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Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada
Abold, provocative collection of essays exploring the historical and contemporary Indigenous experience in Canada.
With authority and insight, Truth Telling examines a wide range of Indigenous issues framed by Michelle Good’s personal experience and knowledge.
From racism, broken treaties, and cultural pillaging, to the value of Indigenous lives and the importance of Indigenous literature, this collection reveals facts about Indigenous life in Canada that are both devastating and enlightening. Truth Telling also demonstrates the myths underlying Canadian history and the human cost of colonialism, showing how it continues to underpin modern social institutions in Canada.
Passionate and uncompromising, Michelle Good affirms that meaningful and substantive reconciliation hinges on recognition of Indigenous self-determination, the return of lands, and a just redistribution of the wealth that has been taken from those lands without regard for Indigenous peoples.
Truth Telling is essential reading for those looking to acknowledge the past and understand the way forward.
With authority and insight, Truth Telling examines a wide range of Indigenous issues framed by Michelle Good’s personal experience and knowledge.
From racism, broken treaties, and cultural pillaging, to the value of Indigenous lives and the importance of Indigenous literature, this collection reveals facts about Indigenous life in Canada that are both devastating and enlightening. Truth Telling also demonstrates the myths underlying Canadian history and the human cost of colonialism, showing how it continues to underpin modern social institutions in Canada.
Passionate and uncompromising, Michelle Good affirms that meaningful and substantive reconciliation hinges on recognition of Indigenous self-determination, the return of lands, and a just redistribution of the wealth that has been taken from those lands without regard for Indigenous peoples.
Truth Telling is essential reading for those looking to acknowledge the past and understand the way forward.
215 pages, Hardcover
First published May 30, 2023
About the author
Michelle Good
3 books590 followersMichelle Good is a writer of Cree ancestry and a member of the Red Pheasant Cree Nation in Saskatchewan. She obtained her law degree after three decades of working with indigenous communities and organizations. She earned her MFA in Creative Writing at UBC, while still practising law, and won the HarperCollins/UBC Prize in 2018. Her poems, short stories and essays have been published in magazines and anthologies across Canada. Michelle Good lives and writes in south central British Columbia.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 238 reviews
July 6, 2023
4.5 STARS - 
This small book is a set of seven essays that packs a powerful punch. It is a book that I took my time with, reflect up and reassess what I was taught in school as a Canadian non-Indigenous person, what I saw in the media and read in books.
Truth Telling should be required reading in high school. Good pulls no punches in describing how Indigenous peoples have been and continue to be treated by the Canadian government and society. From the beginning of colonization and our government's planned pillaging of Indigenous land, intentional starvation and subsequent genocide of Indigenous communities and their culture; to residential schools that resulted in intergenerational trauma, to our government's encouragement of racism and misinformation about Indigenous Peoples.
This is a well-written, often emotional call to action and request for non-Indigenous Canadians to stop viewing history through the colonial lens. It is a time for action, not continued apologies. As Good says
Readers need to understand and acknowledge:
Truth Telling is a request for non-Indigenous Canadians to do better. To ask questions, to learn more and understand what restitution means.
Thought-provoking, emotional and provocative, Truth Telling is a book that will shock many non-Indigenous readers, but will hopefully inspire the much needed action so that we can honestly and truthfully reconcile with Canada's dark colonial past.
This small book is a set of seven essays that packs a powerful punch. It is a book that I took my time with, reflect up and reassess what I was taught in school as a Canadian non-Indigenous person, what I saw in the media and read in books.
Truth Telling should be required reading in high school. Good pulls no punches in describing how Indigenous peoples have been and continue to be treated by the Canadian government and society. From the beginning of colonization and our government's planned pillaging of Indigenous land, intentional starvation and subsequent genocide of Indigenous communities and their culture; to residential schools that resulted in intergenerational trauma, to our government's encouragement of racism and misinformation about Indigenous Peoples.
This is a well-written, often emotional call to action and request for non-Indigenous Canadians to stop viewing history through the colonial lens. It is a time for action, not continued apologies. As Good says
"Let the age of the apology end. We don't need any more apologies. We need an acknowledgement of the harm that's been done. We need a mea culpa, followed by full and proper restitution". - pg 30
Readers need to understand and acknowledge:
From those very early days, Canadians bought into the myth of Canada as the benevolent provider to Indigenous Peoples as opposed to the colonial oppressor determined to control the valuable resources on Indigenous lands. - p 52
Truth Telling is a request for non-Indigenous Canadians to do better. To ask questions, to learn more and understand what restitution means.
Truth Telling is important in that it restores the human dignity of the victims of violence and calls governments and citizens to account. Without truth, justice is not served, healing cannot happen, and there can be no genuine reconciliation between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal peoples in Canada - pg 54
Thought-provoking, emotional and provocative, Truth Telling is a book that will shock many non-Indigenous readers, but will hopefully inspire the much needed action so that we can honestly and truthfully reconcile with Canada's dark colonial past.
June 13, 2023
7 Stars. One for each of these highly important, insightful and incredibly thought provoking essays. Heartbreaking, full of joy, pride and deeply provocative. This book should be required reading in every history class across this country. Michelle Good does it again.
“No Canadian can feign ignorance of the Indigenous struggle when this book is in arm’s reach”.
“No Canadian can feign ignorance of the Indigenous struggle when this book is in arm’s reach”.
June 4, 2023
This should be required reading.
I read this alongside “Sisters of the Lost Nation” by Nick Medina and they worked really well in dialogue.
I read this alongside “Sisters of the Lost Nation” by Nick Medina and they worked really well in dialogue.
June 19, 2023
A MUST READ!
Part brutally honest truth telling of Indigenous treatment in Canada and part personal and family history, this collection of essays are deeply heartfelt calls to action for individuals and politicians to finally make true changes to work towards improving Indigenous relations, treatment and respect.
The author doesn't shy away from talking about intergenerational trauma, residential schools, the Sixties Scoop, land appropriation, racism and the violence and mistreatment of Indigenous women (through forced sterilization, rape and murder) - including her own history of rape, anxiety and cPTSD.
Eye opening and likely shocking for some readers, this is a book everyone should be reading and hopefully will go towards inspiring the type of change we so desperately need in Canada. Good on audio read by Megan Tooley.
**I especially enjoyed the author calling out Joseph Boyden and Carrie Bourassa (among others') attempts to appropriate Indigeneity in her chapter on Cultural pillagers and the damage their actions cause to actual Indigenous people!
Part brutally honest truth telling of Indigenous treatment in Canada and part personal and family history, this collection of essays are deeply heartfelt calls to action for individuals and politicians to finally make true changes to work towards improving Indigenous relations, treatment and respect.
The author doesn't shy away from talking about intergenerational trauma, residential schools, the Sixties Scoop, land appropriation, racism and the violence and mistreatment of Indigenous women (through forced sterilization, rape and murder) - including her own history of rape, anxiety and cPTSD.
Eye opening and likely shocking for some readers, this is a book everyone should be reading and hopefully will go towards inspiring the type of change we so desperately need in Canada. Good on audio read by Megan Tooley.
**I especially enjoyed the author calling out Joseph Boyden and Carrie Bourassa (among others') attempts to appropriate Indigeneity in her chapter on Cultural pillagers and the damage their actions cause to actual Indigenous people!
July 27, 2023
I was particularly interested in the essays where Michelle shared her own story a bit, as well as the one about the Indigenous literary canon and the one about Pretendians. SUPER INTERESTING STUFF.
May 31, 2023
If you've read Five Little Indians by Michelle Good, then you already know that she is a fine writer and a compelling storyteller. Her new book is also compelling and pretty powerful.
Introduction: "Truth is more than fact."
We need to "move beyond...positional and confrontational relationships and into functional ones dedicated to functional change." She talks about the effects of colonization being economic exploitation, and she returns to this theme throughout the book. She challenges non-indigenous people to not only talk but to act.
Residential Schools: Taking of land by colonizers happened without consideration of the interests of Indigenous people. Broken treaties and the slaughter of buffalo was intentional starvation of Indigenous people, and that violence has extended to very recent history. First steps for the government were to civilize the savages through education and to transition them from hunter-gatherers to farmers. However, inadequate tools were provided to encourage farming. From 1885, potlatches were illegal since they were anti-Christian, and by 1920 indigenous children were required to attend residential schools as a further attempt to stomp out indigenous culture. Good calls this colonial violence genocide, and she expressed that apologies for this are inadequate.
Lucy & the Football: This is a reference to Lucy in the Charlie Brown comics promising not to pull the football away from Charlie Brown, and as he runs up to kick it, of course she pulls it away. She makes the point that Canadian promises are pulled away each time, and the Indigenous Charlie Browns are left with empty promises. She says that the promises of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC) have yet to be realized, and that reconciliation is "setting things right" with societal change at the roots. There must be truth, justice and healing to achieve reconciliation. We don't just want Lucy to hold the football as promised, but to actually set aside her need to control the ball.
Racism: Exorbitant rates of TB in the residential schools, generations of conditioning by non-indigenous people to believe that Indigenous people are less than human and can be disposable. Indigenous women who have been abused, raped, sold, and gone missing is proof of the disposable Indian. "Colonial archtypes...have become...normalized and form a Canadian 'common sense'" which is wildly inaccurate.
$13.69: Michelle Good spent 5 years in residential schools, and her "sixties sweep" compensation amounted to $13.69 per day for that time she spent being physically, emotionally and sexually abused. She asks us if that is adequate compensation.
Rise and Resistence of Indigenous Literature: Good writes that most of Canada's history is written by colonizers and descendants of non-indigenous people. The 1960's saw the Hawthorne report which provided a "lightning rod for change" which has not been realized yet. It was also the beginning of Indigenous literature, which grew slowly until about the 1990's when it began to expand more quickly. "Indigenous writers play such an important role in fostering non-indigenous understanding."
Cultural Pillagers: The legal definition of "Indian" comes from the Indian Act that was discriminatory. Bill C-35 in 1985 tried to correct this but ended up excluding others rather than addressing the problem completely. The U.S. uses a blood quantum system for measuring whether someone is an Indian, but this will never be used in Canada. Inevitably some non-indigenous people will try to pass themselves off as indigenous ("pretendians"), but Good describes these people as an invasive species that have a destructive influence. "Pretendians only pop up where lucrative opportunities await them."
Land Back: Good writes that "the government's intention is to terminate us Indians". She reports that the Supreme Court of Canada recognizes the "collective nature of land titles", but then they uphold fishing rights and mining rights of non-indigenous people. She said that Indigenous people agreed to share the land, not disinherit themselves. She concludes that "We must have the land back in order to return to a self-determining state." She makes the point that 89% of Canada is public land, and that Canada should begin returning it.
Introduction: "Truth is more than fact."
We need to "move beyond...positional and confrontational relationships and into functional ones dedicated to functional change." She talks about the effects of colonization being economic exploitation, and she returns to this theme throughout the book. She challenges non-indigenous people to not only talk but to act.
Residential Schools: Taking of land by colonizers happened without consideration of the interests of Indigenous people. Broken treaties and the slaughter of buffalo was intentional starvation of Indigenous people, and that violence has extended to very recent history. First steps for the government were to civilize the savages through education and to transition them from hunter-gatherers to farmers. However, inadequate tools were provided to encourage farming. From 1885, potlatches were illegal since they were anti-Christian, and by 1920 indigenous children were required to attend residential schools as a further attempt to stomp out indigenous culture. Good calls this colonial violence genocide, and she expressed that apologies for this are inadequate.
Lucy & the Football: This is a reference to Lucy in the Charlie Brown comics promising not to pull the football away from Charlie Brown, and as he runs up to kick it, of course she pulls it away. She makes the point that Canadian promises are pulled away each time, and the Indigenous Charlie Browns are left with empty promises. She says that the promises of the Truth and Reconciliation Committee (TRC) have yet to be realized, and that reconciliation is "setting things right" with societal change at the roots. There must be truth, justice and healing to achieve reconciliation. We don't just want Lucy to hold the football as promised, but to actually set aside her need to control the ball.
Racism: Exorbitant rates of TB in the residential schools, generations of conditioning by non-indigenous people to believe that Indigenous people are less than human and can be disposable. Indigenous women who have been abused, raped, sold, and gone missing is proof of the disposable Indian. "Colonial archtypes...have become...normalized and form a Canadian 'common sense'" which is wildly inaccurate.
$13.69: Michelle Good spent 5 years in residential schools, and her "sixties sweep" compensation amounted to $13.69 per day for that time she spent being physically, emotionally and sexually abused. She asks us if that is adequate compensation.
Rise and Resistence of Indigenous Literature: Good writes that most of Canada's history is written by colonizers and descendants of non-indigenous people. The 1960's saw the Hawthorne report which provided a "lightning rod for change" which has not been realized yet. It was also the beginning of Indigenous literature, which grew slowly until about the 1990's when it began to expand more quickly. "Indigenous writers play such an important role in fostering non-indigenous understanding."
Cultural Pillagers: The legal definition of "Indian" comes from the Indian Act that was discriminatory. Bill C-35 in 1985 tried to correct this but ended up excluding others rather than addressing the problem completely. The U.S. uses a blood quantum system for measuring whether someone is an Indian, but this will never be used in Canada. Inevitably some non-indigenous people will try to pass themselves off as indigenous ("pretendians"), but Good describes these people as an invasive species that have a destructive influence. "Pretendians only pop up where lucrative opportunities await them."
Land Back: Good writes that "the government's intention is to terminate us Indians". She reports that the Supreme Court of Canada recognizes the "collective nature of land titles", but then they uphold fishing rights and mining rights of non-indigenous people. She said that Indigenous people agreed to share the land, not disinherit themselves. She concludes that "We must have the land back in order to return to a self-determining state." She makes the point that 89% of Canada is public land, and that Canada should begin returning it.
July 20, 2024
I learned so much about indigenous people (in Canada and in general). However, the lack of recognition, sovereignty, and legitimacy of all indigenous people isn’t surprising - which is a fucking sad reality. The consistent white-washed and farcical “truths” continue to out weigh the truth of colonialism and its devastating impact on Canada’s indigenous community.
July 30, 2023
7 essays. Author / lawyer Michelle Good presents the evidence and makes convincing arguments of “the truth behind the myth of Canadian history”. The history of indigenous literature in Canada, Pretendians, Wet’suwet’en protecting their legally recognized and unceded land, the Land Back movement, Residential schools, reconciliation and more. Not what I learned in school and absorbed from growing up in this country but once you know, you can’t not know.
July 16, 2023
Really good! Very thought provoking essays that highlight how hopelessly inadequate our education system is when it comes to teaching indigenous issues and centring indigenous voices and perspectives. I learned more in a four hour audio book than I did in my entire secondary education. Highly recommended.
July 25, 2023
Parroting Andrew, this needs to be read by all.
January 7, 2024
Excellent book. A must-read for all Canadians. Questions about what truth and reconciliation looks like in action? Read this book. This is how we change.
July 1, 2023
An absolute must read. Loved the collection of essay style, reading about specific topics injected with history (told correctly), personal anecdotes, and work to be done in the present day.
August 7, 2024
This should be in the curriculum for Canadian history classes. Michelle Good systematically dissects the political follies that Canada has ingrained into the way in which land is governed against the indigenous community. Not only does she highlight the pitfalls on where racisms and oppression has been taught to every generation, she also provides solutions and suggestions on how these reparations can be made. A very educational read for someone who grew up and attended school in Canada but 'somehow' was never taught the country's indigenous history.
September 30, 2023
This is extraordinary and taught me so much. I would universally recommend it, especially to Canadians.
July 29, 2023
This book showcases 7 essays about Indigenous life and issues in Canada. Some of the information I am very familiar with but some was new and shocking to me.
March 28, 2024
Such clear writing, I almost missed my stop multiple times commuting because I was so drawn in
June 27, 2024
Michelle Good's book, Truth Telling: Seven conversations about Indigenous life in Canada, offered valuable insights and knowledge about past and present Indigenous history and culture. Despite the sadness that Chapter $13.69 brought me, it enhanced my understanding and encouraged me to further educate myself.
July 25, 2023
A collection of essays. A must read for anyone that wants to learn more about the Indigenous struggle in Canada. I have so much to learn.
November 29, 2023
Well written, interesting and informative.
May 18, 2023
This is not a review; it should be required reading.
Through seven essays, Good explores the historical and contemporary experience of Indigenous life in Canada. I implore you to read the collection.
Covering a wide range of topics – broken treaties, the Peasant Farming Policy, the Indian Act / White Paper / Red Paper, to the general mischaracterization and mistreatment of Indigenous women, the horrific reality of residential schools, racism, cultural appropriation / “pretendians”, to the importance of Indigenous literature – collectively the essays are a book of knowledge. They deepened my understanding of past and present. I implore you to read the collection.
Informed by personal experience and knowledge, Good makes obvious the ongoing human suffering rooted colonialism, and how its perversion continues to underpin to the institutions in power. As a third generation Canadian, I am appalled that I am learning many things for the first time (and despite 22 years of formal Canadian education under my belt). The information in this collection must be known, acknowledged, and widely disseminated.
All of it is deeply shameful and requires a critical examination of the Canadian narrative.
Without truth and without a recharacterization of Canadian history / future (including self-determination, return of land, and a just redistribution of wealth taken from that land), there can be no reconciliation. It requires active participation and systematic change.
Read the essays. And then read them again. I know that I will.
Through seven essays, Good explores the historical and contemporary experience of Indigenous life in Canada. I implore you to read the collection.
Covering a wide range of topics – broken treaties, the Peasant Farming Policy, the Indian Act / White Paper / Red Paper, to the general mischaracterization and mistreatment of Indigenous women, the horrific reality of residential schools, racism, cultural appropriation / “pretendians”, to the importance of Indigenous literature – collectively the essays are a book of knowledge. They deepened my understanding of past and present. I implore you to read the collection.
Informed by personal experience and knowledge, Good makes obvious the ongoing human suffering rooted colonialism, and how its perversion continues to underpin to the institutions in power. As a third generation Canadian, I am appalled that I am learning many things for the first time (and despite 22 years of formal Canadian education under my belt). The information in this collection must be known, acknowledged, and widely disseminated.
All of it is deeply shameful and requires a critical examination of the Canadian narrative.
Without truth and without a recharacterization of Canadian history / future (including self-determination, return of land, and a just redistribution of wealth taken from that land), there can be no reconciliation. It requires active participation and systematic change.
Read the essays. And then read them again. I know that I will.
July 8, 2024
4 stars. It would be 5 stars, but the author ignorantly asserts imperialist propaganda about Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. Solid understanding of settler colonialism in a N. American context. Great work on that. Then she parrots the "correct" position on China every progressive is supposed to without any deeper understanding of the history or geopolitics. Quintessential liberalism. I'm sorry, but spreading propaganda manufactures consent for the coming war with China. That virtue signaling bs has real world consequences.
July 13, 2024
This should be essential reading for all Canadians, especially anyone working in (or learning about) Canadian social justice. Highly recommend for those wanting to learn more about Truth & Reconciliation, MMIWG+, “Pretendians,” or decolonization.
December 1, 2023
This book is a great primer on some key themes about Indigenous self-determination and representation as well as truth and reconciliation. Lots of approachable definitions and clear explanations.
“To participate meaningfully in reconciliation, non-Indigenous Canadians must not only be supportive but must also insist that the resources (natural, political, and financial) required for substantive change are generously and enthusiastically provided as needed and articulated by Indigenous Peoples. Non-Indigenous Canadians must use their privilege to leverage real change. It is simply not enough to wear an orange shirt or issue empty land acknowledgements. The non-Indigenous population of this country must not only talk, they must also act.”
“…a return to self-determination and self-reliance are, at the very least, the following:
- a structural reorganization that will fully recognize Indigenous jurisdiction
- monetary compensation reflecting and reconciling historical economic inequity
- a return of lands with full recognition of Indigenous Title with an end to the notion of underlying Crown title
- a form of relationship similar to equalization that would see revenue taken from our territories, returned to our territories”
“Indigenous epistemology has consistently defined the relationship between the people and the land as one of stewardship. The land was given to the people to sustain us, and in return, our obligation is to live in a manner that nurtures, sustains, and protects the earth. The truth of the matter is that Indigenous Peoples did not for a minute believe they were giving away their rights to use the land and it’s resources in return for tiny reserves and what would quickly become broken promises. The spirit of the treaties is that they were peace and friendship treaties. Indigenous Peoples were agreeing to share the land with settlers, not to disinherit themselves.”
“To participate meaningfully in reconciliation, non-Indigenous Canadians must not only be supportive but must also insist that the resources (natural, political, and financial) required for substantive change are generously and enthusiastically provided as needed and articulated by Indigenous Peoples. Non-Indigenous Canadians must use their privilege to leverage real change. It is simply not enough to wear an orange shirt or issue empty land acknowledgements. The non-Indigenous population of this country must not only talk, they must also act.”
“…a return to self-determination and self-reliance are, at the very least, the following:
- a structural reorganization that will fully recognize Indigenous jurisdiction
- monetary compensation reflecting and reconciling historical economic inequity
- a return of lands with full recognition of Indigenous Title with an end to the notion of underlying Crown title
- a form of relationship similar to equalization that would see revenue taken from our territories, returned to our territories”
“Indigenous epistemology has consistently defined the relationship between the people and the land as one of stewardship. The land was given to the people to sustain us, and in return, our obligation is to live in a manner that nurtures, sustains, and protects the earth. The truth of the matter is that Indigenous Peoples did not for a minute believe they were giving away their rights to use the land and it’s resources in return for tiny reserves and what would quickly become broken promises. The spirit of the treaties is that they were peace and friendship treaties. Indigenous Peoples were agreeing to share the land with settlers, not to disinherit themselves.”
May 26, 2023
Make this book required reading in schools. I highly recommend buying a copy when this hits bookstores tomorrow. Miigwech for these stories and your bravery, Michelle.
Truth Telling by Michelle Good is a collection of seven essays through which readers learn the historical and contemporary experience of Indigenous life in Canada. As an Amerindian, I cannot stress enough how important reading this collection is. It deepened my understanding of the past and present.
I felt like I could hear Goods voice as I read. This book contains no useless information, and I found everything relevant and aided in building her perspective. A handbook on the horrors committed in the name of "advancement" by the Canadian government, Good explains what the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report is and where some of its recommendations stem from. Goods personal experiences shed light on some of the recommendations Indigenous populations have made of the Canadian government.
Informed by personal experience and knowledge, Good shows how wickedness continues to support the institutions in power and the ongoing human suffering rooted in colonialism. Something I have experienced one too many times. One time is too many, and a critical examination of the Canadian narrative is required.
If you want to learn more about the strained Indigenous-government relations in Canada, I highly recommend this read. You will also gain insight into its history and how colonialism destroys entire generations and steals their futures.
Thank you to Netgalley, HarperCollins Canada, and HarperCollins Publishers for an eARC in exchange for my honest review!
Truth Telling by Michelle Good is a collection of seven essays through which readers learn the historical and contemporary experience of Indigenous life in Canada. As an Amerindian, I cannot stress enough how important reading this collection is. It deepened my understanding of the past and present.
I felt like I could hear Goods voice as I read. This book contains no useless information, and I found everything relevant and aided in building her perspective. A handbook on the horrors committed in the name of "advancement" by the Canadian government, Good explains what the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report is and where some of its recommendations stem from. Goods personal experiences shed light on some of the recommendations Indigenous populations have made of the Canadian government.
Informed by personal experience and knowledge, Good shows how wickedness continues to support the institutions in power and the ongoing human suffering rooted in colonialism. Something I have experienced one too many times. One time is too many, and a critical examination of the Canadian narrative is required.
If you want to learn more about the strained Indigenous-government relations in Canada, I highly recommend this read. You will also gain insight into its history and how colonialism destroys entire generations and steals their futures.
Thank you to Netgalley, HarperCollins Canada, and HarperCollins Publishers for an eARC in exchange for my honest review!
May 26, 2023
This was brilliant. Smart, thoughtful, and so compellingly written, Michelle Good knows her way around words, and each of these seven essays served as a conversation inviting readers to learn and unlearn, and challenge themselves, and their deeply held impressions and biases.
The book itself is short, just over 200 pages, but it packs quite a punch. I learnt a lot through my reading, but more than just being informative and educational, it was also really gripping and accessible, easy to make your way through. Each of the seven essays serves as a conversation, about the historical and contemporary realities and experiences faced by Indigenous people (specifically in Canada). They’re meticulously researched, and accompanied by images and snippets of historic artifacts, and contemporary visuals, to help highlight the story.
This has cemented itself into a new classic, and a must-read, not just for what Canadians will learn and confront about our history, nor only for the ways that it will invite us to think about reconciliation, but also because it was just so well written!
I’m an Indigo employee, and I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher, in exchange for my honest feedback.
The book itself is short, just over 200 pages, but it packs quite a punch. I learnt a lot through my reading, but more than just being informative and educational, it was also really gripping and accessible, easy to make your way through. Each of the seven essays serves as a conversation, about the historical and contemporary realities and experiences faced by Indigenous people (specifically in Canada). They’re meticulously researched, and accompanied by images and snippets of historic artifacts, and contemporary visuals, to help highlight the story.
This has cemented itself into a new classic, and a must-read, not just for what Canadians will learn and confront about our history, nor only for the ways that it will invite us to think about reconciliation, but also because it was just so well written!
I’m an Indigo employee, and I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher, in exchange for my honest feedback.
September 2, 2023
4.5 stars rounded up. This collection of essays by Michelle Good is an incredibly important read, whether you're a newcomer to the subject of Indigenous life in this country or someone more intermediate, like me. There were so many things that still managed to shock and horrify me in these pages. I deeply appreciated that Good calls out individual prime minsters, among others, in her quest to make readers understand just how much further there is to go before anything resembling equity (and, hell, humane treatment) is achieved.
My only (very minor) gripe that held me back from a full 5 stars was that there is some repetition when reading one essay after another, and it felt like a couple of points were revisited a bit more often than necessary. But beyond that, it's a book I think should be assigned in schools.
I simultaneously read the Kindle version and listened to the audiobook, which was well narrated, and I can recommend both. Good has more than proven herself as an evocative writer in the past (if you haven't read FIVE LITTLE INDIANS, do it), and now she's just added to her impressive catalogue. Everyone with an interest in human rights and Canadian history should pick this up.
My only (very minor) gripe that held me back from a full 5 stars was that there is some repetition when reading one essay after another, and it felt like a couple of points were revisited a bit more often than necessary. But beyond that, it's a book I think should be assigned in schools.
I simultaneously read the Kindle version and listened to the audiobook, which was well narrated, and I can recommend both. Good has more than proven herself as an evocative writer in the past (if you haven't read FIVE LITTLE INDIANS, do it), and now she's just added to her impressive catalogue. Everyone with an interest in human rights and Canadian history should pick this up.
April 17, 2024
I first heard about this book almost a year ago on my drive home from work, listening to Shelagh Roger's interview Michelle Good on her program, The Next Chapter, on CBC radio. I loved Good's novel, "Five Little Indians", and I knew that this would be a powerful and thought-provoking collection of essays.
I found the audiobook available (without a waitlist!) at my local library and I was not disappointed. The narrator was excellent. The style was accessible and easy to follow, and the ideas were bold, clear, and succinct. The more I learn about Indigenous history and experiences in this country, the more I am disappointed in the lack of (truthful!) education we receive. I learned so much from this book and highly recommend it to every settler living in Canada. I'll add my voice to the chorus in saying it should be required reading for all of us.
I found the audiobook available (without a waitlist!) at my local library and I was not disappointed. The narrator was excellent. The style was accessible and easy to follow, and the ideas were bold, clear, and succinct. The more I learn about Indigenous history and experiences in this country, the more I am disappointed in the lack of (truthful!) education we receive. I learned so much from this book and highly recommend it to every settler living in Canada. I'll add my voice to the chorus in saying it should be required reading for all of us.
December 10, 2023
Seven urgent conversations around Canada and Indigeneity. Really worth listening to.
My three biggest takeaways were:
• How big of a section of Canada that Roberts Land made up, which was stolen Indigenous land which the King of England gave the colonial Canadians.
• How recent the trauma of indigenous schools was and the way in which this violence was passed down the female line in the case of the author
• The fact that the Indigenous groups in Canada where very used to making and adhering treaties around neighbouring territories and thus when the colonial settlers wanted land treaties, they had experiences with such treaties but no prior reason to suspect that they would not on the whole upheld.
My three biggest takeaways were:
• How big of a section of Canada that Roberts Land made up, which was stolen Indigenous land which the King of England gave the colonial Canadians.
• How recent the trauma of indigenous schools was and the way in which this violence was passed down the female line in the case of the author
• The fact that the Indigenous groups in Canada where very used to making and adhering treaties around neighbouring territories and thus when the colonial settlers wanted land treaties, they had experiences with such treaties but no prior reason to suspect that they would not on the whole upheld.
August 18, 2024
Truth Telling: Seven Conversations about Indigenous Life in Canada by Michelle Good is a small book in both page size and length with just over 200 pages. And yet it is jam-packed full of information based on a lot of academic research, her knowledge of other real indigenous lives (observed and in oral and written stories); as well as her own experiences as a member of the Cree Nation in Western Canada.
It starts with an introduction and includes an additional 7 distinct sections - all forming part of the big picture about the treatment and colonization of Indigenous people. It is primarily about Canada / North America but with much of the same her/history that has happened globally whenever powerful nations colonize other nations or regions solely for their own benefit, to reap the assets/riches of a country such as land and other resources e.g. oil, gas, diamonds, minerals, water, plants, animals etcetera without regard for the inhabitants/people already living there.
The Introduction is entitled:
Sit With Me, by This Dialogue Fire
The seven sections are entitled:
Residential Schools
Lucy and the Football
Racism, Carefully Sown
$13.69
The Rise and Resistance of Indigenous Literature
Cultural Pillagers
Land Back
All together in a very short time-frame, you are able to read a comprehensive summary of the predominantly negative impact that settlers had on the indigenous people already living there.
I'd recommend it to readers who know either “a little” or “a lot” about the history and the treatment of Indigenous people wherever they live; as colonialism and takeovers of others assets’ without compensation seems to have a common pattern globally.
The author is Canadian and has lived through all that she writes about. She is a trained and educated lawyer and writer, as well as, a long-time community activist and organizer. Her first book, a fiction, called Five Little Indians was written when she was 60+, and won national awards and acclaim.
Her writing in this non-fiction is terrific and the research is extensive - all very easy to read. It is the most packed-full-of-information non-fiction that I've read in a long while. It is also one of the easiest to read. It is amazing how much info can be communicated and absorbed without confusing or bogging down the reader when an author like Good organizes and writes so well.
Another point worth noting is that this book is written in a very non-emotional manner. I think will help many more readers learn about Indigenous Colonialism and finish reading the entire book. I am aware that many readers never attempt to read Indigenous books at all because they think the painful history of their mistreatment they’ve heard about will be too difficult to read. Other readers try to read Indigenous books but often abandon them because the descriptive story telling causes a visceral response they don’t want to feel (understandably so). Unfortunately it means that many readers are unable to obtain all the necessary information. Good’s direct and non-emotional style helps readers complete the entire book despite the tough subject matter.
This almost academic writing style is a good way to cover the content and provide readers an opportunity to explore more of the topic of Indigenous colonialism. It reads like someone defending a position in a thesis, debate or court case - without feelings. It is primarily a book with facts and explanation. It is definitely not boring and enables readers to read the full story.
As you can tell, I am really positive about this book and want everyone to read it. 5 stars
It starts with an introduction and includes an additional 7 distinct sections - all forming part of the big picture about the treatment and colonization of Indigenous people. It is primarily about Canada / North America but with much of the same her/history that has happened globally whenever powerful nations colonize other nations or regions solely for their own benefit, to reap the assets/riches of a country such as land and other resources e.g. oil, gas, diamonds, minerals, water, plants, animals etcetera without regard for the inhabitants/people already living there.
The Introduction is entitled:
Sit With Me, by This Dialogue Fire
The seven sections are entitled:
Residential Schools
Lucy and the Football
Racism, Carefully Sown
$13.69
The Rise and Resistance of Indigenous Literature
Cultural Pillagers
Land Back
All together in a very short time-frame, you are able to read a comprehensive summary of the predominantly negative impact that settlers had on the indigenous people already living there.
I'd recommend it to readers who know either “a little” or “a lot” about the history and the treatment of Indigenous people wherever they live; as colonialism and takeovers of others assets’ without compensation seems to have a common pattern globally.
The author is Canadian and has lived through all that she writes about. She is a trained and educated lawyer and writer, as well as, a long-time community activist and organizer. Her first book, a fiction, called Five Little Indians was written when she was 60+, and won national awards and acclaim.
Her writing in this non-fiction is terrific and the research is extensive - all very easy to read. It is the most packed-full-of-information non-fiction that I've read in a long while. It is also one of the easiest to read. It is amazing how much info can be communicated and absorbed without confusing or bogging down the reader when an author like Good organizes and writes so well.
Another point worth noting is that this book is written in a very non-emotional manner. I think will help many more readers learn about Indigenous Colonialism and finish reading the entire book. I am aware that many readers never attempt to read Indigenous books at all because they think the painful history of their mistreatment they’ve heard about will be too difficult to read. Other readers try to read Indigenous books but often abandon them because the descriptive story telling causes a visceral response they don’t want to feel (understandably so). Unfortunately it means that many readers are unable to obtain all the necessary information. Good’s direct and non-emotional style helps readers complete the entire book despite the tough subject matter.
This almost academic writing style is a good way to cover the content and provide readers an opportunity to explore more of the topic of Indigenous colonialism. It reads like someone defending a position in a thesis, debate or court case - without feelings. It is primarily a book with facts and explanation. It is definitely not boring and enables readers to read the full story.
As you can tell, I am really positive about this book and want everyone to read it. 5 stars
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