A review by katietotallybooked
Five Little Indians by Michelle Good

emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I am happy that I can finally say I've read this book. I also understand why it won the Canada Reads competition in 2022. I do believe it is a must read for Canadian readers.

Liked Most:
  • How each of the character's storylines intertwined, even when it wasn't obvious that would happen from the beginning. 
  • How different each character's story was. Their experiences were varied and how they handled their traumas varied. I think this helps make the book more representative (while still fictionalized) of the many shared histories of our Indigenous community. 

Liked Least:
  • The timeline of the story felt unclear while I was reading, and I found it hard to follow at times because there was so many characters to keep track off.  

Themes/Topics:
  • Residential Schools
  • Indigenous History
  • Child Abuse (Physical, Sexual, Emotional)
  • Grief
  • Loss of Innocence
  • Suicide

Would Recommend To:
  • All Canadian adult fiction readers
  • Those interested in Indigenous lives, experiences, and histories

The audio is well done too!

Quotes:
“…she told me she was sorry about my mom. I didn't know, but she didn't need to say more. I had so many dreams at the Indian School about going home to her. Dreams about sleeping safe in my own room, playing on the beach at ease and without fear, and cooking with her. What I so desperately needed was to be standing on that stool by the stove, carefully stirring under her watchful eye like when I was little. To be little again, living without fear and brutality-no one gets that back. All that's left is a craving, insatiable empty place.”

“Kenny walked along the meandering creek, enjoying the sound of it when it narrowed and quickened, the peace of it when it widened and slowed, deeper and quieter, the rusty-coloured stones casting a sparkling copper tone on the crystalline water. There was a bitter sweetness in seeing his old friend. He was happy to share their tricky survival memories; it was the other ones, the ones that slipped in through the silences, that he was relieved to lose in his usual solitude.” 


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