The memoir “The Keeper of the Squirrels” by Clara Mcdonald reflects on when as a child, she and her siblings were biking in the forest, her brother killed a squirrel, and they then proceeded to bury the squirrel and give it a funeral. The piece is beautifully written and highly descriptive, transporting the reader into the memory, as if they were riding a bike with them. However, the piece tends to only focus on description. There is no dialogue, thoughts, or any emotion seen from the characters. They are lifeless shells, conveying nothing to the reader. No one reacts in any way towards the killing of the squirrel, they just bury it with no conversation.

Another thing I found peculiar about this piece was the memory itself -- it seems rather insignificant, but clearly it wasn’t as the writer remembers it so many years later. I wish there was a reflection at the end of the piece that showed the value of this experience to the writer.

Overall, the description in this piece was very realistic, but it lacked in the other areas of writing.