Fly Away Snow Goose: Northwest Territories and Nunavut. Juliet
Waldron and John Wisdomkeeper. BWL Publishing, Inc. December 2017. 350 pp. ISBN#:
9781772994551.
Yaotl and Sascho are surprised
to discover they care for each other as more than just childhood friends. They are part of the Thcho band of the Dene
Nation who live in Northeast Canada; the reader is drawn into tribal stories;
feasts; training to live in the wilderness; the natural beauty of land, sea and
sky; and the necessity of evading the enemy, the white people, who are invading
and destroying more and more of the land the Indian people love.
The beauty of this story is
almost beyond words. One sees the wonder
of the landscape, smelling the pine trees and rivers and hearing the call of
the snow geese and other animals. One follows the tales of the Thcho band
regarding the animals and spirit world surrounding those who show respect and
love, the sacred oneness of man and nature.
The plot concerns the theft of
Indian children, in the early 1950s, who are kidnapped and forced to convert to
Christianity and learn white ways.
However, the way of learning is far from loving and the suffering is
life-changing to those who are forced to submit and serve the kidnappers. All in all, these children bound to a form of
slavery with no chance to escape!
Yaotl and Sascho with some
other children manage to escape and begin a journey of frightening danger but
also a healing time of reunion and restoration with their natural
environment. There are conflicts and
deaths but also the amazing assistance of a couple who are truly bears who
become human to heal Indians in dire straits.
To say more would be to spoil
an enchanting, moving, and at times savage (but ironically not from the Indian
side) story that reveres and celebrates the lives of the original people
inhabiting a harsh but magnificent land of northern Canada. Great read for all ages; great historical
fiction! Highly recommended as a simple
yet deeply profound read!
Thank-you for a perceptive review of this joint effort with John Wisdomkeeper--whose feet are ever on the Red Road--and who taught me a little about bear power.
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