The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters In this poignant and beautifully written debut novel, Amanda Peters tells the story of a Mi’kmaq family whose lives are forever changed by the disappearance of their youngest daughter.

Set in 1962, the novel begins when a Mi’kmaq family from Nova Scotia travels to Maine each summer to pick berries. During one such trip, their four-year-old daughter, Ruthie, vanishes without a trace. The loss devastates the family and reverberates through generations.

Meanwhile, a girl named Norma grows up in a white, middle-class family, haunted by a feeling that something about her life doesn’t quite add up. As Norma searches for her true identity, the narrative weaves between her story and that of Joe, Ruthie’s brother, who has never stopped looking for his sister.

The Berry Pickers is a powerful exploration of family, identity, loss, and the long shadow of colonialism. It’s a deeply emotional and suspenseful novel that asks what it means to belong—and what it takes to heal.