Book Description

These memoirs of James Houston’s life in the Canadian Arctic from 1948 to 1962 present a colorful and compelling adventure story of real people living through a time of great change. It is extraordinarily rich material about a fascinating, distant world.

Houston, a young Canadian artist, was on a painting trip to Moose Factory at the south end of Hudson Bay in 1948. A bush pilot friend burst into his room with the news that a medical emergency meant that he could get a free flight into the heart of the eastern Arctic. When they arrived, Houston found himself surrounded by smiling Inuit – short, strong, utterly confident people who wore sealskins and spoke no English. By the time the medical plane was about to leave, Houston had decided to stay.

It was a decision that changed his life. For more than a dozen years he spent his time being educated by those kindly, patient people who became his friends. He slept in their igloos, ate raw fish and seal meat, wore skin clothing, traveled by dog team, hunted walrus, and learned how to build a snowhouse. While doing so, he helped change the North.

Impressed by the natural artistic skills of the people, he encouraged the development of outlets in the South for their work, and helped establish co-ops in the North for Inuit carvers and print-makers. Since that time, after trapping as a way of gaining income began to disappear, Inuit art has brought millions of dollars to its creators, and has affected art galleries around the world.

In the one hundred short chapters that make up this book, James Houston tells about his fascinating and often hilarious adventures in a very different culture. He tells of raising a family in the Arctic (his sons bursting into tears on being told they were not really Inuit), and of the failure to introduce soccer to a people who refused to look on other humans as opponents. He tells about great characters – Inuit and kallunait – who populated the Arctic in these long-lost days when, as a Government go-between, he found himself grappling with Northern customs that broke Southern laws.

A remarkable, modestly told story by a truly remarkable man.
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Reviews (4)

I couldn't put it down
This book was a delight to read. Mr. Houston's admiration for the Inuit culture is evident on every page. Many of the passages and stories are thought provoking and educational. I especially enjoyed his descriptions of bewilderment turned to enlightenment by such unassuming teachers.

A really good book
Really enjoyable. This man's interraelationship with a disappearing culture and the hurdles he faced in the Arctic wilderness are tangible and detailed. Mostly this book is about a youth (his own) - lost but still remembered. I read Joseph Conrad's Youth at the same time and the themes were quite similar.

"Yes, but is it Art?"
First this is a book about art. If you have ever wondered how those most beautiful Eskimo sculptures and prints have found their way to your local gallery; this book tells you how.

Mr. Houston was the first artist to recognize and search out the Inuit artforms and to deliver them to the art markets "outside". In every detail, name by name, you can read about the Inuit art culture from the very first stone figures and bone scluptures, to the latest prints.

Second this is a book about Arctic. Adventure on a epic scale. Mr. Houstons' honeymoon was one of the very few trips from east to west across Baffin Island by sled. Mr and Mrs. Houston spent years in the Arctic living in the Inuit way; both their sons spoke Inuktitut in preference to English and preferred raw seal meat to... well that was all there was to eat.

Sadly there are in this book no prints of the Inuit art, nor photos of the artists, nor any example of the art described in the text. For all the journeys by sled, boat, plane, and on foot there are no suitable maps. For a book about a culture that is so completely linked to geography, there are no maps for the reader to follow nor plates for the art lover to love.

The most astonsihing event of the book occurs on page 9. A very young Mr. Houston steps off of a plane in the Hudson's Bay Arctic, looks around, and flatly refuses to live any place else; He stays for 15 years.

You can add Mr. Houston to the list with Barry Lopez, William Vollmann , Farley Mowat, and John McPhee; thoes writers that get the Arctic Expericence

Gripping, non-judgemental, true-life narrative.
This is one of the finest first-person, historical narratives I've read for many years. Mr. Houston provides a unique, non-judgemental series of observations and first-hand stories about the Inuit and his own experiences living among them and working with them and, most importantly, learning from them. He is very honest in relating his own foibles and potentially life-threatening mistakes. His style is very easy to read and personal and I could not put this book down after starting it. Mr. Houston lived a highly privileged and unique life among a pre-literate but very evolved group during a crucial turning point for their culture. This is a rare and wonderful narrative. ... Read more

Book Description

Robert Hunter's courageous activism as a founder of the Greenpeace movement (and the man behind the Rainbow Warrior theme) often placed him shoulder-to-shoulder with Native peoples fighting the same "good fight" on behalf of Mother Earth. In Red Blood, this straight-talking storyteller takes readers along for a wild ride as he recounts some of his most dramatic escapades in the fight for social and environmental justice.

Hunter's adventures include a spectacular (and at times hilarious) Caribbean journey aboard the Sea Shepherd II with a group of British Columbian Indian chiefs. Their mission: intercept the Columbus 500-year commemorative fleet of 1992 and, with cameras rolling, extract an official apology from Spain for the resulting centuries of unfair treatment of indigenous peoples. Hunter also describes a ceremony in which he was adopted as an honorary Brother of the Kwakiutl; a transforming experience in a Cree sweat lodge; and a tense sacred powwow with radicals of the Native movement.

From the profound to the profane, from the horrific to the ridiculous, Hunter relates his experiences with humor, vividness, and an appealing honesty that spares no one, least of all himself.
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Reviews (1)

Great Writing From One Of The Founding Elders Of Greenpeace
I am one of those "older environmental extremists" who well remembers Bob Hunter and the original (and best!) gang of Greenpeacers from Canada. In fact, it was a picture of Bob Hunter and Paul Watson in a Zodiac zooming in front of a Soviet whaling boat's harpoon cannon that awakened me to environmental activism. That was 1975, and Bob has been one of my heroes ever since. He was There, man! I actually got to work for Greenpeace in 1977 and was fortunate enough to meet Bob; in fact we shared a few beers and a few joints in the back of my van at a Save The Whales rally. Great Guy! Since then I have found and read all of his books - man can that guy write! Funny as hell, real enjoyable reading. I would like all current "Greenpeace" staff and members to read this great new book, to learn about their roots and the Elders. Great to have you back in print, Bob! ... Read more

Book Description

The daughter of a Algonquin mother and an Iroquois father, Catherine/Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680) has become known over the centuries as a Catholic convert so holy that, almost immediately upon her death, she became the object of a cult.Today she is revered as a patron saint by Native Americans and the patroness of ecology and the environment by Catholics more generally, the first Native North American proposed for sainthood. Tekakwitha was born at a time of cataclysmic change, as Native Americans of the northeast experienced the effects of European contact and colonization.A convert to Catholicism in the 1670s, she embarked on a physically and mentally grueling program of self-denial, aiming to capture the spiritual power of the newcomers from across the sea.Her story intersects with that of Claude Chauchetiere, a French Jesuit of mystical tendencies who came to America hoping to rescue savages from sin and paganism.But it was Claude himself who needed help to face down his own despair.He became convinced that Tekakwitha was a genuine saint and that conviction gave meaning to his life. Though she lived until just 24, Tekakwitha's severe penances and vivid visions were so pronounced that Chauchetiere wrote an elegiac hagiography shortly after her death. With this richly crafted study, Allan Greer has written a dual biography of Tekakwitha and Chauchetiere, unpacking their cultures in Native America and in France.He examines the missionary and conversion activities of the Jesuits in Canada, and explains the Indian religious practices that interweave with converts' Catholic practices.He also relates how Tekakwitha's legend spread through the hagiographies and to areas of the United States, Canada, Europe, and Mexico in the centuries since her death. The book also explores issues of body and soul, illness and healing, sexuality and celibacy, as revealed in the lives of a man and a woman, from profoundly different worlds, who met centuries ago in the remote Mohawk village of Kahnawake. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Tales From the Trenches of Self-Discovery
Perhaps fittingly, the science of dreams has billions of practicioners but very few professors! Visionary poet Oriah Mountain Dreamer has impacted many people with her recent poem, "The Invitation". But where did she come from? What is the background of this Mountain Dreamer? A dog-eared copy of this elusive and mysterious text made its way into my hands for a brief time-just long enough for me to read about the trials and tribulations of a young woman (the author) who fights to have her voice heard as she negotiates a life-altering path of ceremony and sorcery for well-intentioned beginners. Is exploration of the shadowy borderline between the seen and unseen accelerating chaotic changes in her life, or is it precipitating them? The seeker is faced with many turbulent decisions and personal dilemmas; and also seeds of light, veiled in darkness. The trickster nature of the coyote permeates the book, which is ultimately an unflinching account of a contemporary quest for ageless wisdom. Read this one with an open mind, and a giving heart. Merrily, merrily, and sometimes unmerrily, life is but a dream! ... Read more

Book Description

Dreaming a healing - an artist must remember her childhood to heal.

Charleen Touchette’s memoir is a story of survival and hope, of the agony of family and its blessings, of shame and pride, destruction and creation. With the rich traditions of her French Canadian and Indian cultures, Touchette inherited a legacy of anger, alcoholic rages, violence, and denial. Determined to find a better way to live, she leaves her birthplace and culture at seventeen years old. Her journey takes her to Wellesley College, New York’s Lower East Side, and Soho’s art world, then to Indian Country, Navajo Nation, and Santa Fe, New Mexico.

Abandoning the Catholic Church for Native American sweatlodges and Jewish synagogues, she has three sons, a daughter, a happy marriage, and a successful career. After the birth of her daughter, she is debilitated by a strange illness that forces her to confront her past.

Touchette offers a rare glimpse of French Canadian/Métis culture and a frightening view of the power and influence of the Catholic Church.

Touchette's experiences in the Indian art world elucidate the complex identity issues and the longing to belong that bi-racial people face. Her response to being targeted and blacklisted in the Indian identity witch hunt was to assert her human right to draw strength from all her cultural heritages - even those her family was separated from by cultural genocide. Touchette's refusal to be pigeon-holed or stereotyped will inspire the growing numbers of multi-ethnic people to claim and take pride in every part of their ancestry. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

The most moving book!
It was by far the most emotional experience I've ever had with a book. I felt a range of emotions from grief to joy, and the book left me feeling ultimately inspired. It's honesty and courage served as catalysts, encouraging me to face some important and unresolved issues within my current relationships, and I'll be forever grateful.

A transforming Story with beautiful art
This story is transforming and takes the reader from despair to renewal. The Art in the book is original and like no other American artist I know. Touchette is America's Frida.

inspiring
This book is amazing. It is a lesson that everyone can heal from a painful past.

It Stops with Me: A Brand New Classic in Feminist Art and Li
It Stops with Me: Memoir of a Canuck Girl, the latest work by author-artist Charleen Touchette invites you into the provincial world of a French Canadian girl in Rhode Island who cannot tell anybody her family secrets. She escapes home for Wellesley College at seventeen - then her world becomes enormous when she leaves Wellesley for Bard College, falls in love, becomes an artist, and moves to New York City where she hobnobs with artists like Jean-Michel Basquiat, connects with Indian artists and is embraced her lover's warm Jewish family of Canadian expatriates in Minnesota. She moves to Indian Country on her spiritual path and continues to focus on women's and Native art issues and activism. Years later when she has her first daughter she must relive her childhood to heal the future generations of her family.
This compelling story reaches out to people of all backgrounds and ages with a message of healing. Charleen reclaims her ancestors and finds herself woven deep within a culture where women are the cornerstone of the home and also powerful healers and storytellers. The book contains selections of nearly three decades of the artist's work, including a color series depicting her life as a girl in Woonsocket. Similar to Hadyn Herrera's biography of Frida Khalo with ninety-one pages of black and white art and thirty-two pages of color art, It Stops with Me: Memoir of a Canuck Girl is a manifesto in twenty-first century feminist thought and a spellbinding trip through the imagination of a young girl who becomes a remarkable woman despite insurmountable odds. ... Read more

Book Description

Timed to coincide with the anniversary of the Lewis and Clark expedition is this remarkable account of Alexander Mackenzie--the explorer who beat Lewis and Clark across the North American continent. Mackenzie accomplished this feat an astounding twelve years before the Corps of Discovery. Drawing extensively on the journals of Mackenzie and other turn-of-the-century explorers--and featuring historical and contemporary photographs, illustrations, and maps--Hayes presents a lively portrait of the explorer who both preceded Lewis and Clark and provided an impetus for their expedition. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Illustrated throughout with maps and photographs
First Crossing by historian Derek Hayes is the amazing story of Alexander Mackenzie, and his trailblazing journey across the North American continent before civilized society conquered the North American wilderness. Illustrated throughout with maps and photographs in black-and-white and color, the deftly researched and meticulously reported details of Mackenzie's voyage vividly reconstruct an 18th Century expedition of truly insurmountable bravery and pivotally important discovery.

Not much new!
OK, there is some new information here. Mostly it seems that Hayes has helped illustrate the travels of Mackenzie, something that was not available previously. Barry Gough's book is notoriously lacking in any illustration of Mackenzie's voyages and Mackenzie's own book is virtually without useful illustration. Maybe having read the previous two books makes me jaded but Mackenzie's voyages can only be retold so many times.
Hayes has presented us with a slightly new take on telling the story with pictures, maps and historical vignettes but I hunger for a more thorough job. Perhaps more in the nature of Moulton's "Journals of the Lewis & Clark Expedition". Finding someone willing to wade through Mackenzie's rather impenetrable prose may be a challenge.
Notwithstanding the above this is probably the best explanation of Mackenzie's voyages since the original journals. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

The Storyteller
Thomas King in the Truth About Stories provides us with a Refreshing and Wonderful collection of Stories to be Enjoyed and Savored. Elegantly Simple reflections of Life are are offered to us with Creative Vibrancy. This book is truly a Magickal Journey through Thomas Kings literary River of Life. The Flow of Spirit throughout these Stories makes this an Absorbing and Captivating Journey.

The Truth About Stories is a Wonderful Gem of Depth and Versatility. Kings Landscapes of Layered Dimensions show us the Pride , Courage , Honour and Integrity of Indiigenous Peoples. This book is a Gift and a Blessing Pulsating with Life. Drink Deeply from these Literary Waters as the Words will Nourish your Spirit. The Thoughts and Feelings expressed in this book are Worthy of High Regard.

Mr.King should be Applauded for Sharing the Stories within his Heart. Each Story is a Teaching from the Spirit whose Unique Flavor quenches ones thirst for Meaning and Wisdom. Thomas King has a Unique Brand of Creativity which Celebrates Life and Invites Inspiration. These Stories are a Vibrant Seascape of Imagination , a True Delight for the Mind.

Thank you Thomas King.

I have Heard this Story and I will Live my Life Differently! ... Read more

Book Description

With No Man's River, Farley Mowat has penned his best Arctic tale in years. This book chronicles his life among Metis trappers and native people as they struggle to eke out a living in a brutal environment. In the spring of 1947, putting the death and devastation of WWII behind him, Mowat joined a scientific expedition. In the remote reaches of Manitoba, he witnessed an Eskimo population ravaged by starvation and disease brought about by the white man. In his efforts to provide the natives with some of the assistance that the government failed to provide, Mowat set out on an arduous journey that collided with one of nature's most arresting phenomena-the migration of the Arctic's caribou herds. Mowat was based at Windy Post with a Metis trapper and two Ihalmiut children. A young girl, known as Rita, is painted with special vividness-checking the trap lines with the men, riding atop a sled, smoking a tiny pipe. Farley returns to the North two decades later and discovers the tragic fate that befell her. Combining his exquisite portraits with awe-inspiring passages on the power of nature, No Man's River is another riveting memoir from one of North America's most beloved writers. ... Read more

Book Description

This extraordinary classic has been variously acclaimed as one of the great books of adventure, travel, anthropology, and spiritual awakening. In 1938-39, a French nobleman spent fifteen months living among the Inuit. He is at first appalled by their way of life: eating rotten raw fish, sleeping with each others wives, ignoring schedules, and helping themselves to his possessions. But as de Poncins odyssey continues, he is transformed from Kabloona, The White Man, an uncomprehending outsider, to someone who finds himself living, for a few short months, as Inuk: a man, preeminently. ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Magnificent
I recently bought it and read Kabloona in a weekend. The result was an incredibly valuable experience that has increased my awareness not only of Inuit life in the Netsilik area but of human behavior in general.Dde Poncins' prose is magnificent, even poetic. Numerous passages simply sing. Whether he is describing the describing bouts of cabin fever at the post in Gjoa Haven or celebrating the renewed vigor of villiage life that Springtime brings, De Poncins's eye for detail is refreshingly balanced and clear. What's more, Kabloona does not pretend to be an unbiased narrative. Instead, the author leads us through his physical and spiritual journey to show us how living with the Inuit has allowed him to become "a man preeminently." Certain passages seem somewhat romanticized, while others reveal the author's deeply-entrenched provincial values. The latter is evident when he describes an Inuit "pedarast" with a mixed sense of fascination and revulsion. But rather than hindering the narrative, such honesty and straightforwardness only enhances the humanity of this book. Kabloona is a thoroughly engrossing read that feeds into many areas of Inuit life, including myths, legends, and belief systems, as well as daily life and habitat.

Some books stay with you for a lifetime
It's been years since I read "Kabloona" by gontran de poncins. I don't remember the specifics of the book (I'm going to read it again, soon). What I do remember is the lingering humanity of the people. The hard life they lived. The culture shock between my life and theirs. I remember the mirror they held before me, forcing me to question our idea of "progress," "civility," and "modern man". Books such as "Kabloona" and "Black Elk Speaks" by John G. Neihardt and "Mutant Message" by Marlo Morgan tells us more about our roots as a species than many of the great thinkers and philosphers who speak in the abstract and grandeur of modern man. You read a book like this and you must pause and reflect, look deeper into yourself and the rushing stream you were born into. Step back and look at life from a different perspective. It can be life-altering or at the very least a stunning revelation.

Left on the ice
I read this book many, many years ago and have forgotten many of the details. I remember one, however. When the old one couldn't travel, they put her out on the ice and drove off. That is so relevant to our contemporary society and the discussions of social security and the elderly, caring for the disabled, etc. We can't leave the disadvantaged on the ice and drive off but must find some way to care for them.

A privileged glimpse of Eskimo life
Gontran de Poncins's "Kabloona" is a classic of Arctic adventure, to be ranked alongside Farley Mowat's "People of the Deer," Harold Horwood's "White Eskimo" and parts of Peter Freuchen's "Vagrant Viking." A French aristocrat with a genuine yearning for adventure, de Poncins made his way to North America just prior to the last war. By stages, he managed to go right up into latter day Nunavut, some of the highest inhabited Arctic territory in Canada's north. Yet he didn't stop there. Putting himself into the hands of an Eskimo hunter who happened to be heading off onto the sea ice, he underwent an extraordinary odyssey lasting the winter through, in which he camped with the Eskimos in their winter igloos.

de Poncins takes us into the very private, very communal world of these northern people. Private because, for Europeans, entering this strangely illuminated landscape was even then almost an impossibility. de Poncins admits that his initial impression was overshadowed by the nausea which sprang immediately into being as he tried to deal with the strange mixture of smells in the igloos. Most Europeans would not pass that first test and many an estimate of Eskimo culture has been biased by just such an affront to a sensitive olfactory centre. Yet once he had passed this initial barrier, a process which he says took some time, he found himself in a world unlike any other he had experienced or imagined. It is into this ageless community that he takes us for a very privileged glimpse of the last of the true ice-dwellers.

Although a French national, de Poncins chose to remain in North America and he wrote his text about the Inuit in English, in collaboration with a friend. Not much is known about the author's life thereafter, as he did not publish much other work, but like G. B. Edwards's solitary yet wonderful book about life on Guernsey, "The Book of Ebenezer Le Page," this one book by de Poncins is a major accomplishment.

One of the best books I've ever read!
I came upon this book PURELY by accident, and I now consider it one of the most fortuitous moments of my life! This is a fascinating and INCREDIBLY well-written account of a Frenchman's experiences living amidst the Inuit at the turn of the century--he is honest, hilarious, philosophical, and makes you feel like you're bumping along behind him on the sled across the tundra. I think it should be required reading of every single high school anthropology and sociology class. It is EXCELLENT! ... Read more

Book Description

Beginning with her childhood, Maracle traces her teenaged years and adulthood during the 1960's, '70's, and '80's. "...a valuable book about one remarkable women's spiritual quest..." - The Gazette, Montreal ... Read more

Reviews (3)

A Masterpiece on Man and Nature
Beautifully -- in places lyrically -- written, this small volume makes a compelling case for preservation of the natural beauty that once prevailed throughout North America, and which now has become all too rare. Never straying far from her main theme (the life of Grey Owl), Jane Billinghurst draws us into the passion and dedication of her subject, leading us reflect on environmental questions not as dry policy issues, but as ones that can relate to an almost spiritual connection between the individual and his natural surroundings. Must reading for historians, environmentalists, and those with an interest in Canada, this insightful book is thoroughly rewarding for the general reader as well. Very highly recommended.

A Well Written Account of an Incredible Life
This is a wonderful book. Well researched and balanced. Jane Billinghurst tells the story of Archie B. and I could not put it down. Other's have borrowed it and have praised it also. I am off to check out what else Billinghurst has written!

Two books in one. Beautifully illustrated.
It has been said, "one cannot judge a book by it's cover", however, we must also keep in mind that there are no absolutes as this book is a story which is depicted, in large measure, by the cover. Sensitive, warm, and poetic presentation of the life and contributions of Grey Owl. The photos exceptional in quality, and accurate as to life and times of the era. These are real people, places, and times that were a part of North American history. The manner in which sayings and aspects of Grey Owl are available as the story unfolds are done in such a manner I think you get two books for the price of one. I read the book from cover to cover the first time then re-read the white pages only, and then followed by reading the tan colored pages. Either way it is easy, fast, and enjoyable. I think the author did an excellent job in demonstrating the efforts of Grey Owl. He was an interesting fellow who had a vision and purpose in life which is so unique that a major moving picture has been make about him as well as four documantaries. Jane Billinghurst has created a work which makes possible an interpretation of the content, by the reader, as it is a factual and well documented treatise. There have been several books published about Grey Owl, in my opinion this is, like the Land of Shadows (Don Smith), is a must read for a deeper appreciation of this most remarkable fellow, Grey Owl. ... Read more

Book Description

At the end of the Ice Age, small groups of hunter-gatherers crossed from Siberia to Alaska and opened the last chapter in the human settlement of the earth. Many left little or no trace. But one group--the Early Paleo-Indians--exploded suddenly on the archaeological record about 11,500 years ago and expanded rapidly throughout North America and, eventually, into South America.

Journey to the Ice Age focuses on the Early Paleo-Indians of northeastern North America. A revealing, autobiographical account, it is at once a captivating record of Storck’s archaeological discoveries, as well as an introduction to the practice, challenges, and spirit of archaeology. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Maria Campbell's soul on paper
The way Maria Campbell literally bears her entire being onto paper is absolutely amazing. As Canadian citizens, it is important to still recognize the issues that plague our society. Campbell's book does just that, offering insight and a hope for something better.

Disadvatageous peoples of North America
The novel, "Half-breed" is based on the biography of Maria Campbell, a Metis woman who was born in northern Saskatchewan. Maria Campbell's family was a mixture of Scottish, French, Cree, English, and Irish. They spoke a language completely different from the people around them. The half-breeds lost their land when the authorities reclaimed it to offer to immigrants. Thus half-breeds settled down along the road lines and crown lands where they built cabins and bars, giving them the title of "Road Allowance people". Maria was born in a home where Cheecum, her father's Cree grandmother, taught ancient Cree rituals and legends. Maria's struggle for existence was strengthened by the Cree traditions and by Cheecum's wisdom. However, this was weakened by extreme discrimination and poverty.When she was fifteen, she tried to escape from poverty and discrimination by marrying a white person. However, soon after she broke up with him and found herself alone in the slums of Vancouver where she faced drug addiction, prostitution and depression. After many years of hardship and struggle, Maria made new friends who helped her to remember Cheechum's lessons, advice and her heritage. Eventually she returned to her own people and decided to work with native organisations all across Canada. The text is mainly concerned with the frequent discrimination, its negative impact and the extreme poverty in which the Metis- Indians had to live under. The narrator of the book, Maria Campbell, conveys her sorrows and frustrations by emphasising what it is like to be a Half-breed woman and grows up between two opposing worlds: white and native. The text clearly demonstrates the existing problems regarding race within the pluralistic Canadian society. The narrator develops the argument by describing her experiences. Through her experiences, she explains how badly whites treated her and her people. She grew up as a social outcast and was constantly teased and mistreated by other school children. Throughout the novel, Maria Campbell provides many examples to show the white society's mistrust and rejection of her people. The examples show the Indians' isolation on every level of society, including the church. Not only were she and her family excluded and driven out of church, but they also had to suffer verbal insult. Whenever the Half-breeds went downtown, the town's people would yell "Half-breeds are in town, hide your valuables." If they walked into stores, other white women and their children would leave while the shopkeepers'wives and children would watch to prevent the Half-breeds from stealing. The text discusses three important sociological concepts: discrimination, poverty and injustice. Defining these concepts in "cause-effect" context, one can see the interconnection among the three. Unjust government policies causes poverty, which in effect contributes to society's enhanced discrimination and mistrust of the Indians. While the Half-breeds represent a subculture, characterised by certain cultural traits that differs from others in the society, whites represent the dominant class who hold the power and influence. The Half-breeds were homeless because the Canadian government had unfairly taken their land away from them, so they have remained poor and unable to establish their own social institutions such as church and school. Consequently, the Half-breeds were subordinated and forced to speak the dominant language, behave the way whites do, and go to schools and churches that were built by the white society. Thus, the cultural diversity, different physical appearance, economical scarcity and a disordered life style, greatly influenced the discrimination against the Half-breeds. In the first fourteen chapters, the narrator relates the life style of half-breed families, their relationship with the white society, their traits, traditions, and their history. Through her experiences, she explains how badly whites treated her and her people. She grew up as a social ou, the Half-breeds remained relatively poorer and powerless. As the narrator states, due to poverty and lack of housing the Half-breeds had to move to "road-allowance-houses" (which are like shacks). The pages of these chapters also uncover the main cultural differences between whites and half-breeds by describing their family structure, distinct traditions and conception. These differences can be the structural elements that contribute to the uniqueness of Indian's situation. Firstly, unlike whites', half-breeds have extended family type in which two or more generations of the family members live together. Secondly, the half-breed families and other Indians live in a community where they practise their spiritual rituals, traditions and transmit their distinct cultural elements to the coming generation. It is also evident in the novel that Maria's family included her extended family and the Cheemchum taught Maria and her siblings their heritage, legends as well as cultural values and norms. Finally, the most important characteristic that sets the Indians apart from whites lies in their spiritual conception of the world. While the Indians are highly spiritual and believe in the interpretation of the natural and the supernatural, the whites strongly believe in subduing and dominating nature in order to create nature in men's image. With respect to such differences, in regards to family and community structure Indians try to sustain their distinct conception of the world as well as their distinct culture. Hence, their struggles to protect and sustain their uniqueness make them more distinct and marginal in the society. Maintaining these distinct elements also causes the Indians to remain economically weak in the contemporary industrialised Canadian society, since their belief is based on rationality rather than spirituality and the supernatural. The rest of the chapters are about Maria Campbell's life in Vancouver. The book mostly focuses on the realities of urban racism, prostitution, drug addiction and violence. Maria's husband left her without any money, which forced her to face prostitution. Within functional perspective, which is based on consensus and harmony for the benefit of society, prostitution seemed to be the only way for Maria to survive. Therefore she had to get involved in prostitution in order to survive and have enough money to raise her daughter; thus she carried out her function in society. In this process she also became addicted to drug and alcohol, because all the terrible circumstances that she faced were against her moral understanding and distinct (Half-breeds') conception of the world. So she lost her self-esteem and found herself in depression with the trap of drug addiction and alcoholism. At the end, she recovered from her addictions through the help of her own people. They helped her to regain her identity and dignity hence she started to work within "Native people" organisations throughout Canada.Campbell's experiences with discrimination, poverty, and other unfavourable things are realistic and persuasive. The examples that she gives in the novel strongly support her argument: the hardship of being "a half-breed woman in the white dominated Canadian society". Yet, at times her narrative tends to be biased since she conveys her story in a subjective manner. Especially, her easy and quick involvement in prostitution and drug addiction is questionable and difficult to understand since she was raised in a conservative and traditional Cree family. Nevertheless, The book "Half-breed" basically reflects an outstanding aspect of native people's difficulty in assimilating into the pluralistic Canadian society. It also provides a brief knowledge about how native people's distinct culture and subordinated economical or political weakness contribute their marginal and isolated position in the society. Overall, I personally think this book is useful for understanding the sociological concepts such as inequality, discrimination and poverty through the eyes of the distinct people who are discriminated against. The text offers an aspect of native people's lives in northern Saskatchewan through a half-breeds woman's experiences. The simple language and fascinating narrative makes the book more interesting and easy to read.

halfbreed by maria campbell
though her stories are not exclusive to the life of a Metis woman, the imagery is haunting. poverty, addiction, motherhood and the will of a society forced to make it on their own are all exposed. these themes are explored by other authors but not from this perspective. I would recommend this to every mother and/or women thinking of starting a family. this is a must read. for a guys perspective on similar themes check out alexie sherman's "the lone ranger and tanto fist fight in heaven". you won't be disappointed.

Praise for a Story of Survival
Maria Campbell tells a story of courageous survival from the perspective of a Metis woman. The reader becomes a part of Maria's journey through life, which begins amongst the Road Allowance People of Northern Saskatchewan. Her story describes a life dominated by basic survival. Hunting, trapping, poaching - if need be - and roasted gophers for a young school child's lunch. Her odyssey leads her through many dark places, one of them the Vancouver skids and a life as a junkie. Yet througout Maria Campbell manages to convey a sense of beauty, and her story, though often tragic, will become vivid in front of the reader's inner eyes. Half-Breed is a story of triumph over racial oppression. After reading this book, one can feel this woman's willingness to continue the fight that her great-grandmother's people began long ago in Riel country. ... Read more

Book Description

Collected here for the first time in book form are the expurgated sections of artist, writer, and rebel Emily Carr's unpublished journals, her important "Lecture on Totems" about Native art and people, and letters to and from several key figures in her life. The unpublished journal entries include long passages about her first meeting with Sophie Frank, a Squamish basket maker who became a confidante; anguished meditations on her spiritual mission; musings about Native culture and the white community's reaction to it; and thoughts about her sisters and relatives. This collection also features commentary by noted literary historian Susan Crean that offers cultural and historical context. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

42,000 words from Carr's previously published journals
Award-winning author and cultural critic Susan Crean gathers previously unpublished writings from Emily Carr's journals, notebooks, and epistles, as well as 42,000 words from Carr's previously published journals for inclusion into Opposite Contraries: The Unknown Journals Of Emily Carr And Other Writings. An absorbing and eclectic collection of discourse, the entries range from Carr's father's no-nonsense rendition of the facts of life, to the complete text of Carr's 1913 "Lecture on Totems" concerning Native imagery and Native people, Opposite Contraries is highly recommended -- especially for students of the life and work of Emily Carr, who although best known as an extraordinary painter, was also the author of seven quite popular and critically praised books. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

One of the best I have ever had the pleasure of reading!!
Well oreganized and easy to read. Being of micmac heritage, I was able to really enjoy the old stories and visit the old places and hear the old voices. Excellant research efforts by authors. This is one of those books I plan on passing along to my kids! Lionel Little Eagle 3/1/99 ... Read more