What did you read this summer?

I must confess that my own summer reading is slowing down. This year, I took the opportunity to work through a pile of diverse novels up for review or quite recently approved for use in our secondary schools. My mini-reviews follow below.

Aboriginal Voices

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie [US]
Little, Brown: 2007. ISBN: 9780316013697 230 pages

Alexie’s book was a runaway best-seller, and a great deal of its popularity relates to the informality of the tone, and integration of comic-strip like graphic illustrations. The first-person narrator is a teenaged Native boy, living on the Spokane reserve, and the story follows his struggle to be respected, both by members of his own community, and by the larger, mainstream.
Detail is vivid and realistic – the confessional tone creates a great deal of empathy in the reader – and the story of isolation and finding oneself will resonate with many young readers. Alexie paints life on the reserve in Technicolor detail, and both explodes and recreates stereotypes about Aboriginal people. Some details are particularly disturbing, and this may not be the coming-of-age book for every reader.

Power, by Linda Hogan [US]
W.W. Norton, 1999. ISBN: 9780395319682 235 pages.

This lyrical novel is both a burden and a delight for readers to work through. The actual story is simple, and follows a shocking act committed by a fringe member of a Aboriginal community in Florida. The first-person narrator, a teenaged girl who is also a fringe community member, is a witness to the killing of an endangered Florida panther, and must wrestle with issues of conscience, friendship, family and loyalty.
Detail in setting and atmosphere is beautifully represented, and the novel presents a sensitive look at the community and cultural values of an Aboriginal group which is itself endangered. However, as in Hogan’s other works (see review of Solar Storms in this blog), the action crawls along slowly, and the heaviness of the tone simply may not engage youth readers.


Three Day Road, by Joseph Boyden [CAN]
Penguin Canada, 2005. ISBN: 9780143017868 382 pages.

Boyden’s massive book is a welcome addition to the rich canon of Canadian war novels (think Timothy Findley’s The Wars or Jack Hodgins’ Broken Ground). The lengthy story, told in episodic chapters, juxtaposes the personal narratives of Niska, the last medicine woman in her Cree community, and Xavier, her young nephew, who is fighting in the muddy trenches of France during World War 1. Xavier’s lifeline is his charismatic friend, Elijah, and as the horrors of trench warfare, dehumanize the young men, we witness Elijah’s morphine-addled descent into brutality and madness, leading to a shocking climax.
In terms of representing Aboriginal values and cultural practices, especially traditional ways threatened by white “civilization,” the novel offers vivid snapshots: of residential school life, of subsistence trapping and hunting (and often, starvation), of racism and cruelty – even rape -- at the hands of whites. Perhaps most evocative is the story of Niska’s self-journey and development as a Windigo killer, which finds its echo in Xavier’s final acts in the trenches.
This is a magnificent, and disturbing story, yet as a novel for classroom and/or independent study, the scale of detail will overwhelm many students. The scenes from the battlefront, especially, move from one major engagement to the next, sometimes devoid of the overall context of the war. However, the novel offers a perspective which has too long been missing from discussions of the historical period, and deserves careful “unpacking.”
Recommended by ERAC for use with students in Grades 11-12.


Contemporary Fiction

Can’t Get There from Here, by Todd Strasser [US]
Simon Pulse, 2004. 9780689841705 198 pages.

Strasser’s vivid depiction of the brutality and grittiness of life as a homeless person on the streets of New York is an eye-opening, and compelling, youth novel. The first-person protagonist, Maybe, is a teenaged girl who has run away from horrific abuse at the hands of her mother. Her developing attachment to a younger street girl, coupled with unexpected kindnesses from a local community worker, keep her alive, and focussed on the future, even as a witness to constant violence, criminal activity, substance abuse and exploitative sexual behaviour.
Strasser effectively shows the “vicious circle” relationship between the marginal behaviour of street youth and the marginalizing attitudes of members of the mainstream society. An excellent entrée into discussions of classism and social justice, albeit with content that may disturb sensitive readers.
Recommended by ERAC for use with students in Grades 8 – 10.


The Slow Fix, by Ivan E. Coyote [CAN]
Arsenal Pulp Press, 2008. ISBN: 9781551522470 152 pages

Coyote is a local Vancouver writer, proud of her Yukon heritage. This collection features dozens of clearly written and evocative snapshots of her life, dealing most often with themes in of individual freedom, gender identity and social belonging. She makes readers painfully aware of the social [mis]assumptions made about gender identity, and several of her anecdotes create empathy in the reader. Several stories in the collection are excellent illustrations of themes in social responsibility.
Further, her description of place, as in the four linked episodes in the final story, about Whitehorse, is precise, and vivid, and extremely readable.


Graphic Texts

The 9/11 Report: A Graphic Adaptation, by Sid Jacobson and Ernie Colon [US]
Hill & Wang, 2006. ISBN: 9780809057399 133 pages

This work is fascinating, and dense with detail. The creators have faithfully represented the content of the original, text-format 9/11 Report. Comic-strip like panels, charts, and multiple text boxes are used throughout in an attempt to show intersecting stories. However, there is just so much detail that less-able readers will be overwhelmed, and lose track of the narrative. Further, the comic-like depictions of the main players, especially those identified as terrorists, may contribute to stereotypes about ugly, evil enemies/villains. A very rich text, but perhaps beyond the reach of readers who minimal prior knowledge of the historical event itself.


Tales From Outer Suburbia, by Shaun Tan [AUS]
McClelland & Steward Ltd/Tundra Books, 2008. ISBN: 9780771084027

Tan’s distinctive creative work is always a shock (his lauded tale of immigration, The Arrival), and often a delight (his Pink Floyd’s-the-Wall illustrations to John Marsden’s fable, The Rabbits). This is a short, colourfully illustrated collection of tales, full of curiosity and wonder, that push readers to question the everyday world around them. Hard to guess which age group this is most suitable for – some tales are simple and direct, others more subtle and mature. Pick it up, if you haven’t yet!


Historical Fiction

The Kite Rider, by Geraldine McCaughrean [UK]
Oxford, 2007. ISBN: 9780192755285 212 pages.

McCaughrean’s lyrical story is the tale of Haoyou, a young Chinese boy coming of age in the time of Kubla Khan. After the tragic death of his father, and his family’s descent into poverty, Haoyou is sold into work for a travelling circus. Taking incredible risks to develop his unique skill as the outfit’s “Kite Rider,” Haoyou comes face to face with ultimate peril: a traitor’s death sentence at the hands of the Mighty Khan himself.
Characters here are vividly drawn, and interesting. Haoyou’s story moves along fluidly, with engaging twists and turns, although historical detail is scanty. Sub-themes of family and the role of women open up discussion of Confucian values, and overall, the novel would complement a Grade 8 Humanities program.
Recommended by ERAC for use with students in Grades 8-9.


A Company of Fools, by Deborah Ellis [CAN]
Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2003. ISBN: 9781550417210 191 pages.

Ellis’s clear, direct style pulls readers into Medieval France, at the time of the Black Plague. The first-person narrator, Henri, is a choirboy in an abbey outside of Paris, who finds his quiet life altered profoundly: at first, by the arrival of young Micah, a profoundly secular lad; and then, by the ghastly horrors of the plague itself.
This novel is easy to follow, and full of historically accurate detail. The characters of the boys are somewhat juvenile, and may not engage high-school readers. Events in the story provide easy entrée to discussion about Medieval superstition and the social role of the Catholic Church. Ellis has included a useful glossary of terms and historical note.