Heart Berries Audiobook By Terese Marie Mailhot, Sherman Alexie, Joan Naviyuk Kane cover art

Heart Berries

A Memoir

Preview

Try for $0.00
Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Heart Berries

By: Terese Marie Mailhot, Sherman Alexie, Joan Naviyuk Kane
Narrated by: Rainy Fields
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $16.00

Buy for $16.00

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

Heart Berries is a powerful, poetic memoir of a woman's coming of age on the Seabird Island Indian Reservation in the Pacific Northwest.

Having survived a profoundly dysfunctional upbringing only to find herself hospitalized and facing a dual diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder and bipolar II disorder; Terese Marie Mailhot is given a notebook and begins to write her way out of trauma. The triumphant result is Heart Berries, a memorial for Mailhot's mother, a social worker and activist who had a thing for prisoners; a story of reconciliation with her father - an abusive drunk and a brilliant artist - who was murdered under mysterious circumstances; and an elegy on how difficult it is to love someone while dragging the long shadows of shame.

Mailhot trusts us to understand that memory isn't exact, but melded to imagination, pain, and what we can bring ourselves to accept. Her unique and at times unsettling voice graphically illustrates her mental state. As she writes, she discovers her own true voice, seizes control of her story, and, in so doing, reestablishes her connection to her family, to her people, and to her place in the world.

©2018 Terese Marie Mailhot; Introduction copyright 2018 by Sherman Alexie; Afterword copyright 2018 by Joan Naviyuk Kane (P)2018 Tantor
Gender Studies Indigenous Peoples Indigenous Studies Politics & Government United States Women Heartfelt Thought-Provoking Inspiring
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Critic reviews

"To read this book is to engage with one of our very best minds at work." (Toni Jensen, author of From the Hilltop)

"Rainy Fields narrates this deeply original memoir in solemn tones that suit the work.... Mailhot wrote some passages initially as fiction, but says they're now 'bound together and retold as truth.' Fields steadily, surely makes that truth available to listeners." (AudioFile)

Featured Article: Our Favorite Native American Authors to Listen to Right Now


You know that Native American voices are important, and you want to hear their stories. But where to begin? Here are eight of the best contemporary Native American authors you can listen to right now. Some of these authors have several books to choose from and some are new to the scene. But whether they’re famous for memoir, literary fiction, horror, fantasy, or something else, all of these authors are worth a listen.

What listeners say about Heart Berries

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    220
  • 4 Stars
    81
  • 3 Stars
    55
  • 2 Stars
    20
  • 1 Stars
    15
Performance
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    194
  • 4 Stars
    70
  • 3 Stars
    49
  • 2 Stars
    19
  • 1 Stars
    11
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    206
  • 4 Stars
    70
  • 3 Stars
    40
  • 2 Stars
    14
  • 1 Stars
    14

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

truthful memoir

I've heard authors speak about their objectives with memoir but not in the way Terese does in the Afterword. Before that she shows us the art and craft, the gifts and skills.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Vulnerable and relatable

This was a pretty vulnerable and graphic depiction of mental health. It was poetically written and extremely well done. This was so personal and an interesting read if you want to read more indigenous peoples stories.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Heart Berries, what a gift!

Terese Marie Mailhot' s unique voice reminds me of a Weaver, going back and forward, answering questions and flushing out memories. Through the eyes of a perfectly flawed human being who's actively searching and finding little healing moments, we find the gift she gives us as readers/listeners; Hope! Thank you

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Beautifully written

Beautifully written journey. As an added bonus, the Q and A is very thought provoking.
Thank you!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Difficult, but worth reading

Heart Berries- a difficult read, but the struggles she faced need to be heard. Truly.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Required reading

Terese Mailhot is at the forefront not contemporary Indigenous literature, and rightly so. She is such a powerful and important voice. I really enjoy her craft in this book, & I highly recommend to anyone interested in the complexity of trauma and survival.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The Indian that awoke on the Mountain words.

Had to rewind many times just to hear the poetry of her voice that created the story of her days.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Glorious!

Deeply moving, blunt, raw, powerful. I wish I could use words as cleverly as the author to describe this book. A treat!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

beautiful, sad, raw, relatable

this was an excellent read, the author is unique and create very relatable imagery. I highly recommend for anyone!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Heart Berries

In her her abashed, cut to the bone memoir of a smart Indian writer, we are hearing the pur language of a tremendously important voice. I want to read it again. Every sentence is bare.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!