I wanted to read a few books about Indigenous people. I got interested in this whole topic while attending a few conferences and workshops about the Indigenous people here in my area. There is so much that I didn’t know. So, I am reading widely about this topic this year for the Canadian Book Review Challenge.
This a book for kids about the Indigenous people and the cultural genocide that they experienced. It is a book that will educate kids about this all important topic so that they can be more sensitive to the Indigenous people and their issues.
Canada is one of the most successfully diverse nations in the world. The English and French languages share official status. Immigrant cultures enrich its cities.
The culture of its Native people–First Nations, Inuit, and Metis–is vibrant and alive. But those Native people suffered for more than a century. Their system of school education was designed to remove Native children from their homes, destroy their culture, and forbid their languages.
It forced them to melt into the fabric of Canadian life. Indian identity and birthright came under strong attack. Generations of aboriginal children were abused and traumatized. All this thanks to the official effort to absorb them into a nation that did not want Indians.
Today, Native Canadians have again found their voice. They are speaking out about the experience of the residential school system. They are questioning the official policy that robbed so many of them of their heritage.
Native children lost their Native identity. Their Native languages were silenced. They were forcibly removed from their homes and abused. This has come to be seen as a shameful history of cultural genocide.
This is a book that will make young kids pause and reflect. It will also help kids understand the plight of the Indigenous people.
Rating: 5 stars
Reviewed by: Irene S. Roth
Irene Roth's Canadian Book Review Blog 