The River’s Daughter is a deeply personal story, written and narrated by Bridget Crocker. The book opens with some very difficult chapters from her childhood, marked by trauma and betrayal, but it gradually shifts into a story of resilience and self-determination. I appreciated the honesty in her storytelling and the way she reflects on her journey. The descriptions of nature and the world of river rafting added a unique and refreshing element to the narrative.

Overall, it’s a solid and inspiring listen, especially for those who enjoy memoirs about overcoming adversity and finding strength in unexpected places.

Thank you to Netgalley, the author and the publisher for providing me with an advance copy of this audiobook to review.

I felt like I was on the rapids with this memoir, I couldn’t put it down! And what a life she has lived—overcoming abuse, a fractured home life, and finding her independence and calling despite her rough childhood. Thank you for sharing your story with the world Bridget Crocker. Thanks NetGalley for an ARC audio copy!

3.5
Read by the author herself, we hear from Bridget and her upbringing. Full of disappointment, abuse, moving, but then also being popular and others unaware of what was going on behind closed doors, she is an open book. She then finds respite in river running as a guide in Idaho on the Snake and then eventually to Zambia. Such a cool experience but really a healing thing for her.

Overall, it almost felt like her journal and a way for her to process what happened to her in life. I preferred the second half, but would have loved more river stories rather than life choices she made in general moving from A to B etc.

Thank you to NetGalley and Spiegel & Grau by Spotify Audiobooks for the gifted ALC of this book.

I read both Wild by Cheryl Strayed and Educated by Tara Westover when they were released years ago and picked this up because it seemed similar but better. I feel that The Rivers Daughter is much better, You do need to be prepared for the sad and scary stuff in the beginning of the book. The river stuff is interesting too. I do love these books that talk about how parents and all the weird stuff they did, but I am really hoping my own kids do not feel compelled to write about me.

It's never easy to read and rate someone's life, especially when their personal thoughts are exposed for all to see. I found Bridget's rafting experiences and the characters she encountered along the journey really captivating, along with her journey to come to terms with her troubled childhood and imperfect family. While it was essential to read about her childhood struggles, it wasn't easy to read. I appreciated Bridget's narrative and her bravery in tackling not just the wild, unpredictable rapids but also the challenges of her past.

Thank you to NetGalley for my ARC!

A challenging listen. I hesitate to lower my rating, given the content and the compelling narration, but this was a winding and rough tale, however heartfelt and likely difficult to pen. I won't go into why I didn't like it. Suffice it to say, this was not the river I expected to paddle.

This memoir swept me away! As someone who’s spent time in Jackson Hole and rafted the Snake River—yes, even the Lunch Counter rapids—I felt an immediate connection to Bridget’s journey. Her vivid storytelling brought back so many memories and made me fall in love with the river all over again. 🌲🚣‍♀️

Bridget’s life is a remarkable blend of outdoor adventure and deep personal resilience. Her stories of rafting not only in the U.S. but in Africa were captivating and unlike anything I’ve read before.

⚠️ Trigger warnings: This book includes sensitive topics such as domestic violence, child abuse, neglect, sexual assault, harassment, and racism. Bridget doesn’t shy away from the hard truths, but instead, she transforms them into a powerful testament of survival and strength.

She is an exceptional woman, and her story is raw, inspiring, and absolutely worth reading.

✨ Favorite Quotes:
📖 “The Snake had touched me, and in some way, I now belonged to the river.”
📖 “Over the years, I had spent quite a lot of time ruminating about what my family had not given me, overlooking what I’d inherited as my birthright: the ability to transform suffering, rise up, and survive.”

If you love memoirs, wild rivers, and stories of incredible inner strength—add this one to your list. 💙🌍

The River’s Daughter is a touching memoir about breaking the cycle of generational trauma/abuse and forging a new path. Bridget Crocker is the author and narrator. She eloquently describes her challenging upbringing with her parents and their various partners. She found solace on the river and her talents guiding rafting excursions took her to Africa. Through it all she has been able to move past her childhood and create a beautiful life for herself.

Thank you to NetGalley & Spiegel & Grau by Spotify Audiobooks for letting me read this ARC.

4 stars

Bridget Crocker's memoir, _The River's Daughter_, is gritty and unflinching. While readers sensitive to encountering tales of abuse, sexual assault, and child endangerment should be wary of jumping into this one, those who can manage the content will find a powerful story here.

Crocker highlights major aspects of her childhood, including her parents' divorce, her relationship to her sibling, and various instances and forms of abuse she encountered. It is difficult to read this material, particularly because parts of it are pretty detailed. One must expect in memoir that not everything is coming up roses, and that is definitely the case for Crocker and her readers when it comes to the realities of her young life.

It's also unsurprising that Crocker would want to get as far away from the physical locations in which she experienced these trying times. For her, that happens on the titular river. I found her descriptions of her profession fascinating and at times frightening. Whether she's talking about the physical dangers of the work itself, the management of rampant racism and cultural norms and distinctions, or the influx of health care crises in her life and around her, Crocker paints a consistent picture that this life is exciting but also high risk. As a woman, this life is even riskier. She knows she will face threats to her personal safety, and this is true.

Readers should not come to this memoir expecting a light, hopeful tale of resilience. While Crocker does demonstrate incredible strength and grit, she also really struggles and takes readers into some difficult moments along the way.

Bridget Crocker’s The River’s Daughter is a powerful biographical novel that traces one woman’s journey through a lifetime of pain, healing, and ultimately, forgiveness. Crocker recounts her unconventional childhood spent between parents who struggled with their own demons, a young adulthood shaped by loss and recklessness, and a motherhood defined by fierce love and relentless growth. At its heart, the story is about a woman learning how to mother herself so that she can better mother her children. Along the way, she discovers what it means to forgive the past, to stop carrying what isn’t hers, and to finally let go.

I had the chance to listen to this on audiobook ahead of its June 3rd release, and I was hooked immediately. There were so many layers that resonated with me deeply. Crocker and I share some similar life experiences: our age, the fractured families we grew up in, the traumas we’ve had to navigate. The connection I felt to her story was so immediate and intense that I almost stopped listening. It hit a nerve, and I was tempted to retreat from the discomfort. But I’m glad I stuck with it. In doing so, I felt like I was honoring the courage it took for her to share this story so openly. Her emotional honesty, her willingness to explore her broken places, and her commitment to personal growth are all things I admire deeply.

One of the standout themes in the book is the wisdom that comes from learning to accept what we can change and to recognize which fights are ours to fight and which ones aren’t. There’s a story she tells about a woman in a pool that really stuck with me. It perfectly illustrates how much energy we can waste trying to intervene in places where we have no real agency. Crocker’s insight into these moments felt deeply authentic, and her writing style is incredibly evocative. She doesn’t just tell you how she felt, she makes you feel it too. I found myself experiencing a range of emotions while listening: anger, grief, frustration, empathy, and sometimes all at once. It was intense at times, almost too much, but that’s a testament to the depth of her storytelling.

The publisher’s description compares this book to Wild by Cheryl Strayed and Educated by Tara Westover. While I can see why those comparisons were made, these are all stories of women who overcome adversity, I think The River’s Daughter stands on its own. Crocker’s story isn’t just about survival or grit. It’s about reckoning with the legacy of generational trauma and the long, complicated journey toward self-compassion and peace. That’s a different kind of strength, and it deserves to be recognized as something wholly unique.

What touched me most was how clearly Crocker understands that the personal is also universal. Her willingness to say, “Here’s my story, flaws and all, maybe you’ll see yourself in it too,” is what gives this book its impact. As a Gen-X woman, it reminded me how far we’ve come and how much work we still have to do in unpacking the internalized misogyny and inherited pain that shaped us and our mothers before us.

This is a book for anyone who’s ever struggled with forgiveness, anyone who’s ever tried to outrun their past, and anyone who’s brave enough to start doing the inner work. It’s raw and beautiful and, in the end, incredibly hopeful.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced audio copy. I’m grateful I got to experience this one. All opinions are my own.

Crocker tells the story of her life, how she dealt with trauma and loss by finding solace in the natural world, the river to be precise. Like The Salt Path, this is a beautifully moving memoir and a love letter to nature