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Five Little Indians
Five Little Indians: A Novel | Michelle Good
Taken from their families when they are very small and sent to a remote, church-run residential school, Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie and Maisie are barely out of childhood when they are finally released after years of detention. Alone and without any skills, support or families, the teens find their way to the seedy and foreign world of Downtown Eastside Vancouver, where they cling together, striving to find a place of safety and belonging in a world that doesnt want them. The paths of the five friends cross and crisscross over the decades as they struggle to overcome, or at least forget, the trauma they endured during their years at the Mission. Fuelled by rage and furious with God, Clara finds her way into the dangerous, highly charged world of the American Indian Movement. Maisie internalizes her pain and continually places herself in dangerous situations. Famous for his daring escapes from the school, Kenny cant stop running and moves restlessly from job to jobthrough fishing grounds, orchards and logging campstrying to outrun his memories and his addiction. Lucy finds peace in motherhood and nurtures a secret compulsive disorder as she waits for Kenny to return to the life they once hoped to share together. After almost beating one of his tormentors to death, Howie serves time in prison, then tries once again to re-enter society and begin life anew. With compassion and insight, Five Little Indians chronicles the desperate quest of these residential school survivors to come to terms with their past and, ultimately, find a way forward.
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Blueberry
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CuriousG I loved this book even though it ripped my heart out. One of my god-daughters actually got to read it as part of her grade 11 English course which I think is wonderful, but the teacher had very difficult daily discussions/topics to manage. I'm glad that didn't scare them away from this though. 2mo
Eggs 💔😔 2mo
Blueberry Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese is also a good but heartbreaking story about residential schools. 2mo
56 likes3 comments
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xicanti
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I stopped in at Toys R Us today and was delighted to find they‘ve expanded their books selection to include lots of material for older teenagers and adults! Some of the genre divisions don‘t make sense (for example, there‘s a weird amount of non-romance on the romance shelf), but whoever their purchaser is brought a lot of diverse books into the fold alongside the uber-popular stuff like Brandon Sanderson and Sarah J. Maas.

Aimeesue That‘s quite a mix! 8mo
xicanti @Aimeesue I hope it does well! They‘ve got a vinyl section now, too. 8mo
Aimeesue @xicanti Oh wow! Glad they‘re expanding their wares. I would‘ve passed up the toys for this section when I was a kid 😃 8mo
32 likes3 comments
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MysticFaerie
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Pickpick

5🌟/5🌟

7 likes1 stack add
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ChelseaM6010
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#BookBinge
Day 7. Debut by Indigenous author
#DebutByIndigenousAuthor

Eggs Perfect 🤩 1y
8 likes1 comment
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Blueberry
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Eggs Beautiful cover and image 🖤❄️🩷 1y
49 likes1 stack add1 comment
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CuriousG
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30 book recommendations in 30 days...

Day 30: Let's end the 30 days with a very intense yet very powerful and important novel. Again, it is fiction, but really allows people to get inside other lives and perspectives in a way I think we all should. It is *tough* stuff, so pretty much any content warning you can think of applies. #30recsin30days

CuriousG Content warnings for: forced residential schools, forced restrictions on cultural customs and language, abuse, harmful ongoing colonial issues, childhood sexual abuse, sexual abuse, poverty, intergenerational trauma, drug use, self harm, suicide, and more I've probably forgotten. Basically most things. 1y
13 likes1 comment
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janeycanuck
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Pickpick

What a powerful book. There are a few uplifting moments but mostly, this is a heartbreaking work of fiction that is fiction in name, only. Good is a beautiful writer and the way the stories show themselves and come together is masterful. There's a reason this has won so many awards.

I did have trouble following the timeline in a few places but that‘s a small quibble.

CoverToCoverGirl It was powerful story, heartbreaking. 2y
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BilboBookends
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“I couldn‘t leave you there after what they did to you. We finally got to go home. You and me both.”

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Chelsea.Poole
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Pickpick

A fictional story of 5 children who were raised in residential schools in Canada, funded by the government as a way to disrupt the indigenous population by removing children from families. The overwhelming trauma suffered by these characters was heartbreaking! Though flashbacks of abuse and memories of the 5 “little Indians” do come up, this book focuses on the impact the school had on these characters after they‘ve left the school. Cont ⬇️

Chelsea.Poole 1/1 The fact that the abuse isn‘t as detailed and more of a memory for the characters made it a bit easier to read, as I was expecting “on the page” child abuse. Anyway, there‘s an important message of resilience and hope, though traumatized people may not always have this option. I loved it. Thanks @TheKidUpstairs and @monalyisha #auldlangspine 2y
jlhammar I‘ve got this on my shelves and definitely want to get to it this year. Sounds excellent. 2y
TheKidUpstairs I went into this one expecting unrelenting dark and abuse, and was pleasantly surprised by the hope and ❤️ in the book. I appreciated that, while she never shyed away from the awful realities, she really focused her story on their survival and finding connection and love and family and how to survive. 2y
Chelsea.Poole @TheKidUpstairs yes!! Exactly! There‘s hope and love…what I would consider the focus of the book. I even used this as a book about survival for a challenge prompt on StoryGraph…because it is very much a story of survival. 2y
Chelsea.Poole @jlhammar there are some tough parts but I found it to be very readable and full of hope. Hope you enjoy! 2y
90 likes3 stack adds5 comments
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Chelsea.Poole
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Haircuts for my boys = reading time for me! 📖 💈

BiblioLitten Longing for such days! My 4yo hates getting a haircut. 😵‍💫 2y
Chelsea.Poole @BiblioLitten oh my have I been there! It took us years to get to this point! My best advice for that: let someone else take them until it becomes routine. My boys are always most dependent on me, so I‘ve had their dad or grandpa take them most of their lives and they cooperated much better for them. 2y
83 likes2 comments
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Chelsea.Poole
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The snow is falling and the fireplace is blazing! And I‘m going in…preparing to be destroyed by Five Little Indians! It‘s my most anticipated from your #auldlangspine list @TheKidUpstairs 😊
@monalyisha

Scochrane26 Sounds like a cozy day 2y
CBee Stacked! I‘ve fallen in love with indigenous fiction thanks to Litsy ♥️ 2y
ncsufoxes This one is so good. Sad but it‘s so important to learn about how he past that others experienced (& some still living with to this day-inter generational trauma). 2y
92 likes3 comments
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Reagan
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Pickpick

I didn‘t even realize this was the CBC Canada Reads Winner but deservedly so. And her first book! What.

Five Little Indians follows 5 children from a residential school. There is really nothing I can say that would come close to explaining how devastating this book is. It‘s such beautiful writing on such an atrocious topic. I think this one will stay with me for a long time. It was a really emotional read.

Nebklvr It was so sensitive and raw. It was my favorite of last year‘s short list. 2y
51 likes2 stack adds1 comment
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Djspens
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Pickpick

This is a story of Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie and Maisie, taken as children from their homes and put in a remote residential school for indigenous children. They suffer sexual, mental and physical abuse at the hands of their “teachers”. Life once they leave or escape from the Mission home is tough as well. This book shares their interlacing stories for the next few decades. A well written, sad story.

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mcctrish
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My March pick for #12booksof2022 (sorry I‘m living my best between Christmas and NYE life and have no idea what day it is) this book is stellar in its raw punch of reality! It follows 5 indigenous children in their lives before residential school, during and the aftermath 💔💔💔💔💔

Andrew65 This is on my stack and not the first recommendation for it. Feel free to post anytime. 🥰 2y
40 likes1 stack add1 comment
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TheKidUpstairs
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#12Booksof2022 On the second day of Christmas, my reading gave to me... powerful emotional depth and a tale of deep resiliency.

Good's debit novel covers difficult and heart wrenching territory, but the feeling it leaves you with is one of hope. Love, loving, and survival look different for each of us, and this is especially true for those who have survived the most horrifying of traumas.

@Andrew65

Andrew65 This is sitting waiting ever so patiently on my TBR. 2y
54 likes1 comment
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Blueberry
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Andrew65 I own and really need to read Sea of Tranquility. 2y
dabbe @Andrew65 So do I! It was even on Obama's 2022 list! 2y
Andrew65 @dabbe He‘s shamed us both 😂 2y
dabbe @Andrew65 AMEN! 🤣 2y
54 likes1 stack add4 comments
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TheKidUpstairs
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@Chelsea.Poole I love connecting music to my reading. Sometimes it's about listening to the right music for the book, sometimes it is music that the book leads me to. So in anticipation of #AuldLangSpine I thought I'd give you a peek into my weird little brain with some musical connections for the three you are thinking of starting off with.

Cont'd in comments...

@monalyisha

TheKidUpstairs Five Little Indians - has to be Buffy Saint-Marie (I read this early in the year, but I'm almost positive one of the characters even listens to Buffy in her car). There is no better pairing than a badass folk rock goddess singing with equal parts strength and vulnerability about matters both personal and political. 2y
TheKidUpstairs The Colony - one of the themes is the conflict between tradition and modernity, and those who try to live in the balance. After reading it, I went looking for some modern Irish Traditional bands who make music in that same balance. Moxie is one that I found: Is Ainm Dom https://g.co/kgs/xX7UoF 2y
TheKidUpstairs The Bass Rock - this is the one that inspired me to write this post! I was listening to Florence + the Machine's Dance Fever in the car today and I realized it was giving me all the same feels that this book did. It's raw and beautiful and powerful, feminist and angry and also somehow joyful, with some beautifully written lines. 2y
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Chelsea.Poole I love this post so much! Thank you for sharing these song-book pairings!! This is something I definitely do not do on my own, 😬, so I‘ll have to think of something else for a “get to know you” post. But I so look forward to trying these pairings! 👏 2y
monalyisha This is too fun! I‘m definitely going to have to check out “Moxie”, for obvious reasons. 😉🐇 And I‘ve got a picture book by Buffy Sainte-Marie on my Storytime shelf at work right now! 2y
BookLineNSinker Added tagged book to my stack! 2y
62 likes1 stack add6 comments
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Mpcacher
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Pickpick

I have owned this book for a while now and have deferred reading it because I needed to be in a certain mood to handle the subject matter. I am glad I finally picked it up, as although it is a difficult topic it does present an important look at the trauma the residential school system caused on both the children and their parents. I found the jumps in time confusing at times, but the story touched my heart and is a worthwhile read. 4/5 stars

bookaholic1 I agree 2y
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ncsufoxes
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Pickpick

Still from November #bookspin reviews. This was so good but heartbreaking story. The story follows the he lives of five Native American children that were taken from their homes in Canada. The were forced into residential Catholic schools to assimilate to white, Christian values & norms. The story follows the five as they try to navigate the real world after they are forced out of the school. It‘s a tough story dealing with abuse & other

ncsufoxes difficult subject matters. A sad but good and important story to be read. 2y
Singout It was excellent: I really appreciated how it portrayed their lives intersecting, and how the residential school impacted each of them, and what came after, differently. 2y
TheAromaofBooks Great progress!! 2y
22 likes3 comments
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Blueberry
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Alwaysbeenaloverofbooks Perfect 😍 2y
booksandsympathy I enjoyed Son of a Trickster and its sequel. I need to read the third book. 2y
CoverToCoverGirl Jonny Appleseed and Five Little Indians were both very good reads. 2y
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CuriousG What a great collection of books! Have read 3 and the others are on my tbr 2y
Eggs I really enjoy reading Native books 📚 2y
Larkken I‘ve really liked both Cherie Dimaline books I‘ve read 😍 what a great list! 2y
53 likes6 comments
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Aimeesue
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Felting project is starting to shape up!
It was good to be stabbing away while listening to this book, which is about five people who were forcibly removed from their families and communities and sent to an awful, awful “Indian school.” Truly heartbreaking, and I was angered on their behalf. Humans can be so terrible to one another.

#audiocrafting #litsycrafters

Tamra Lovely! 2y
AnnR Pretty! That must be relaxing to do except when you're listening to a frustrating, incredibly sad audiobook. 2y
Aimeesue @Ann_Reads It‘s a lot of stabbing, so it‘s pretty therapeutic 😉 2y
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Aimeesue @Tamra Thanks! It‘s a present, so I hope it turns out well 2y
tpixie Lovely I‘ve not heard of this craft 2y
Aimeesue @tpixie I found about 100 skeins of wool yarn at the thrift store, and I don't knit much these days, so I wondered if I could tear them apart for felting. I'd done 3 dimensional needle felting before, but I hadn't tried flat wool "painting." I really enjoy it. It's popular in Great Britain -lots of sheeps- and in Ukraine, of all places. 2y
tpixie @Aimeesue interesting! thanks for info! 2y
43 likes7 comments
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Creadnorthey
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Pickpick

This gave me more to reflect on and has some very hard passages that cut to the bone. It is beautiful however how Good brings the reader into the process of healing that only some of her characters can complete. Very moving and generous.

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bookaholic1
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Pickpick

#74
This was a good read, characters trying to make betters lives, after being in Residencial Schools.

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TheLudicReader
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Pickpick

It feels appropriate to finish this book on the Day for Truth and Reconciliation although this is just a soft pick from me. I think it‘s an important story- the generational trauma that followed survivors of Canada‘s criminal residential schools- but I don‘t think this book was particularly well executed. I never really felt like I knew the characters, and it was a lot of telling and clunky dialogue. Still worth a read, though.

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library.dreamer
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Pickpick

I'm going to be obsessing over this novel for a while. It's heartbreaking and an important read for anyone interested in learning more about the horrific practices of Indigenous boarding schools in the U.S. and Canada. Look up content warnings before reading.

bookaholic1 I'm waiting for mine from the library..I'm 146th in line, was 199, lol 2y
kwmg40 One of my favourite books from the previous year! 2y
58 likes5 stack adds2 comments
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library.dreamer
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Come read my longer reviews over on Instagram @library.dreamer ! I'm currently reading Five Little Indians by Michelle Good and I will have so many thoughts!

Mustlovebooks1088 I‘ve seen a lot of people looking to find Pieces of Her. How is it?? 2y
49 likes1 stack add1 comment
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Theexplorer
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“The hotels…were nothing more than flaphouses rented by the hour and week for those who needed to be within staggering reach of the beer parlours.” Such beautiful language!

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shortsarahrose
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Pickpick

A compelling, character-driven novel about five indigenous people who survived an abusive childhood at a residential school. The story mostly focuses on life after that as they try (and sometimes fail) to put their lives back together. Switched to audio when my ebook loan ran out, but wasn‘t crazy about the narrator and had a little trouble keeping track of the timeline in that form. Still, that only slightly detracted from the this powerful novel

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shortsarahrose
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“Mack beckoned him aboard. Kenny carefully counted out ones and fives from his tobacco tin and passed Mack twenty bucks. ‘Give that to my mother next time you see her, okay?‘
Mack folded the bills carefully, then put his hand on Kenny‘s shoulder for a moment before they turned to ready the boat for sea.”

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SarahBookInterrupted
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I reviewed Michelle Good‘s book Five Little Indians on Book Interrupted‘s Manuscript Monday Blog post. Check it out here https://www.bookinterrupted.com/post/manuscript-mondays-five-little-indians

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DHill
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It‘s going to take me a while to unpack this. Or even try. For what this novel says in words there is so much more going on under and around.

I had a hard time with the audio but once I let go of that and just listened to the story I was hooked.

45 likes1 stack add
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rachelsbrittain
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Book mail 😍

Readergrrl I bought this book last summer and just haven‘t found the time to read it. Seeing it listed here is reminding me that it should be next on my TBR list! 3y
50 likes1 comment
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bookishbitch
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My #independentbookstoreday purchase. I have heard good things about this one.

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Singout
Pickpick

An excellent novel: five Indigenous students from a residential school on a B.C. island escape or are released at different times, and have lives that intentionally or accidentally intersect. All of them deal with the exploitation and abuse they have survived in different ways, and the book looks at both the impact of internalized trauma and healing through activism, traditional spirituality, and mutual support.
#Booked2022 #OwnChoice #Indigenous

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mcctrish
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Pickpick

This book has been reviewed a lot. It is heartbreakingly AMAZING. It is somehow filled with enough hope to temper the horror. Here‘s hoping the Vatican does the right thing 💔❤️ so healing can continue ( in this article an indigenous person said ( paraphrasing) “it‘s not the faith that‘s bad, but people “ and I‘m honestly not sure I have their grace

40 likes1 stack add
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Singout
Pickpick

My April #bookspin list!
1. Noopiming
2. Cloud Cuckoo Land
3. How Much of these Hills is Gold
4. Under the Undala Trees
5. Seeing Ghosts
6. Seven
7. New Jim Crow
8. Soldier Boy
9. The Purpose of Power
10. A Long Way Gone
11. Disruption
12. The Innocents
13. The Mountains Sing
14. Spectacle
15. Follow Those Zebras
16. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
17. H is for Hawk
18. The Last Gift
19. The Underground Railroad
20. The Night Tiger

TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!! 3y
12 likes1 comment
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Singout

#Bookspin list for March:

1. Noopiming
2. Cloud Cuckoo Land
3. How Much of Hills
4. Bomber Mafia
5. Five Little Indians
6. Seven
7. New Jim Crow
8. Soldier Boy
9. This Mournable Body
10. A Long Way Gone
11. Disruption
12. The Innocents
13. The Mountains Sing
14. Everything Inside
15. Follow Those Zebras
16. The Boy Who Halrnessed the Wind
17. H is for Hawk
18. The Last Gift
19. Wife of the Gods
20. The Night Tiger

Suet624 Great books on this list. 3y
Singout Thank you! 3y
TheAromaofBooks Woohoo!!! 3y
Singout Not to late to change How Much of These Mountains to The Sentence! 3y
11 likes4 comments
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Blueberry
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Pickpick

This book broke my heart.
Though all the #CanadaReads2022 shortlisted books were REALLY good this year this one is my choice to win. The one that "everyone needs to read".

#CanadaReads2022.

NataliePatalie Nice background matching :o 3y
Tamra I have this in my audio queue - I should listen to it next. 3y
Prairiegirl_reading I just finished Scarborough. I‘ll be needing something light and fluffy before I get my heartbroken again! The whole Canada reads list this year is so interesting to me. I‘m looking forward to the debates even though I‘m sure I won‘t get them all read. 3y
67 likes1 stack add3 comments
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Blueberry
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"Clara stood behind Mariah's cabin, the late summer warmth rising from the soul."

#FirstLineFridays @ShyBookOwl
#CanadaReads2022

39 likes1 stack add
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Nebklvr
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Pickpick

A brutal depiction of life at the Indian School. Even the survivors didn‘t always survive it. There was a snag in one storyline that never seemed to jive but other than that, this was an immersive read about the tragic things that were done to children and the shredding of families. This is a Canadareads contender.

Cinfhen This sounds brutal 😥 3y
Nebklvr @Cinfhen It wasn‘t graphic but it was intensely sad. 3y
Cinfhen I‘m sure. It‘s a terrible piece of history 😣 3y
Nebklvr @Cinfhen And still going on. Still looking for graves ar indian school near me 3y
49 likes1 stack add4 comments
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xicanti
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I‘ve made a good start on my third Canada Reads title. It‘s gonna be intense. Hopefully I can really sink into it this afternoon.

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merelybookish
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Pickpick

Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie & Maisie were small children when ripped from their families and forced into residential schools where they experienced cruelty, mistreatment and physical & sexual abuse. This book follows them after they get out as they try to survive while being haunted by they trauma they endured. This book attests to hope, healing and resilience in spite of the efforts by Cdn government to destroy the indigenous populations. It's 👇

merelybookish A vital story that needs telling & the novel has won multiple awards. I just wish the writing had been better. Some of it was clunky, but it also felt simplistic. Characters lacked nuance & were used to make a point (that childhood trauma can lead to self sabotage, or addiction, isolation) It felt like the author didn't trust the reader. But it's fair that an Indigenous writer like Good might not trust settlers to get it without making it obvious. 3y
81 likes1 stack add1 comment
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merelybookish
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Current read for my IRL book club. And Canada Reads contender.
Thoughts so far: important story, so-so writing. But it's already won lots of awards, so what do I know?

vivastory Are those printed stickers? 3y
merelybookish @vivastory Yep. No picking them off. 3y
67 likes2 comments
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xicanti
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I was still 307th on the list for FIVE LITTLE INDIANS, so I was mighty glad to see a closeish library branch had an Express copy on the shelf. I went there first thing this morning to nab it. Now I‘ll have read all the contenders before Canada Reads starts!

TheKidUpstairs Nice find! I just finished this one, it was my third of the five. I've got Washington Black on my shelf and I think I'm 2nd on the hold list for City of Dirty Water so I should be able to finish them all before debates start, too! 3y
xicanti @TheKidUpstairs go us! I read Washington Black soon after it came out, I‘ve got What Strange Paradise in my audio queue, and I should get both City of Dirty Water and Scarborough inside the month. 3y
48 likes2 comments
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TheKidUpstairs
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Pickpick

I don't know that there is much to say that hasn't already been said about this beautiful book. Following five characters through their lives after being released or escaping Residential School, Good never shies away from the trauma of their experiences. But the overall feeling is one of resilience and hope, community, friendship, and love. A quick read, as the narrative's pacing pulls you along, and the jumps between characters are well balanced.

Soubhiville Great review! You made me stack it. 📚🙂 3y
80 likes5 stack adds1 comment
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xicanti
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The Canada Reads shortlist is out! I won‘t manage to read the tagged book in time unless I luck into an Express copy, but the others should make it into my hands before the debates start. Whee!

More info on the picks and the panelists: https://www.cbc.ca/books/canadareads/meet-the-canada-reads-2022-contenders-1.632...

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ElspethY
Pickpick

Very good - not my normal genre, but excellently written and discusses the ongoing trauma and recovery from residential schools in Canada

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FantasyChick
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#12Booksof2021 #3rdBookof2021 #March

I'm not saying this was the best book I read but it definitely hit a little different, especially at the time I picked it up. Powerful if nothing else.

@Andrew65

Andrew65 Looks good, stacked it. 3y
37 likes1 stack add1 comment