The Page Turners #14

Five Little Indians written by Michelle Good

Reviewed by: Sally Goodwillie

When the Pageturners group decided last year to choose “Five Little Indians” for our April read, little did we know that by the time we came to discuss the book, the subject matter would be on-going news. In the last year, we heard of the discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves near former residential schools and watched on TV as indigenous groups sought apologies right up to the Vatican for what happened to children in these institutions.

The story follows the lives of five indigenous children who were removed from their families and brought to a residential school in British Columbia. Although this is a novel, many of the situations were drawn from real life by the author whose mother had grown up under the terrible treatment of children in one such school. Taken by law and (sometimes the RCMP) from their parents, the children often never saw their families again. Even when they did, the abuse they received and the helplessness and abandonment they felt growing up often left both them and their parents (who were also victims of this situation) unable to recreate family relationships. Having never had any preparation for life in the outside world, they were turned out of the schools while still teenagers, totally unequipped to identify or handle the dangers that awaited them.

The five main characters of the book face such challenges, drawing strength and knowledge from other school friends who had lived through the same thing. As adults, they continued to be persecuted by the memory of what they had lived through. The problems they faced and the answers they eventually found make this sometimes a difficult read, but also an exceptionally memorable and well written story. We agreed that this book is a must-read for all Canadians as we attempt to bring about reconciliation with Canada’s indigenous peoples.

The author, Michelle Good, is of Cree ancestry. After working with indigenous groups for decades she obtained a law degree. She also holds an MFA degree in writing. The book, her first published novel, has received numerous awards, most recently the Canada Reads for 2022.

Below is a brief video on why Michelle Good wrote Five Little Indians: