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Reading Toward Reconciliation: Building a Community Through Indigenous Stories
Updated: Aug 20
By Tracey Davis, Okanagan Climate Hub
In the book 52 Ways To Reconcile, by David A. Robertson, which I highly recommend everyone reads, #2 is Start an Indigenous Book Club. Never having occurred to me before, unlike many other suggestions in the book, I mulled it over and knew that I could start one, as I like reading and I enjoy discussing books. One of the hardest parts was choosing the titles, as there are so many that I wanted to include. One of the criteria I used was to ensure there were physical, digital and audio editions of each book at the library, in addition to people being able to purchase the book locally.
I approached my local library to partner with me- the library takes care of the details in their online and paper calendar with links to register, doing social media posts, putting up a poster in the library, and providing a Teams link each month. Due to personal constraints, I needed the book club to be online and accessible.
Storytelling plays a big role in Indigenous communities and is a form of healing. Truth telling in stories via books, fiction or non-fiction, is one way to access those stories, and as long as we read books about Indigenous people written by Indigenous people, there is a lot they can offer us in terms of accuracy, truth and autonomy in the characters’ journeys. Robertson thinks the foundation of reconciliation is stories.
Our goal is to reach people who are still on the fence about the truth but curious. If someone is genuinely open, even if only partially, the books can lead one to challenge and rewrite settler-colonial narratives, and over time hopefully lead to better relations. This space is open to all because no matter what we may have learned or researched on our own, group discussion can help the knowledge resonate with us and become more deeply embedded in our psyche through this shared experience of the story, characters and writing styles.
The discussions so far have been amazing, and there has been no lack of comments on how the books made us feel, if we could relate to a story, or not, due to personal privilege or vastly different upbringings. We are definitely moving beyond merely reading, as different insights are shared, we collectively are thinking and learning more, and coming away with a more robust appreciation of the book and what it is trying to tell us.
We’ve been able to welcome local author Brian Thomas Isaac when we discussed his debut book All The Quiet Places, and a dear friend, Jasmine Peone, attended and read her unpublished children’s book. Brian’s story was located locally, and was partially based on his own life, though not a biography by any means. In fact, Brian considers the land to be one of the main characters. Some of us were familiar with the areas where the story takes place and, in fact, one attendee regularly drove by one specific area that was crucial to the book’s story. It was interesting to hear that he had spent many, many years writing his first book, one of a trilogy, compared to being allowed a much shorter timeframe for future books. We also found out that he had submitted the third book to his publisher that week! Jasmine also answered questions afterwards, providing us with her motivation for writing the story, how it came to her and knowing it needed to be a book, rather than a song- Jasmine is a rapper as well! If the book is ever published, another artistic member of Jasmine’s family can do the illustrations.
A selection was chosen that included fiction and non-fiction, plus Jasmine’s children’s book. Every book has sparked a lot of conversation and we have never struggled to fill in the time. When discussing Starlight by Richard Wagamese, many quotes were shared as being impactful and staying with readers. Additionally, the wordsmithing made many of us feel like we were actually there on the land with Starlight at times. The land, again, was one of the main characters of this book, and the relationship that Starlight, then other characters with his help, had with the land.
Tilly and the Crazy Eights by Monique Gray Smith also resonated with many of us, being the same age as most of the characters. Every character was unique in their personality and how they handled their individual, yet shared, trauma. The storytelling integrated so much fun in addition to integrating the trauma, and the characters will linger with us for a long time.
The non-fiction book Becoming Kin by Patty Krawec was not suited to a one-hour session. It would have been better to discuss one chapter per month. The content was so deep, it had to be digested in small sections and allowed to sit a while in people’s thoughts. Nonetheless, this was one of the books that made the attendees really delve deep into generational trauma and several of us bought the book to re-read at a slower pace and make notes.
Warrior Girl Unearthed was a Young Adult book that revolved around the issue of stolen tribal relics and artifacts and also delved into grooming, injustice and other violence against women. This sparked a lot of conversation and some attendees had further information to share about different aspects of the story.
Beyond the book selections, I spend time thinking about our time together in conversation. The first few sessions started with some basic guidelines: being respectful of the topic at hand, Indigenous people and experiences, and of each other; denialism and minimizing harms against Indigenous people and culture would not be tolerated; to speak from the “I” perspective rather than making generalities.
I look up discussion questions to answer, which the library shares in advance of each meeting, and I sometimes provide articles or short videos about the author/book. Some authors have created discussion questions for their book, other times I used dust cover blurbs to help, and other discussion questions are found by searching online. If nothing came up, I went with a few generic questions like: How did you experience the book? Were you engaged immediately, or did it take you a while to "get into it"? How did you feel reading it—amused, sad, disturbed, confused, hopeful...? Has this novel changed you—broadened your perspective? Have you learned something new or been exposed to different ideas about people or a certain part of the world? What passages strike you as insightful, even profound?
We have the option of answering the questions or giving our own general impressions and feelings arising from the book. At times, participants recount reading something else by the same author or have links to share of interviews or more information related to the subject matter at hand. The participation deepens the conversations and opportunities to delve further on topics that arise.
I also adjust my land acknowledgment, depending on the syilx 13-moon calendar or topics in that month’s book. As an example, spaqt means “when everything is white.” During that particular moon cycle, there was no snow at all in Kelowna and much of the Okanagan, so I talked about climate change impacting the traditional syilx 13-moon calendar. When possible, I start or end book club with specific advocacy opportunities or local events happening so that there is a push to “do something” and not just read.
One of my hopes is for participants to start their own book club with a different circle of friends or colleagues. In person events would be even better! I would love it to become bigger than this one book club and for the passion and commitment to read Indigenous authors (then discuss them) to continue growing.
Book club meets 12-1pm the first Wednesday of the month. To attend, register here.
What we're reading:
January - All The Quiet Places by Brian Thomas Isaac
February - Starlight by Richard Wagamese
March - Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley
April - Our Voice of Fire by Brandi Morin
May - Tilly and the Crazy Eights by Monique Gray Smith (also Jasmine attended)
June - Becoming Kin by Patty Krawec
July – summer break
August – summer break
Sept - The Theory of Crows by David A. Robertson
Oct. - Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada by Michelle Good
Nov. - In Search of April Raintree by Beatrice Mosionier
Dec. - Prairie Edge by Conor Kerr
About the Author
Tracey Davis was one of the co-founders of the Okanagan Climate Hub and an active member of Okanagan Transit Alliance — she hasn't owned a vehicle for almost 15 years now! Advocating for municipal climate action and connecting people and groups throughout the Okanagan have been her main priorities, along with truth and reconciliation. Hobbies include visible mending, of course!
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