Photo of Louise Erdrich and Book Review of The Roundhouse

Book Signing with Louise Erdrich at IFOA Festival: Photo By Nathan Adler

 

 

 I finally met my favorite author, Louise Erdrich at the International Festival of Authors at the Fleck Dance Theatre Harbourfront Centre (October 28, 2012)

Book Review: The Roundhouse

By: Christine McFarlane

Written By: Louise Erdrich

Published By: Harper Collins Canada

317 Pages

Louise Erdrich, the author of fourteen novels, as well as volumes of poetry, short stories, children’s books, and a memoir of early motherhood has written another great book “The Roundhouse.”

The Roundhouse is a brilliant novel that illuminates the harsh realities of contemporary life in a community where Ojibway and white live uneasily together. Louise Erdrich writes about tragedy, the comic, a spirit world very much present in the lives of the characters, the Coutts family, and a tale of injustice that is, unfortunately, an authentic reflection of what still happens on reserves across North America.

The story begins in the summer of 1988, when Geraldine Coutts living on a reservation in North Dakota is attacked. After not coming home right away from a run to the tribal offices on the reserve, Joe and his father go out to find her. As they are driving around looking for her, they see her car tear past them in a cloud of dust. Thinking that there is nothing wrong, they laugh, follow her car back to their house and take their time to park the car and walk up the hill to greet her.

It is when they notice that Geraldine is still sitting in the driver’s seat, and not moving; that they realize something is wrong. Joe’s father opens the car door and sees the blood. Prying his wife’s hands from the steering wheel and lifting her from the car, they jump into the car once again and bring Geraldine to the hospital.

It is heartbreaking to read about the journey to the hospital and how 13-year-old Joe is transformed from a kid to a caregiver in a matter of seconds, as he holds his mom in the car and tries to soothe her. After a stay in the hospital, Geraldine is understandably traumatized and reluctant to relive or reveal the details of what happened to anyone.

The Coutts family dynamic shifts after the attack. Where Geraldine was once a very active tribal council member on the reserve, the attack leaves her lying in bed and slipping further into an abyss of solitude and depression, that Joe and his father cannot seem to help her out of. Joe’s father struggles with anger and grief and tries in vain to heal his wife, and increasingly alone, Joe finds himself thrust prematurely into an adult world in which he is ill prepared to cope with.

It is when Joe’s father, who is a tribal judge invites Joe one night into his study to read old cases with him, in order to try and find clues of who his wife’s attacker is, that more and more questions pile up. Joe, tiring of just reading and not doing anything,  goes to his friends, Cappy, Zack and Angus to see if they can get some answers on their own. This takes Joe and his friends to the Round House, a sacred space and place of worship for the Ojibway.

Louise Erdrich’s novel “The RoundHouse” is very deep and thought provoking. It’s a book that pulls you right into the Coutts family and how a young boy deals with a terrible crime that forever transforms his family. 

(Previously Published on FirstPerspective.ca)

App Review: Fairy Tales for Clever Kids

Fairy Tales for Clever Kids

App Review: Fairytales for Clever Kids

By: Christine McFarlane

Do you need a great way to engage your children, especially when it comes to reading? Technology these days is amazing, and there is one app that you can download from ITunes onto your Iphone, Ipod Touch and/or IPad to help your children with their reading that also involves interacting directly with the story before them.

Fairy Tales for Clever Kids is a great collection of world famous fairy tales that are accompanied by questions and the stories themselves involve dragging and dropping different objects within each scene in the story. While your child is reading, he/she is constantly interacting with the characters of the fairy tale. In order for your child to advance to the next page, they need to answer a small educational question, and in turn this helps stimulate your child's overall reading process.

Within Fairy Tales for Clever Kids you will find

·      Professional illustrating to make the reading enjoyable and unforgettable

·      Educational questions for children about the surrounding world

·      Answers to the question involving moving objects

·      Stories that will help your kid feel right in the middle of the magic world of fairy tales.

Fairy Tales for Clever Kids is available in ITunes under the books section. The first book-The Ugly Duckling is free and you are given a catalogue in your download to go through for other books, such as Cinderella. One glitch that I did find was that the catalogue doesn’t open up as quickly as the book, but then again it could have to do with the speed of my own Internet server.

This app was released on September 19, 2012. Version 1.0 and its size is 39.2 MB. It requires i0S 4.0 or later and is available in the following languages: English, French, German and Russian.  Stanislav Ustymenko at Teamich.com designs Fairy Tales for Clever Kids.

To check out more app developments by Stanislav Ustymenko please visit www.teamich.com

Film Review- Seeking Bimaadiziiwin

Film Review: Seeking Bimaadiziiwin ( Seeking the Good Life)

"Suicide is now among the leading causes of death in First Nations peoples in Canada between the ages of 10-24."

"Seeking Bimaadiziiwin" (Seeking the Good Life) is a 31 minute film meant to be used as a therapeutic tool to promote understanding and start a discussion with youth. It is also an award winning film that illustrates the diversity within modern Anishinaabe culture and demonstrates the resiliency of First Nations people despite the many issues that they face on a regular basis. Issues represented in the film include racism, historic trauma, depression and suicide.

Life on the reserve, family problems and the death of a close friend pushes the main character of this film-Kaitlyn into a deep depression. Following a suicide attempt and a lengthy hospital stay in a city away from her reserve, she goes into group therapy with three other Anishinaabe youth. Though Kaitlyn and the other youth have a long way to go before recovering, the steps they make are enough to make you tear up inside.

Depression, suicide and racism are all very delicate issues but "Seeking Bimaadiziiwin" does a great job of showing the diversity of First Nations youth, and how despite differences in their backgrounds and personal struggles, all the youth  in the film,  learn to find strength and support with each other. Especially poignant is when the youth all go to a drum circle, and you see the smiles on their faces as the drum beat fills the room they're in and they witness the singing and dancing.

This community film project was written by Michelle Derosier of Eagle Lake First Nation (Thunderstone Pictures) and was shot on Super 16mm film for maximum production value and filmed in 2007. 

"Seeking Bimaadiziiwin" was part of a multmedia initiative that includes a documentary and a workbook and was commissioned by the First Nations Initiative organization. The First Nations Initiative organization is dedicated to promoting, celebrating, and enriching First Nations culture and values.

For more information regarding this film, please visit the following link:

WWW.FIRSTNATIONINITIATIVE.CA

And please...don't be afraid to reach out and ask for help if you or a loved one needs it. 

An Exercise in Memory: I Remember

The exercise below comes from my all time favorite book "Old Friend from Far Away: The Practice of Writing Memoir," written by Natalie Goldberg.

Starting an exercise with "I Remember" for ten minutes hits smack dab into the heart of memoir. It produces a smattering of unconnected memories, and Goldberg relates that  "because memory doesn't work so directly, you need to wake up different angles."

"I Remember" is one of those exercises that wakes up memory in many different ways. Here is what I came up with, after ten minutes of writing.

I Remember:
By: Christine McFarlane

I remember long gray days where the rain wouldn't stop and I just wanted to hide.

I remember tears sliding down my face and trying to compose myself when I heard over the phone that you had passed on.

I remember days where we would sit in comfortable silence. No words were necessary, we were just happy to be with each other. I miss you.

I remember my first cell phone. A gray clunky Motorola that I couldn't just fit into my back pocket like the phone that I have now. Oh remembering that, brings a smile to my face and makes me laugh at how technology used to be and how it has advanced so much.

I remember the day you entered my life and you told me you would always cheer for me because you knew I had the potential to succeed.

I remember my first interview and how I couldn't sit still. My nerves were just shot with the question "will I get this job or not?"

I remember drinking the first extra large coffee from Tim Horton's when they first changed their  cup sizes and how I buzzed around afterwards.

I remember my first cigarette. I didn't even inhale, I thought it made me look cool but now I understand why its so hard to quit something that has become an addiction.

I remember the day I called my sister when I was ten years old and the phone had been disconnected. I felt shattered and all alone. No one understood why.

I remember....I remember....

the memories are plentiful.  some sad, some happy. some making me laugh and some making me cry.

I remember...I remember...

Memories can be hard, but I would rather have some than have none at all.

Official Poster for The 5th Annual Indigenous Writer's Gathering!

Stop the Injustice- Support BILL 110!

Photo By: Christine McFarlane

Toronto September 27, 2012- Today First Nations child advocates met at the steps of the legislature at Queen's Park to support Bill 110. 

Bill 110 is An Act to amend the Ombudsmen Act with respect to Children's Aid Societies, and was put forth by Liberal MPP Monique Taylor. The Bill 110 amends the Ombudsmen Act to allow the Ombudsmen to investigate any decision or recommendation made or any act done or omitted in the course of the administration of a Children's Aid Society.

The government of Ontario needs to allow our Ombudsmen to investigate our Children's Aid Societies so that they will have the oversight and accountability that is necessary. You may ask why Bill 110 is necessary, and here is why- Aboriginal children are dramatically over-represented in child welfare across Canada. The Auditor General, for instance, estimates that First Nations children are 6-8 times more likely to be placed in foster care than non-Aboriginal children.

It is also clear that First Nations registered children make up the largest proportion of Aboriginal children entering child welfare care and are also admitted in child welfare care at higher rates than Metis children. The number of registered First Nations children entering child welfare rose 71.5% nationally with the highest increases in Ontario between 1996 and 2001.

To support this Bill and help end the over representation of First Nations/Aboriginal children in Children's Aid Care, please contact your MPP. Call, email... do what you can. As a survivor of the CAS system, this injustice needs to stop and needs to stop now.

For more information about the rise of First Nations children in care, please visit the following websites

www.blakout.ca

www.fixcas.com

www.ontariocfa.com

www.canadacourtwatch.com

and the last two sites to take a look at are

www.afathersnightmare.com and www.casontario.blogspot.com

Thursday October 18, 2012- The 5th Annual Indigenous Writer's Gathering at First Nations House

The 5^th Annual Indigenous Writer’s Gathering at First Nations House (at the University of Toronto

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012

The 5^th Annual Indigenous Writers Gathering at First Nations House (at the University of Toronto)

563 Spadina Cres, Toronto ON 3^rd floor (Spadina north of College, south of Bloor)

All events are FREE and Open to the Public

Breakfast with the Writers: 10-11am Stop by for food, coffee and tea with all the writers from the Gathering

Session 1: Rogarou Stories: Traditional Metis Folk Stories with Lee Maracle, Cherie Dimaline and Marilyn Dumont

11:30am -12:30pm

Session 2: Fiction Workshop with Richard Wagamese (arrive early to secure a spot)

1:00 – 2:30pm

Session 3: Declaring and Taking Back the Power of Words with Daniel Justice

3 – 4 pm

Session 4: PANEL- Indigenous Literature- Where we have been and where we need to go

with Richard Wagamese, Lee Maracle, Marilyn Dumont and Daniel Justice

 4- 5:30 pm

Join us for the Launch of Muskrat Magazine, Issue #3

And the Indigenous Writers’ Gathering Gala Event

At the Capitol Theatre (www.capitolevents.ca)

HOSTED By the CBC’s SID BOBB and WAB KINEW

Starring:

Renowned orator and writer Lee Maracle

Acclaimed science fiction writer Daniel Justice

Award winning poet Marilyn Dumont

And Bestselling author Richard Wagamese

Special reading by former Lieutenant Governor and author James Bartleman

SPECIAL GUESTS:

Cree cellist sensation CRIS DERKSEN and

World Champion Hoop dancer and Canada’s Got Talent Finalist LISA ODJIG

Buy books at the Good Minds booth and get them signed by your favourite authors

First 150 guests will join us for a FREE cocktail hour with refreshments served

Doors Open and Cocktail Hour at 7:30PM

Just north of the Eglinton Subway Stop

3 blocks north of Eglinton on Yonge

Parking available