon wasn’t a gun… it was a charming invitation, a toast to a better tomorrow. It was fear at your back.”
I am in awe of GennaRose Nethercott’s ability to write about such dark and complicated themes in a way that is not heavy-handed or clumsy. The mixing of fairy tale and history, of one’s personal fears and guilt with a history of persecution and the need to flee, is masterfully done. The overall message of saving the stories and histories of the persecuted is the kind of message that can be done in a predictable and pedantic way, but Nethercott does nothing of the sort. Her creativity and sensitivity result in a novel that took my breath away. Thistlefoot is a story that is both sad and hopeful and a reminder that stories themselves are real and powerful.