These short stories interconnect the friendships of four First Nations people -- Everett Kaiswatim, Nellie Gordon, Julie Papequash, and Nathan (Taz) Mosquito -- as the collection evolves over two decades against the cultural, political, and historical backdrop of the 90s and early 2000s. These young people are among the first of their families to live off the reserve for most of their adult lives, and must adapt and evolve. In stories like Stranger Danger, we watch how shy Julie, though supported by her roomies, is filled with apprehension as she goes on her first white-guy date, while years later in Two Years Less A Day we witness her change as her worries and vulnerability are put to the real test when she is unjustly convicted in a violent melee and must serve some jail time. The House and Things That Can Be Taken establishes how the move from the city both excites and intimidate reserve youth -- respectively, how a young man finds a job or a young woman becomes vulnerable in the bar scene. As well as developing her characters experientially, Dumont carefully contrasts them, as we see in the fragile and uncertain Everett and the culturally strong and independent but reckless Taz. As the four friends experience family catastrophes, broken friendships, travel to Mexico, and the aftermath of the great tragedy of 9/11, readers are intimately connected with each struggle, whether it is with racism, isolation, finding their cultural identity, or repairing the wounds of their upbringing.
Authors
Related Organizations
- Control Number Identifier
- CaOOCEL
- Description conventions
- rda
- Dewey Decimal Classification Number
- C813/.6
- Dewey Decimal Edition Number
- 23
- Distributor
- Canadian Electronic Library (Firm),
- General Note
- Short stories Issued as part of the desLibris books collection
- Geographic Area Code
- n-cn---
- ISBN
- 9781771871266 9781771871280
- LCCN
- PR9199.4.D862
- LCCN Item number
- A6 2017eb
- Modifying agency
- CaBNVSL
- Original cataloging agency
- CaBNVSL
- Physical Description | Extent
- 1 electronic text (266 pages)
- Published in
- Ottawa, Ontario
- Publisher or Distributor Number
- CaOOCEL
- Rights
- Access restricted to authorized users and institutions
- System Control Number
- (CaBNVSL)thg00978936 (OCoLC)973792606 (CaOOCEL)480024
- System Details Note
- Mode of access: World Wide Web
- Transcribing agency
- CaBNVSL
Table of Contents
- Cover Page 1
- Title Page 4
- Copyright Page 5
- Dedication 7
- Contents 8
- Kokum’s House 10
- The Bus Stop (February 1993) 16
- The House (April 1993) 28
- Things That Can Be Taken (October 1993) 34
- Stranger Danger (March 1994) 51
- Homecoming 59
- Friends (October 1995) 67
- New Year’s Eve (1996) 78
- The Resistance (May 1997) 96
- Princess (August 1997) 120
- Two Years Less a Day (January 2000) 131
- The Great Mystery (June 2001) 156
- 911 (October 2001) 165
- The Aunts 173
- The Meeting Is Cancelled (May 2004) 183
- The Election (October 2004) 197
- The City of Lights (March 2007) 208
- Sundance (August 2007) 217
- The Ferris Wheel (September 2007) 225
- The Baby Shower (November 2007) 234
- The Stars (February 2008) 240
- The Fight 249
- The Curtain (April 2008) 261
