The stories of an American Indian sniper caught up in the Great War and of his aunt, one of the last Cree Indians to live off the land, are intertwined in a mesmerising journey as they travel home over three days
This beautiful, haunting novel begins as Niska is reunited with her nephew, Xavier, after he returns from the horrors of the First World War. As she slowly paddles her canoe on the 3-day journey to take him home, travelling through the stark but stunning landscape of Northern Canada, their respective stories emerge.
Niska is the last Cree Indian woman living off the land in Canada. She recalls her memories of growing up among her kinsfolk, of trying to remain true to her ancestors and traditions in a rapidly changing world.
Xavier joined the war reluctantly at the urging of his only friend, Elijah – a Cree boy raised in the reservation schools. Elijah and Xavier honed their hunting skills as snipers in the horrors of the trenches and the wastes of No-man’s land. But as the war continues, they react in very different ways to the never-ending carnage around them.
Niska realises that in the aftermath of war, Xavier’s very soul is dying – but will the three day journey home be enough to help him find hope again?
This beautiful, haunting novel begins as Niska is reunited with her nephew, Xavier, after he returns from the horrors of the First World War. As she slowly paddles her canoe on the 3-day journey to take him home, travelling through the stark but stunning landscape of Northern Canada, their respective stories emerge.
Niska is the last Cree Indian woman living off the land in Canada. She recalls her memories of growing up among her kinsfolk, of trying to remain true to her ancestors and traditions in a rapidly changing world.
Xavier joined the war reluctantly at the urging of his only friend, Elijah – a Cree boy raised in the reservation schools. Elijah and Xavier honed their hunting skills as snipers in the horrors of the trenches and the wastes of No-man’s land. But as the war continues, they react in very different ways to the never-ending carnage around them.
Niska realises that in the aftermath of war, Xavier’s very soul is dying – but will the three day journey home be enough to help him find hope again?
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Reviews
There have been so many fine novels inspired by the First World War that to read one that is not just harrowing, but fresh, comes as a pleasant surprise ... (it's) a fully rounded work of fiction which, after a quiet opening, develops into a real page-turner ... His portrait of an indigenous people who are, in their way, hunted to near-extinction is poignant and convincing
It takes an exceptionally intense and clear vision for a writer to persuade us that there is anything new to be said about the Great War. Yet every now and then a book comes along that rescues from the mire and carnage a genuinely new perspective on the awful events of 1914-1918. Focusing on the rarely-told stories of indigenous people enlisted into the Canadian army, Joseph Boyden's first novel, is one such book
There are also lyrical moments which posses an eerie power - especially where Boyden writes about the northern landscape and the human relationship to it. He has illuminated a forgotten corner of the Great War and that, in itself is a prodigious achievement
A first rate read
An absorbing read, with chilling, exhaustive detail
Perhaps the most startling success of this book is the way it combines a tale of racial and cultural displacement with a mystic saga... He guides us through immensely complex stories with subtlety and grace