Book Review: Surviving the Mental Health Tank

By John Rodgers

For many people, it still comes as a surprise that they can check out library books without ever leaving their home. With a library card, readers can access eBooks and audiobooks for all ages via services like eRead Kids, SimplyE, eBook Central, and OverDrive/Libby, as well as digital magazines with Flipster. One title that’s guaranteed to be checked in for both eBook and audiobook formats this month is A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger.

Readers may recognize Little Badger from her debut novel Elatsoe, and while that title isn’t required reading for A Snake Falls to Earth, both feature elements from Lipan Apache culture and mythology. The story covers the adventures of two characters: Nina, a Lipan girl native to our world (whose chapters are written in third person) and Oli, a cottonmouth snake who has been cast from his home in the land of spirits and monsters (written in first person). A catastrophic event befalls the planet, and the two heroes are eventually brought together. By then, the reader is already rooting for them to find happiness in the respective places where they both belong.

The biggest hurdle when reading A Snake Falls to Earth is its pacing. Those looking to quickly jump into the action may want to search elsewhere, but anyone interested in patiently investing in the characters before the plot takes center stage in the second half will come away feeling fulfilled.

November 2-16, the eBook and audiobook versions of A Snake Falls to Earth will be available to anyone with a library card, without any limits (in other words, no holds or wait list) during the Big Library Read. Contact the library by phone, on social media, or at SequoyahRegionalLibrary.org to check the status of a library card, set up a PIN, or ask about checking out titles online. To check out digital books and more, visit Sequoyah.Overdrive.com.