Danielle’s childhood was difficult as many in her family were alcoholics or drug addicts. After her mother died due to alcoholism, Danielle realised she knew next to nothing about her family or her Native American heritage. So she researches and sets out on a journey to find out more. I have always been interested in learning more about this culture and Danielle brought it all to life. Heartbreaking yet heartwarming, I highly recommend this book.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Boy do I feel lucky to have found this on NetGalley and to read it 6 months before its official publication date!

This is a beautiful, heartbreaking, but mostly honest look at young woman's almost nomadic early-life. Though she could be forgiven to rage over having parents that only flitted in and out of her life, Geller is quite magnanimous in her portrayal of her parents, and seems truly not to hold grudges.

I loved the mixed media aspect, and found myself wanting to see more of the documents that were left by Geller's mother. And also, I am so very envious of the journals and these documents that Geller has, something not all of us can hope for at the passing of our loved ones.

I look forward to seeing more from Geller!

Pick this up if you loved The Glass Castle and if you like to read the writing of eloquent young woman.

Danielle Geller is a gifted writer, and I enjoyed reading Dog Flowers. Rather than a life narrative, it is more a book of word pictures of memories in the life of the author. The thing I liked most about the book was the author's way of coming to terms with the complicated relationship she had with her mother. I found the book to be compelling, as the author writes very honestly about her struggles with not only her mother, but her sister and father as well.

Native American memoir of Navajo girl/woman and her extended family. Wanted to stop about halfway through but forced myself to finish. Depressing. Draggy. Repetitive. Don't really understand high ratings. But obviously not my kind of book.

Clearly, this author lived a tragic and sad childhood which has had consequences for her as an adult. At times, this book was almost too difficult to read because the events were so damaging. I appreciated that Danielle offered the experiences of her childhood and early adulthood in an honest and forthright manner. The references to her Navajo history and her experiences when visiting her extended family after her mother's death were some of the most interesting to me. I would have liked more factual information about the prevalence of alcoholism in this culture and if Danielle thought that played into her family dynamics. I didn't realize until near the end of the book that Danielle's father was not Native American. All in all, I'm glad that I read this book, but would have liked more depth in larger culture issues and how they may have related to Danielle's story. I'm sure this book was difficult for Danielle to write and applaud her for her bravery in confronting her demons.

This book blew me away! I was unable to but it down. Perfect, dazzlingly, very well written. The details the author described throughout the book was so amazing. The characters and storyline were fantastic. The ending I did not see coming Truly Amazing and appreciated the whole story. This is going to be a must read for many many readers.

I simply found this too dark and couldn’t enjoy it. I understand the connection to Native American roots could be fascinating, but not here...just more dysfunction.

Thank you Netgalley for this ARC.

Breathtaking memoir of one woman's return to her Native American roots.

Danielle came from a family marred by alcohol and drug addiction, including her sister and both of her parents who couldn't protect her while destroying their own lives. Despite perpetual instability, the woman became a successful librarian and archivist, although her unhappy childhood continued to haunt her and her siblings. After her mother's death resulting from alcoholism, Danielle realized she didn't know anything about her mother's heritage or family, which lead her on a difficult journey to a Navajo reservation.

I loved this book for so many reasons. First, it is incredibly well written in a way that feels very intimate, and this is what allowed me to be transported whole into the author's world. But the writing is not the only thing that's intimate; more importantly, it is the story itself. Reading about her family's heartbreaking addiction cycle reminded me of Tara Westover's "Educated."

Finally, "Dog Flowers" offers a history lesson on the Navajo culture through a highly personal lens. I've never learned about the Native American culture in this way before, and it's certainly much more memorable than hard facts alone.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for a ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

I read a lot of memoirs and was instantly drawn to the description of this book. When I saw that Danielle is also a librarian, I was even more interested. The memoir is extremely well written but a difficult read. It seemed that despair was at every turn but the author was so involved in the lives of her father, sister, etc. that I didn't feel that she saw it that way. While she wanted her family to change, there seemed to be a level of hope each time she thought she could help. She did the mothering her mother was unable to. I thought the description of her trip to Arizona was the best part- the weaving of her visit and the Navajo culture was excellent. The e-book version made seeing the photographs difficult which, I felt, took away an important piece of the memoir. I have already recommended this to several people.

This was a heart wrenchingly honest memoir, recounting the author’s life and her attempts to come to grips with her family and her identity. On each page, her love for her mom, dad, and sister is clear as is her struggle to separate herself from the more toxic elements of these family members. The writing was fantastic and I loved the inclusion of family photos with notes written in the style of an archivist. These notes gave the story even more weight because they seemed like museum pieces - testaments to the past - rather than just random pics from an album. The memoir included some nice symbolism, but I especially loved the weaving chapter at the end, which seemed to usher in a sense of peace and understanding for the author.

Danielle Geller writes the memoir of her life, growing up with alcoholic parents and an addicted sister. That she is alive to tell her story is incredible, with the tragic events, both physical and psychological that filled her existence. Danielle is a Native American woman who was able to overcome her difficult childhood and express herself through her writing. The book, itself, didn't seem completely chronological, and I sometimes got confused about the way events played out. I did especially appreciate the Navajo traditions and superstitions that she learned about in her life's journey, and would loved to have read more about those.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

Danielle Geller is a powerful writer and her storytelling skills are wonderful. Learning about her and her family-going back generations-as she discovered her own stories was fascinating and heart opening. I’m incredibly impressed and recommend this to anyone.

Dog Flowers by Danielle Geller is a touching, raw, heartbreaking, and yet fascinating memoir. Here the author presents a beyond challenging, difficult, and rough upbringing. She shows the reader the flaws and faults that her parents both were riddled with and how these issues resulted in the instability, problems, and difficulties she and her siblings experiences in their childhood, and for some, into adulthood.

It was hard to read all the things the author went through, and I cannot even imagine how brave she must have been to be able to address, acknowledge, and face head on during her journey that she wrote of in this book. There are moments of sunshine that occasionally escape through the heavy clouds, but overall it is dark. I truly appreciate the author allowing us to be a part of this personal and raw journey. My heart goes out to her, and she seems stronger now because of her experiences.

I also truly enjoyed reading more about the Navajo culture and reservation. It was fascinating to learn more about this complex and intricate culture.

5/5 stars


Thank you NetGalley and Random House for this ARC and in return I am submitting my unbiased and voluntary review and opinion.

I am posting this review to my GR and Bookbub accounts immediately and will post it to my Amazon and B&N accounts upon publication.

Danielle Gellers,memoir is raw open heartbreaking.Abandoned by her mother suffering abuse by her alcoholic father.The life she had to survive bid sad & the discUssion of her Navajo culture was fascinating educational.Highly recommend this memoir Perfrct for bookclub discussions,#netgalley #randomhousebooks

This is a good story, Easy to read. Interesting, taught me a lot I didn’t know. I would definitely recommend this to others.

Thank you to Netgalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for a review.

Danielle Geller is a narrator who is immensely sympathetic. Her story of childhood neglect is staggering in that she had a large extended family and yet no one really supported her.

The high point of this book for me is Danielle's Navajo culture. I found the time she spent in Arizona as the best part of her story. I'm happy that she connected with her culture even if her Aunt was ultimately a disappointment.

I read a lot of memoirs. This one was pretty good and it did keep me reading. It felt very much like it was written in a reporting style early on but either I was drawn into the way the author writes or the story became complex enough that I soon was able to read it more like a story. Due to the ebook format I couldn't really see the pictures shared by the author well, but I liked the way she documented them, like archival materials. I really understood the frustration the author must have lived with for so many years in dealing with family members with drug and alcohol addictions. Addicts take over your life. It is almost impossible to have healthy relationships with addicts & it is so difficult to lead your own life when you are constantly sucked in to the cycle of addiction of a loved one. Ms. Geller really drove those points home by sharing her personal experiences. You almost have to just completely remove yourself in order to lead a life without constant struggle and pain, which seems to be the conclusion the author came to with some of her family members.
This author had the added complication of so many of her family members & both parents having drug or alcohol problems. Kids in those situations often find they are raising themselves. One of the more interesting facets of Ms. Geller's story is she did not know any of her mother's family and set out on a mission to find them and develop relationships with them after her mother died. It must have been rewarding for her to finally meet them & understand more about her mother and her early life and also disappointing for her to discover that the alcoholism her mother experienced was rampant in the rest of the family as well. It wasn't the most compelling memoir that I have ever read but it was an interesting story & I did enjoy reading it.

I am of two minds about autobiographies and memoirs. They can be riveting or self serving drivel. Geller’s life story is one of those books I just couldn’t put down. Geller had a rough childhood, a mother who walked out on Geller and her sister, and an alcoholic and abusive father, stepmother and step siblings. Years later, she finds herself at her mother’s bedside, just as the woman is about to die. With a small suitcase of paperwork, Geller uses her training as an archivist and librarian to put those pieces of paper together to understand the woman who was her mother. I think this book will be as big as Educated was, it’s full of honesty, hope and despair and the overwhelming desire to connect to our roots

A book of comlplete sadness and failures. Alcohol and drug addiction is such a horrible disease that destroys families and people. This book is filled with tales of how this family is destroyed by abuse.