No comments about Metis Makers of History.

3 comments about Willa's New World.

1. Barbara Demers wrote a wonderful tale of a young orphan girl being shipped to the New World where she must learn to fend for herself. She finds much more than just a new continent with strange circumstances. As Willa explores her new surroundings, she also finds within herself a world of strength and knowledge to explore. This is an excellent book which contains a very engaging story that appeals to a girl's sense of independence and adventure. Although Willa draws on memories of her brother for strength as she begins her adventures, she eventually finds that strength within herself as she discovers that women are strong, and more importantly, she is strong herself. The brief historical afterword is icing on the cake! I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in historical fiction!



2. When I heard about this book, I *had* to read it. I'm an amateur historian with a particular interest in the Canadian fur trade, 1774-1821, and there just aren't that many books written for young people that use this for a setting.

   Since I'm not a literary critic, I'll confine my comments to the historic accuracy & educational value of this book. I must note, however, that last year it won Alberta's R. Ross Annett Award for Children's Literature. I found numerous historical errors, but only two rose above mere nit-picking.

   First, and foremost, there were no white girls or women in the Canadian fur trade until 1806, eleven years after the setting of this book. This isn't really a problem, in my opinion; by making her protagonist an English girl, Demers can have both a female point of view and a completely fresh perspective. It gives her a reason to explain to the reader the many differences between Willa's old life in England and her new one at the HBC fur post. Demers gets extra marks for explaining, in her afterword, that there weren't really any white women in the fur trade at this time. She also clarifies a few other points where she let her fiction depart from fact, but this is the major one.

   My other major historical issue with this book is more subtle. Demers' Natives are overly romanticized. Willa's roommate and instant best friend, Amelia, is a Native girl who works at York Factory in order to learn more about Europeans. Amelia's brother is a skilled hunter who seems to be the only Native trading furs at York Factory. Later we discover that Amelia's family has no European trade goods, which left me wondering what, exactly, he received in return for his many excellent furs. (The author makes it clear that it wasn't rum.) Amelia's mother, Moon, is a skilled healer respected by all Natives. And Amelia's father, Bear, is so spiritual that he spends much of his time in holy places, and rarely sees his family. Clearly, Amelia and her family are exceptional, and we never learn much about what life is like for most Natives. We are also told, repeatedly, of how deadly life is at York Factory; we learn of four deaths there--two violent, one accidental, and one natural. All the Native deaths we learn about are due either to natural causes or European diseases, leading the reader to erroneously conclude that, until the Europeans came, life wasn't difficult for Natives.

   Demers does some things unusually well. Overall, I was favorably impressed by her portrait of life within the fur trade. She did a good job of showing the hard work done by the clerks, which rarely gets recognition from historians; the labour shortage, which was indeed so severe that I readily believed Willa being employed as an apprentice clerk when it was discovered she could read & write; the way that certain Natives were entrusted with the lives of fur traders on long journeys; the way Natives rescued Europeans who had gotten themselves into difficulty; the fur post's impressive library; and European men's reliance on Native women to supply them with moccasins. (Demers has an ingenious fictional device that builds on this fact).

   I would recommend this novel as a way for young people to get a general impression of what life was like for Europeans within the fur trade, but I'd also caution them not to take the details too literally, because of those nit-picky mistakes I mentioned earlier. I understand that Barbara Demers is working on a sequel. I'm looking forward to it. I hope that, in addition to once again seeking input from historians, she will also visit fur trade "living history" sites so that she can learn about making a fire with flint and steel, how muskets work, and clothing in the fur trade era.




3. This is a great book to read - adults and teens alike. I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about the early history of Canada, the Hudson's Bay Company, and the fur trade.
   
   The book is well-written and as a teacher, I highly recommend it.

No comments about Paddling Her Own Canoe: The Times and Texts of E. Pauline Johnson (Tekahionwake) (Studies in Gender and History).

No comments about Further Adventures of a Blue-eyed Ojibway: Funny, You Don't Look Like One Two (Adventures of a Blue-eyed Ojibway: Funny You Don't Look Like One 2).

No comments about Chee Chee: A Study of Aboriginal Suicide (McGill-Queen's Native and Northern).

No comments about Aboriginality: The Literary Origins of British Columbia.

5 comments about Ordeal by Fire: A memoir.

1. This is a true story of love, abuse, suffering, tragedy, forgiveness, redemption and closure. When I began reading this book, I was not able to put it down until I had finished it.

   This is a memoir. If you are living through, or have lived through, family violence, or simply know someone in that situation, then this book may be very helpful. It grew out of Rita's own need to come to terms with these horrific events in her life. She has since also become active in providing support and counseling to others who are suffering or have suffered domestic abuse.

   Be warned: the violence that the author and her family endured is graphically described. But it is not gratuitous violence. The violence was real, personal and even fatal for some members of Rita's family. That it occurred in a middle class family in a middle class neighborhood in a major North American city provides a hint of the pain that may be only one friend or family away from each of us.




2. Rita's book is about her journey; an idyillic child hood living in
   exotic locations, her horrific first few months of marriage, her attempt
   to escape, her immigration to Canada, her constant quest to placate her
   violent and unstable husband, her carrer success, her wonderful children
   and the most unimaginable tragedy anyone can ever experience.

   Her story has a universal appeal which crosses cultural and economic
   boundaries. My admiration for her has no bounds, because she has
   survived and is willing to share her story to celebrate her son and to
   reach out to women.




3. Hi! I am Rita Nayar.
   I am writing a message here to provide an email address to those of you who wish to get in touch with me!
   It is rita_nayar@hotmail.com
   Please do write as I would love to get your thoughts, comments, feedback or simply an acknowledgement of my book.



4. Wow! An amazing story of survival and sacrifice. This extraordinarily personal story is written in a simple yet eloquent style that provides a window directly into the heart of a woman dealing with unbearable emotional confines in her life.

   It is both an awful story of an oppressive and controlling man and awesome story of a woman's struggle for emotional and spiritual freedom for herself and her children. And it is the story of an Indian woman's struggle to reconcile her own identity within traditional Indian culture and with family expectations about her role in marriage and in life.

   Read this book if you want to be astounded...and then inspired!




5. Rita has shared a true life story. It is a brave revelation of the many twists of life. There are many lesson one picks up througout the book. To look at life with a broad, unselfish view while valuing every drop in the ocean of time is one. Every life event has a purpose, and one must have faith in the way life unfolds itself. Her presentation is truly pictureque --from Rajasthan in India to Africa and multi-cultural Canada.

No comments about An Apostle of the North: Memoirs of the Right Reverend William Carpenter Bompas (Western Canada Reprint Series).

No comments about Worlds of art, education mourn loss.(passed)(Bob Boyer, a world-renowned artist died of heart attack)(Obituary): An article from: Wind Speaker.

No comments about Aboriginal community says goodbye to respected Elder. (People).(Brief Article)(Obituary): An article from: Wind Speaker.