Tiffany McDaniel uses her mother's life as inspiration in her novel about Betty, a young girl born in 1954 to a white mother and a Cherokee father. A cycle of poverty and violence underscores Betty's family life growing up in rural Southwest Ohio as the sixth of eight children. McDaniel is an excellent writer, describing scenes from Betty's life in movingly gorgeous prose. Yet, the weight of the violence was too much for me, and I only got a quarter of the way through the book. In just that small portion, I read about rape, incest, physical abuse, verbal abuse, bigotry, racism, and suicide.  I just want to cry that this is based on someone's real life.

Quite a ambitious tale. Not having read the author’s first work, I was confused at times about were there Betty was biographical? Completely fiction? A blend of the two? I often thought little Betty was not written as a cup hold, but an adult writing through a child. I also found myself skipping through her fathers long stories, (and I like slow, lyrical books) I think this story will finds fans who’ve devoured Where the Crawdad’s Sing and are looking for more.

There is a level of emotional pain that I find almost unbearable—usually evoked by stories of animal or child abuse. The only remedy for me, other than shutting down completely, is vacuuming. Suffice it to say that the experience reading Betty left me with the cleanest carpet and wood floor I've ever had.

The book was at times so excruciating that I had to stop reading and not only clean but lie on the couch and pant in pain. Nevertheless, this is a very good novel—a story based on the author's mother's childhood. A story of the abuse white culture heaps on Native people. That men heap on women and children. That crazy people heap on every living thing. It is well written, very different from Tiffany McDaniel's first published novel, The Summer that Melted Everything, but birthed way earlier (and its ending make seem like a prequel to the first novel). Betty starts out as a child's story, and had it stayed that way, I might have lost interest. But the writer's mature skill moved it into the adult fiction category, with one of the lovingest father characters I've ever read.

This book was not for me. Between the repeated sexual violence, the animal abuse, and literally killing kittens, I was totally put off. The author handles some subject matter well; race, childhood bully, intergenerational trauma, and family bonds and dysfunctions among them. Some of the prose felt very unique and powerful. But the violence on violence on violence felt suffocating, and some of the wisdom and language (especially in the dialogue of children) was too written and on the nose to be believable.

A survivor story, beautifully written. A story of a family and the damage that can pervade generations. Betty is a novel that feels very real at times, and mythological at times. The intertwining of traditional Appalachian culture with native American culture is unique, and the prose is effortless. Tough, heartrending situations are handled with care and real feeling. This novel gives insight into how prejudice and abuse can damage a child yet can be survivable. I loved the impact that Betty’s father has on her life. Their rich relationship and connection forms the basis of Betty’s strength. Betty is a heroine to cheer for and admire.

BETTY is, quite simply, one of the most beautiful books I have ever read. It’s a coming of age tale that explores so many painful things— racism, incest, death, and the subjugation of women, but does so with such powerfully lyrical language that makes you want to write down sentences so you can keep them forever. BETTY is also about the power of stories, and the deep love between a father and his children. It’s about learning to find and accept the beauty within yourself, and realizing that even people who may seem “unimportant” leave indelible footprints in this world.

"I am a princess. I matter. I am important."

I loved The Summer That Melted Everything, and I'm beyond grateful that Tiffany McDaniel reached out to me to review her newest book, Betty. Receiving the free e-ARC did not affect my rating—McDaniel has a way with words that I fall for instantly, simple as that!

Just as she did in Summer, McDaniel takes you on a luscious and lyrical journey with Betty, but it is not an easy one. The fact that the story is inspired by McDaniel's own mother makes it that much more real and raw.

Growing up in a large family, Betty looks more like her Cherokee father than her mother or siblings. As a girl with Cherokee blood and features that mirror her father's, she faces harsh realities of both racism and sexism, while also witnessing violence and abuse against those she loves. Many of these things were difficult to read, but important to face. I appreciated the juxtaposition of these realities against Betty's father's stories—very often full of whimsy and light—and that Betty wants to be a storyteller, herself.

It will take me a while to fully digest this one, and won't soon be forgotten!

Betty was born in a bathtub to a white mother and a Cherokee father. She grew up in abject poverty in rural Ohio, her family's history steeped in tragedy would come to overshadow her and her siblings lives.

What I enjoyed most about this book was Betty's dad, Landon, he was her one constant. I loved how he passed down all of his wisdom about the Cherokee traditions to her and told these beautifully meaningful stories that, I think helped her become a writer and a story teller in her own right. The story broke my heart more than once, but Betty's perseverance and good heart kept me wanting to read on.

It has been a long time since a book left me this emotionally drained!

Betty Carpenter is a young girl who is part Cherokee. She and her family move around the country before settling in Ohio in the 1960's. Along with her father and mother, she has several siblings. Her father who is part Cherokee takes whatever work he can find but the family just gets by. Betty takes after her father in coloring and is subjected to racism and name calling as she grows up. Each of the family members is faced with challenges and secrets. The father teaches Betty and the others about their heritage and nature by weaving wonderful stories. Betty learns to turn her heartaches into writing in order to survive.

A complex novel about family, prejudice, secrets and what it means to be a woman. There is a love of nature in the world as well as a questioning of the nature of people. What it takes to be a good man and father and how a daughter comes to realize it.

This is a beautiful and brutal read but one that should not be missed, The writing is gorgeous and on point but without being over the top. It says what needs to be said. This is a book that will stay with you for a long time if not for always.

A lyrical novel about a young girl uncovering horrific truths about her own family in the rolling hills of the Appalachians.

MY STORY

As someone whose great grandmother was half Cherokee - and a young woman of color growing up in the 1950s - this novel couldn't have been more perfect for me. I gladly accepted the chance to read an ARC of this book, only to be pleasantly delighted at how close it hit home for me.

It was a story about a young girl born to a Cherokee father and a white mother - the same as my great grandmother. The similarities were eerie, in the best way! This novel made me ache to know more of my heritage in a way that I never have before.

Because my grandmother passed away long before I could ever become old enough to be curious, I was never taught the culture and traditions of my own family, due to years of early colonists diluting the Cherokee ways, and simply never talking about our own heritage. To see what it must have been like for my grandmother and her family - it was like a portal into the past for me.

THE WRITING

"A girl comes of age against the knife."


The writing and prose were virtually stunning. Seriously, you should see my Kindle highlights. The whole book is practically covered in yellow. The writing deserves all the stars. Each line was drenched with feeling and poetry and beauty. Betty's father was definitely my favorite character.

THE STORY

This is where it gets a bit dicey for me. Because of my mental health, I have to be super careful with what I read, so as not to trigger my brain. The abuse mentioned in the book was very hard for me to get through, though it was an essential part of the plot. However, I loved how strong Betty was, and only wanted to give all of the women in this story a big hug.

Overall, this story made me fall in love with my Cherokee heritage all over again. I found my great grandmother within the pages of Betty's story. If you're looking for a gripping historical fiction about the strength of women and family, I'd suggest picking this one up!

Betty comes out August 18th. You can pre-order your copy now!

A big thank you to Random House & Knopf, and a bigger one to Tiffany, for personally reaching out to me about her book!

Moving heart wrenching dark sad. beautifully written .A book that haunts at times it grew too emotional and Inhad to put it down take a break but that never lasted long..I was immediately drawn back to the story the writing a book I will not forget.#netgalley#knopf doubleday

I had a very hard time finishing this book. The horrible abuse that takes place within this family is beyond painful to read about. It could be factual, but even the idea of it being true makes it worse. The book is well written, and interesting to see how each person justifies what's going on, but the voice of the Betty is startling in its acceptance of the grim, horrifying events.

While Tiffany McDaniel's prose is lyrical, Betty's story is painful. At times, I had to put it down and take a break with a different book. Worth the challenge, but hard to read. I think I will need to let this one sit for a while. It's ripe for discussion; waiting for other readers to catch up.
Adding on, I think the cover art is beautiful.

WOW, this book packs a punch. I found myself reading this semi-slowly because it is hard to take in parts. I had to put it down several times and really take in what I just read. I think of this as a family saga, but really it only takes part over about 9 or 10 years. Incredibly moving and powerful. I loved it.

So I’m just going to shout this bold statement from the top of my lungs at the highest range: Tiffany McDaniel is it for me. She is my one and only. My very favorite author of all my reading time. Almost two and half years ago, I wrote Tiffany McDaniel (a dorky fan letter…so what?) asking when I could expect her sophomore novel as her first novel left a lasting impression. This wonderful woman wrote me a very personable email the very next day answering all my questions and offering to sign a copy of her book. Point of that was to explain just how long I’ve been waiting and waiting like a kid on Christmas for her next publication. The funny thing is sophomore novels can be scary especially when the stakes are so high (TSTME = my favorite book of ALL time). But Tiffany McDaniel has done it again! And if it is even humanly possible, it may be even better. But I would never admit that to The Summer that Melt Everything or myself because it feels kind of treacherous. But Betty is unsettling, triggering and honestly an incredibly haunting story especially with the truths sprinkled throughout. But between you and me, I can’t tell you enough how good a story hurts when Tiffany McDaniel writes it.

This novel is one hundred percent character driven. We get to follow around the Carpenter family. A mixed-race family during the early 60’s. Alka (the mother) is a white woman who grew up with what appeared to be a respectful family. Landon Carpenter is a proud Cherokee man. Together they grow into a large impoverished family that settles in Breathed, Ohio. Together this family faces many injustices. Many more than one family should have to. I won’t give away too much but there are many triggers in this novel. All of the major triggers really. But it is an experience that I think is worth the tough read. I’ve never left one of her novels without lasting impressions that encourage me to improve my life and compassion for others. The content is incredibly dark but she writes the most beautiful silver linings throughout. I will tell any perspective readers, you might have to fight to find the positive but it is intricately written throughout waiting to leave an imprint on your soul forever.

There are many wonderful and terrible people written into this novel. Readers are going to feel complete devotion and love for some. Some characters are going to be tough to love but they need it the most. While others don’t deserve the words on the page. But their evil deserved to be recorded thousands of time for the rest of eternity. Haunting them, like they’ve haunted others. That being said, I’d like to discuss the matriarchs of the family.

Alka

“Next thing you knew, she’d start to say she loved him out loud. What a weakness that would have been to a woman like her, who displayed her thorns as wisely as any rose can.”


Alka (the mom) is going to be a tough character to understand. But she is never unlikable even during some horrendous outbursts. She is a character that many woman are going to know intimately even if they wish they didn’t. I found her uncomfortably familiar. We all know an Alka. Or maybe you are an Alka. While Alka is a damaged woman, I hope you can forgive her actions and find compassion. She doesn’t want it. But she deserves it. Please try and remember that while reading this.

Landon

They’re fillers. That’s what I am. A filler. A step others climb on to get to the top. A paint drop on the portrait of a greater man.”


Landon Carpenter is a damn good man. Easily he is the character that stole the show for me. Landon was a poor man, but had an abundance of love, empathy, and understanding. His whole life he was beat (literally) for the color of his skin. But he remained a proud and true Cherokee man. He re-enforced the beauty of his bloodline into Betty. Told her how beautiful it was to share these genes. There is no shame in the tone of her skin. Instead he taught her that her skin tells a beautiful story of their culture and history. Staying true to his roots, Landon frequently communicates life lessons to his children through story telling. These stories were so very beautiful. They will stick with the reader. If not, something is wrong with said read and they should seek professional help soon. I really revered this style and approach. Landon put so much love into these stories. Even I could feel it. In fact, I always felt so warm and safe when reading about Landon or one of his stories. Tiffany McDaniel portrayed him so stunningly. This woman had me sitting outside first thing in the morning, sobbing like a lunatic in my backyard. I want to share the exact lines that had me weeping:

Nova was too young to make anything more than sounds, but Dad would still ask, “What’s he saying?” I didn’t know what Nova was saying, nor what he was thinking, but I knew what I had thought at that age when Dad would make us water hose rainbows in the backyard. “He thinks you’re God.”


Those three sentences kind of shattered my glass heart with the little bird inside. I can’t imagine a father asking what the little baby who can’t even talk is saying. That simple thing showed the readers Landon’s true heart. And it is pure gold as is his soul. I don’t know why that hurt me so much. But it also brings me such happiness. This father wasn’t fictional, he was real man with true and honest love in his heart. Betty Carpenter really got to grow up with this amazing gentleman whose love for his children never faltered. And the best part, it was his choice. Life beat the fuck out of him figuratively and literally. He had every reason to be a piece of dirt. He still chose to see better, be better and do better for wife, family and himself. He is the positive and silver lining. This man certainly was no filler. He is one of the greater men. Maybe even one of the greatest.

Trigger Warning

“It’s like bein’ in a storm. The cold wind whippin’ you about. The rain beatin’ down hard. I try to find the child within me as if she still lives. I try to find her and pull her from the storm and ask her, “what will you be when you grow up?” That way, I can pretend her future is not me.”


The sexual abuse and long term effect McDaniel’s touch on is scarily accurate. Some of the things that happen in this story are going to hit home. A baseball bat to the unclenched gut type of hit. Some graphic scenes are going to be harder to read than your best friends eulogy. Why? Because she speaks so much of the truth about rape, abuse, and molestation. The truth is dark. It can cut, wound, scar, and tear. McDaniel very forwardly addresses what happens to sexual abuse victims in the long term. Something readers experience less in novel. An ugly and disturbing peak behind what happens long after a predator has attacked. McDaniel’s tells the story of women and girls alike who were held down by the hand of a man. Maybe even a man they knew, loved, trusted. She describes the life long battle that a woman will go through long after his fingermarks have left her skin. The bruises have long since faded but not the ones left on her soul. A lifetime of damage…if they choose to make it that long. All of that destruction from only a few minutes of hell. A couple hundred second changed these women irrevocably. The worst part is they had to continue living when the fact was they died that day and many times after. They were killed. Murdered. A body void of life for someone else’s sick bliss. The women these Carpenter girls could have been are gone. Forever. They never got the chance that was rightfully theirs, hers, yours, or mine. McDaniel’s tells a frightening and completely unfair truth about how a few minutes can change the course of a woman’s life. Rest assure, she does in such a beautiful and damning way.

McDaniel’s can paint some of the most vivid and graphic pictures from words. And I think it was pretty cool to learn where her inherited gift came from. This gift was passed down generationally going as far back as her grandfather. And likely much further being from Cherokee men and women. We literally watched firsthand how each generation’s voice grew louder and stronger. Additionally, I love that Landon’s stories lived on through Betty to Tiffany McDaniel. And now his stories are going to live on forever in my heart and anyone else who reads Betty. It is honestly so poetic.

I know that I won’t shut the fuck up about this novel or Tiffany McDaniel but I have one more thing to gush about. I absolutely am obsessed with the way she incorporated her debut novel into Betty. Tiffany McDaniel no pressure, but I want the Elohim story. One hundred percent, I need more from Breathed, Ohio.

Tiffany McDaniel is the type of author that truly speaks to the readers soul. She can write such devastating sentences so beautiful you can’t differentiate whether the tears are from her exquisite use of words or their heartbreaking meaning. Not only is she a lyrical prose genius, she can tell such a captivating story. She tells a story in such a way that I can’t stop thinking about the words, events, and characters that have now left a mark on my life. Literally, days and weeks and years later, I will think about her debut and now Betty.

Thank you so so much NetGalley and Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. Especially Knopf for publishing this wonderful woman’s work.

Tiffany McDaniel put together quite a moving and deeply important novel about family, racism, childhood abuse, devastation, and more. I cringed more than once in this due to a certain act that was happening, how someone was being treated, or what someone was thinking. It broke my heart over and over -but McDaniel's writing style is so beautiful, descriptive, and evocative that you cannot stop reading. Betty witnesses so much pain, destruction, and sadness, but her love for father and sisters (most of the time) is a beautiful reflection of her innocence and kindness. 4 stars - this book will be staying with me for quite some time!

The Summer That Melted Everything was a hard act to follow, but Tiffany McDaniel has exceeded all expectations! It is a masterpiece. Juxtaposing the magical, mythical storytelling of the Cherokee people with themes of racism, poverty, abuse and loss in the Appalachians, Betty is a gut-wrenching, heart-breaking and heckles-raising emotional rollercoaster.

I loved the vivid characters, sensory descriptions and lyrical prose.

I love Betty.

Oh, my. What a book. This book is filled with the sadness and blood of a family deeply troubled by the bad things men did to the girls. However it’s a beautiful story of an amazing, loving father, husband and neighbor. At times there was so much darkness that I had to put it down, but it called me back and I’m sure glad I answered the call.
Thanks to Netgalley for sharing this book.

McDaniel is one of those authors whose writing stops you in your tracks. Lyrical, hypnotic, powerful, her words will leave imprints on your skin, and the story of Betty is one that will follow me forever. McDaniel is not afraid to hold up a mirror to our deepest selves. She describes the effects of abuse and racism so delicately yet so fearlessly, weaving an intricate, coming-of-age tale that everyone, of all ages and genders and backgrounds, should read and absorb. I simultaneously wanted to devour and savour this incredible story, staying up late to finish it, then feeling bereft when it was over. I would love to read more of Betty's story, though at the same time, this novel ended at precisely the right point. Utterly gripping and entirely unforgettable.

This story will grip at your heart-strings, make you gasp in horror, and will prevent you from putting the book down (unless it becomes too much). Right from the very beginning, McDaniel hits the ground running with the background and history of Betty, the protagonist. She recounts her mother's and father's story, she reveals her passion for writing, and she shares some of the acts of disturbing violence that she has witnessed. It's not, however, all bad as she recalls the moments with and stories from her father. This book will force readers to truly gain a deeper perspective for life in America, especially for Native Americans during that time. It is a lengthy book, but it can be read quickly.