Reviews

Northwest Resistance by Donovan Yaciuk, Katherena Vermette, Scott B. Henderson

forsidious's review

adventurous informative reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

scribewarden's review against another edition

emotional informative medium-paced

3.75

mcoenraad's review against another edition

challenging informative reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

emeelee's review against another edition

2.0

Vol. 1: The Pemmican Wars ★★★☆☆
Vol. 2: Red River Resistance ★★★☆☆
Vol. 3: Northwest Resistance ★★★☆☆
Vol. 4: Road Allowance Era ★★★★☆

Echo is a quiet teenager who drifts through her day with a constant stream of music playing through her earbuds. Then one day in history class, she begins slipping through time, experiencing firsthand the history of the Métis people's interactions with Canadians in the nineteenth century. For the first time, Echo finds herself curious about her heritage and begins to reach out and open up to others.

I'm learning a lot from this series, but I do wish I was getting to know Echo's character a bit more. Most of the volume is basically a history lesson (though certainly a valuable one). The sequence of events in Volume Three was difficult to follow, so I'm grateful for the timeline included in the back.

TW: war violence, anti-indigenous racism

ellipalmer's review

adventurous emotional informative fast-paced

3.75

careinthelibrary's review against another edition

4.0

This series is so good! They're quick which will hopefully hold the attention span of some of the less reading-inclined teenagers.

I hope it finds its way into many classrooms and libraries so that Indigenous students can learn more about their heritage through an Indigenous lens (not their white-authored textbooks) and non-Indigenous students can start to learn about the white settler colonial project and the dispossession of Indigenous lands and the other forms of violence forced on Indigenous nations in the country we now call "Canada".

ro_reads's review

emotional informative fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

rai's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional informative tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

The way this portrays Louis Riel is very different then how I remember him being taught in the 90s.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Police brutality, Genocide, War, Hate crime, Gun violence, Colonisation, and Blood

natcat's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I’m reviewing all four of these graphic novels as one, because I think they work much better when considered together, while individually they are a little short to really sink your teeth into. When taken as a whole, Echo’s discovery of Métis history and her family’s history, and how that impacts her life, is very compelling. The art is gorgeous, and I also learned a lot about Métis history, both from the stories themselves and the notes afterwards. 

read_nap_repeat's review

adventurous emotional informative reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0