I think this book should be required reading for every person of settler ancestry in Canada. It explains how the policies of the colonialists did such substantial harm to the Indigenous peoples. And it explains how those policies continued to be promulgated into quite recent times. It will probably make you feel very uncomfortable. It certainly made me feel that way. But I encourage you to keep reading because Good has a message for how we can achieve reconciliation with our Indigenous neighbours.

Michelle Good probably now regrets giving Buffy Sainte-Marie as an example of people affected by the Sixties' Scoop. CBC has certainly cast doubt on whether she is even of Indigenous ancestry. In another chapter Good talks about "Pretendians" (non-Indigenous people who pretend to be Indigenous) and she is pretty scathing for those people who pretend to be Indigenous for material gain. She likens them to invasive plants that do harm to their surroundings. She has another category of non-Indigenous people "who have long history of association with Indigenous Peoples and communities in a good way and are welcomed and adopted into the community." These people are like naturalized plants which spread into non-native environments but don't harm the existing native plants. Buffy Sainte-Marie is probably a naturalized plant. ( )

Searing. Intelligent. Thought-provoking.

Michelle Good's concise book of personal essays rewrites the history of Indigenous-Settler relations from an Indigenous perspective and suggests possible ways toward reconciliation. It speaks powerfully to the culpability of non-Indigenous Canadians and our individual responsibilities.

I made a Goodreads pledge to read 194 books this year LOL and I'm reviewing only the very best! Follow me to see my other reviews. ( )