No comments about Thunder in My Soul: A Mohawk Woman Speaks.

3 comments about Willa's New World.

1. This is a great book to read - adults and teens alike. I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about the early history of Canada, the Hudson's Bay Company, and the fur trade.
   
   The book is well-written and as a teacher, I highly recommend it.



2. When I heard about this book, I *had* to read it. I'm an amateur historian with a particular interest in the Canadian fur trade, 1774-1821, and there just aren't that many books written for young people that use this for a setting.

   Since I'm not a literary critic, I'll confine my comments to the historic accuracy & educational value of this book. I must note, however, that last year it won Alberta's R. Ross Annett Award for Children's Literature. I found numerous historical errors, but only two rose above mere nit-picking.

   First, and foremost, there were no white girls or women in the Canadian fur trade until 1806, eleven years after the setting of this book. This isn't really a problem, in my opinion; by making her protagonist an English girl, Demers can have both a female point of view and a completely fresh perspective. It gives her a reason to explain to the reader the many differences between Willa's old life in England and her new one at the HBC fur post. Demers gets extra marks for explaining, in her afterword, that there weren't really any white women in the fur trade at this time. She also clarifies a few other points where she let her fiction depart from fact, but this is the major one.

   My other major historical issue with this book is more subtle. Demers' Natives are overly romanticized. Willa's roommate and instant best friend, Amelia, is a Native girl who works at York Factory in order to learn more about Europeans. Amelia's brother is a skilled hunter who seems to be the only Native trading furs at York Factory. Later we discover that Amelia's family has no European trade goods, which left me wondering what, exactly, he received in return for his many excellent furs. (The author makes it clear that it wasn't rum.) Amelia's mother, Moon, is a skilled healer respected by all Natives. And Amelia's father, Bear, is so spiritual that he spends much of his time in holy places, and rarely sees his family. Clearly, Amelia and her family are exceptional, and we never learn much about what life is like for most Natives. We are also told, repeatedly, of how deadly life is at York Factory; we learn of four deaths there--two violent, one accidental, and one natural. All the Native deaths we learn about are due either to natural causes or European diseases, leading the reader to erroneously conclude that, until the Europeans came, life wasn't difficult for Natives.

   Demers does some things unusually well. Overall, I was favorably impressed by her portrait of life within the fur trade. She did a good job of showing the hard work done by the clerks, which rarely gets recognition from historians; the labour shortage, which was indeed so severe that I readily believed Willa being employed as an apprentice clerk when it was discovered she could read & write; the way that certain Natives were entrusted with the lives of fur traders on long journeys; the way Natives rescued Europeans who had gotten themselves into difficulty; the fur post's impressive library; and European men's reliance on Native women to supply them with moccasins. (Demers has an ingenious fictional device that builds on this fact).

   I would recommend this novel as a way for young people to get a general impression of what life was like for Europeans within the fur trade, but I'd also caution them not to take the details too literally, because of those nit-picky mistakes I mentioned earlier. I understand that Barbara Demers is working on a sequel. I'm looking forward to it. I hope that, in addition to once again seeking input from historians, she will also visit fur trade "living history" sites so that she can learn about making a fire with flint and steel, how muskets work, and clothing in the fur trade era.




3. Barbara Demers wrote a wonderful tale of a young orphan girl being shipped to the New World where she must learn to fend for herself. She finds much more than just a new continent with strange circumstances. As Willa explores her new surroundings, she also finds within herself a world of strength and knowledge to explore. This is an excellent book which contains a very engaging story that appeals to a girl's sense of independence and adventure. Although Willa draws on memories of her brother for strength as she begins her adventures, she eventually finds that strength within herself as she discovers that women are strong, and more importantly, she is strong herself. The brief historical afterword is icing on the cake! I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in historical fiction!

No comments about I'll Sing 'til the Day I Die.

1 comments about Ancestral Portraits: The Colour of My People (Art in Profile).

1. Ancestral Portraits is a retrospective of the life and art of McDonald, a Native artist, profiles one of Canada's premier First Nation artist, blending selected color images with a review of McDonald's peoples and influences. The many firstperson insights make for a fine examination of Canadian and Native arts.

5 comments about Strange empire,: A narrative of the Northwest.

1. In large measure, this book is the history of Louis Riel, a Metis leader, and his efforts to gain recognition and independence for the Metis people. Since the ethnic group usually called Metis was closely tied to Riel, the book is also a partial history of that group.
   
   Metis is a French word that can be translated as "mixed blood." In a narrow sense, one might think of the Metis as the offspring from intermarriage between the French and Indians (mostly Cree) of eastern Canada during the early days of the fur trade. In a practical sense, the group must be broadened to include at least Chippewa, English, and Scot parentage. In the context of the twentieth century, an even broader definition is used. However, some combination of white and Indian linage is usually a prerequisite.
   
   This book is a classic by a legendary author of Montana history. Joseph Kinsey Howard (1906-1951) is also known for another classic, "Montana: High, Wide, and Handsome," a book considered for decades as the definitive history of Montana. Howard spent much of his short life in an area of Montana that has a significant Metis population. He understood the Metis, respected them, and spent years preparing to write "Strange Empire."
   
   The original publication was in 1952. More recent issues include an introduction by Nicholas C. P. Vrooman, Director of the Institute for Metis Studies at the College of Great Falls, Montana. This introduction is a magnificent addition.
   
   The Metis were primarily a product of the fur trade. Their language was a hybrid of French and Indian; definitely not English. Most of the Metis communities remained in close contact with the local Indian tribes. Many of these mixed blood people were drawn to the Red River which flows north from the present states of Minnesota and North Dakota into Canada and on to Hudson Bay.
   
   Louis Riel had trained for priesthood, but hadn't become a priest. Despite occasional self-doubt, Riel had many characteristics of leadership. He was literate and a good speaker and, more importantly, was fluent in English. The Metis attempted to establish their own nation in the Red River Valley. Howard beautifully summarizes the Metis situation: "This conflict between the Metis and the Canadian government was not only a battle over native and Euro-American claims, but also an age-old fight between Catholicism and Protestantism, English and French, English and Irish, and English and American causes." Louis Riel and the Red River Metis faced the Canadian forces with little loss of life on either side. Some people feel that the decision of whether the United States or Canada would rule what is now central and western Canada hung in the balance. The Metis won many of their goals but came under Canadian rule. One result is that the Red River part of Canada became the province of Manitoba in 1870. However, for his part in the "rebellion," Canada exiled Riel for five years and he went to the United States.
   
   The Metis were buffalo hunters but were significantly different from Indians. They dressed differently. Many combined their hunting with agriculture. They had their own language. They had their own culture, a melding of the cultures from which they came. They were much more efficient at commercial buffalo hunting than were the Indians. Their background in the fur trade meant that they had the weapons, hunting experience, and trading expertise needed. Synonymous with the Metis is the Red River cart. Pulled by draft animals, it had high wheels and could carry several hundred pounds. With these carts, the Metis could transport the hides, pemmican, and dried meat of many buffalo to market locations. Twice yearly, the Metis gathered in a large force to go to the buffalo herds.
   
   As the buffalo herds dwindled, the Metis went further west for their hunts. As a result, Metis communities developed in the Turtle Mountain area of North Dakota, the Milk River country of Montana, and Saskatchewan in Canada. Later, communities developed near Lewistown and Great Falls, Montana, (note that most of these locations were undeveloped, and probably unnamed, when the Metis first arrived). Louis Riel moved westward also and became a teacher at a mission in the area of Great Falls.
   
   In Saskatchewan, the Metis were experiencing problems dealing with the Canadian government; problems very similar to what they had experienced in the Red River country. In 1884, the Canadian Metis appealed to Riel to serve as their leader and negotiator. Riel answered the call. Ultimately, an armed conflict evolved with the Canadian military and Mounties facing the Metis and their Indian allies. This time the Metis were crushed. Louis Riel was tried and hung.
   
   There is disagreement concerning Riel's role in Saskatchewan. Some people feel he became insane, some dispute that opinion. He felt that God guided him and when a disagreement arose with the Catholic priests, he attempted to separate the Metis from the Catholic Church. The Metis uprising in Saskatchewan was probably doomed from the beginning, but Riel made things worse by his indecision between peaceful negotiations and the use of force.
   
   In 1982, an amendment to the Canadian constitution gave the Metis aboriginal rights. In the United States, the Metis do not have a legal relationship with the government and do not have a reservation or enjoy other rights granted to Native Americans. In each recent session of the U.S. Congress, there have been bills concerning what is often termed Montana's Landless Indians. Many of this group are Metis.
   
   This book reads almost like a novel. It is well researched. Every book published since "Strange Empire" and containing a mention of the Metis, references Howard's book. A comprehensive and modern history of the Metis is needed but at the moment, this reviewer is unaware of anything near as useful as "Strange Empire."



2. First I would like to thank Amazon for making this fine book so easy to obtain. There are countless thousands of descendants of these, strong, courageous people that now live throughout the world. my son among them, being on a temporary assigment in Turkey. Many thousands more know little of the history of our people. This book should have a particular appeal to these folk. Perhaps by the reading of Mr. Howards book some will be induced to further study and research. It is a benifit to all that seek the true history of our country. These folk were a monolithic type, what happened to one could be an indicator of what happened to the society in the whole. My families have ties to several of those mentioned in this book. As an example, my grandfather was the first cousin to the wife of Louis Riel. My great grandmother was the god child of, Marie Anne Gaboury, the first white woman in the northwest. My fathers mother was baptized by, Father Lestanc. These people are mentioned in this well written book. Thank you, Melvin Beaudry Lynnwood, Washington.



3. The amazing story of the Metis people whose French ancestors first colonized and controlled most of North America. Louis Riel should have been a National Hero for all Canadians since without him most of the land west of Ontario would have fallen in US hands.

   This book is riveting and should be required reading for history majors.




4. A century ago, North America almost had a fourth nation, Assiniboia. That would-be nation's leader, a poet, religious zealot and one-time schoolteacher named Louis Riel, once was considered a traitor ro Canada but now is being revered and "rehabilitated" as one of the founders of the Dominion of Canada. Riel was "drafted" as leader of the Metis, "mixed blood" children of the fur trade, when Canada was reneging on its promises to these people who carried on the cultures of both European and indigenous ancentry. (Today, Celtic and French folklorists visit Metis in Western Canada and Montana to record unblemished versions of tradition folk music long dead in their original mother countries.) Howard, a legend in Montana journalism and history himself, penned his masterpiece in "Strange Empire." He gets down to the basics of the struggle for Western North America and some of the more haunting passages deal with the pyschlogical effects of such white man's diseases as smallpox and alchohol and their role in subjugating the natives a century or so ago. Riel was hanged for his insurgence, but had he been more decisive in battle, the maps -- and language patterns -- of much of North America would be much different.



5. The genesis story of the Metis in North America, this book describes the evolution of the 'New Nation' and its place in continental history. Arising from the Fur Trade a new race of people, the Mixed-bloods, being descendents of Celtic Orkney and Highland Scot and Celtic Normandy and Brittany French fathers and predominantly Algonkian Cree and Chippewa mothers, create a new native North American identity. The Metis struggle to maintain their place as true descendents of aboriginal lineage while expressing the finer elements of their European paternal heritage. A finely crafted narrative of the attempt to affirm the cultural, economic, and political equity of the Metis, and all aboriginal peoples during the reconfiguration of the continent, Strange Empire is a powerful, dramitic, and epic telling of the most significant 'missing link' in our understanding of how the North American continent came to be.

No comments about Abor Group gives back to First Nations, environment.(small business)(Drew Hill, founder of The Abor Group)(Biography): An article from: Wind Speaker.

No comments about Buckskin & Broadcloth: A Celebration of E. Pauline Johnson - Tekahionwake, 1861-1913.

No comments about Without Reserve: Stories from Urban Natives.

No comments about Life in the Canadian/American Old West: Early Life of Fredrick Henry Turner.

No comments about By canoe and dog-train among the Cree and Salteaux Indians.