Poetry is difficult to review. It is so personal, it’s as though the writers soul is laid out bare and raw for us to see and pick apart. As a non indigenous, woman who was born into privilege I also don’t feel completely confident reviewing this as I can’t even begin to pretend I know what life is like in this world Tanya Tagaq has woven into existence, from a world that exists/existed thousands of miles from my front door.

I will say this book was beautiful. It gave glimpses of a world that exists in parallel to mine as well as completely set aside. The poetry, lore and coming of age story wound so tightly together it was difficult to unravel them and see where one ended and the other began. They all just coincided with one another so hauntingly beautifully.

There was hope and love coinciding with sadness and hate. The natural world was a huge and important part of this story and I loved how well everything was described in such small sections.

This story was sickening. The number of times I wanted to shut it, and throw it away had me so angry. The evil and vile hatred that seeped form it’s pages Was enough to make me gasp and tear up when I felt the betrayal, humiliation and betrayal the women and girls suffered through was described. To have beautiful words, written in a beautiful way end abruptly in pain, or rape, or violence confused and angered me. It was brilliant.

All together I would say this book worked. It made me think. It made me angry. It made me feel for this community and so many others like it that are tucked away and forgotten. The history (residential schools, massacres, etc) is one that we need to know. It is where we’ve been and healing can only being once we’ve accepted it, and we can move forward.

I am still attempting to deconstruct the symbolism and lore and understand it and I doubt I may ever fully comprehend its meaning.

TW;
Rape, domestic violence, child abuse, suicide