[2] At the beginning of the novel, Timothy Heppner is working for the town's Parks and Recreation Department, removing trees and destroying historic buildings to make room for strip malls.

[6] Due to its themes of heritage and historic preservation, the novel was listed as a Recommended Read by the National Trust for Canada in 2021.

"[8] Walker also suggests the town of Edenfeld is a "fill-in" for Steinbach, Manitoba, and that the fictional Elsie Dyck may have been inspired by the real-life author Miriam Toews, although Unger himself notes the reception of authors Rudy Wiebe, Di Brandt, Sinclair Lewis and Margaret Laurence within their communities as additional inspirations for the character.

[9][10] Scholar Robert Zacharias has cited Once Removed, along with Casey Plett's work, as representative of a shift in Mennonite literature by depicting characters who have chosen to stay within their communities, rather than leaving them, and has also pointed out metafictional allusions to other Mennonite writers such as Miriam Toews, Di Brandt, and David Bergen within the book.

[11] Scholar Nathan Dueck has called the book a künstlerroman in its portrayal of Timothy Heppner's growth as a writer.