This is a strong woman’s memoir describing her experiences as a Dene woman growing up in Canada’s North. She shares her journey with injustice, poverty, and grief, with stunning honesty and a powerful voice. This book emphasizes the value of family and cultural identity and sheds light on the reality that many Indigenous women face.
The book was engaging and included many anecdotes from the author’s adolescent life. Spanning several years, this book was fast-paced, revealing many personal details of life as an underprivileged Indigenous woman which I think takes a lot of courage to share. This intense coming-of-age tale presents many heavy topics such as addiction, loss, and generational trauma. One thing that stood out to me especially is when the author mentioned how her grandmother- a sewer- was underpaid and not given credit, and how her designs were imitated. This just goes to show that there is still a lot of work that needs to be done to head toward true healing and reconciliation as this is still happening! Indigenous artists’ artwork is often taken advantage of and appropriated today.
This book, written with a straightforward approach, was a fairly simple read, yet the author’s emotions seeped through the pages. The author shares pieces of how colonialism impacted her family. The photos included - each placed on the perfect page- made me, as a reader, feel like a companion on this tough journey. However, I did feel like the way some of the advice she gave to readers was written in a somewhat cliche way.
This book is a beautiful tribute to the author’s grandmother- a residential school survivor - whom I most enjoyed reading about. Although this can be a difficult read content-wise, Lafferty’s story of self-discovery stands as a symbol of resilience, reclaiming her ancestor’s traditions and trying to leave her dark past behind to build a better life for her family. I recommend this book to those looking for a heart-wrenching, honest, and inspiring read.
I rate this book 3.5 / 5 stars
