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They Called Me Number One: Secrets and Survival at an Indian Residential School by Bev Sellars
jocepatey's review against another edition
4.0
They Called Me Number One is Bev Sellar's honest and heart wrenching account of growing up on a First Nations Reserve and at the St. Joseph's Mission school. I whole heartedly agree that this book should be required reading in Canada; and it is atrocious what has happened to the First Nations people.
Reading this story, Bev's trauma and hurt read between the lines of her words. There was a flow that was missing that left the writing a little bit more factual than emotional, but when considering the atrocities she is describing, it is easy to get past. She succinctly describes the abuse that she remembers against herself, and her family members; and does her best to describe the aftermath and constant alcohol and drug dependence as well as the suicides that plague First Nations people. The fact that paramedics, hospital officials, police officers turn blind eyes to these people and their needs was astonishing.
By the second half of the book, as Bev describes the work she has done to heal her pain and overcome the various abuses she has suffered, she emerges as a wonderful writer. At this point, I felt the pain of recalling the issues in the first few chapters were what led the writing. Bev has accomplished so much and is incredibly inspiring.
The reality is this is a part of Canadian history that is kept secret; and it shouldn't be. I was astonished to read that majority of First Nations peoples do not speak their native language! I hope that through education and an end to systemic racism we can begin to support, truly, the different cultures that call Canada home.
Reading this story, Bev's trauma and hurt read between the lines of her words. There was a flow that was missing that left the writing a little bit more factual than emotional, but when considering the atrocities she is describing, it is easy to get past. She succinctly describes the abuse that she remembers against herself, and her family members; and does her best to describe the aftermath and constant alcohol and drug dependence as well as the suicides that plague First Nations people. The fact that paramedics, hospital officials, police officers turn blind eyes to these people and their needs was astonishing.
By the second half of the book, as Bev describes the work she has done to heal her pain and overcome the various abuses she has suffered, she emerges as a wonderful writer. At this point, I felt the pain of recalling the issues in the first few chapters were what led the writing. Bev has accomplished so much and is incredibly inspiring.
The reality is this is a part of Canadian history that is kept secret; and it shouldn't be. I was astonished to read that majority of First Nations peoples do not speak their native language! I hope that through education and an end to systemic racism we can begin to support, truly, the different cultures that call Canada home.
rawly's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars
The things our own government did to the Indigenous people is absolutely disgusting, very well written.
The things our own government did to the Indigenous people is absolutely disgusting, very well written.
dashadashahi's review against another edition
5.0
This book provides significant insight into the process of trauma and healing that the Canadian government, in relationship with Protestant and Catholic churches, inflicted upon multiple generations of Indigenous children. Her book sheds light on these personal experiences which are often obscured by statistics and reports used in other histories detailing residential schools. Sellars work is important for returning the narrative back to Indigenous people and allowing them to reclaim the traumas experienced, as well as the healing that followed for some, but not all residential school attendees. Moreover, Sellars highlights the importance of kinship and family in the healing process. Finally, Sellars also demonstrates the kindness she experienced at the hands of some white individuals, such as an instructor who helped take her to the dentist as a student. Such rare moments highlight the nuance and complexity of these experiences.
slightly_devious's review against another edition
5.0
Truly eye opening. This should be taught in school. An honest look into residential schools and racism in Canada.
crazylady4's review against another edition
3.0
This book was interesting at times but often felt it dragged and moved at a slow pace. It is important stories and details that need to be shared and the residential schools were absolutely awful and unacceptable, I however just found this book often left me bored and skimming. I am glad the author was able to begin to stopnthe cycle for her own kids and share foe others to learn from. It'd an interesting read in that it provides some skimming and sugar coated descriptions of life in a residential school. It didn't fill in many more details than I previously already knew about the schools. I recommend reading it though as everyone should know about the terrible things that happened in residential schools
maryleong's review against another edition
5.0
A frank, challenging and personal look at the residential school system and its legacy in Canada. Essential reading for all settlers seeking to understand Canadian history in its various configurations.
belliz4's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
5.0
jandi's review against another edition
5.0
This is a first person account of the experience of Bev Sellars in the St Joseph Mission Residential School in BC in the sixties. In a very personal way, Bev shares with us what it was like to be forced to spend most of her childhood and teenage years in what was closer to a prison than a school. By describing the conditions of the school, she also provides some insight into the challenges faced by survivors of the residential school system, several generations raised to behave like they are in jail.
Bev states she is one of the lucky ones, that she had a warm stable family to return to, and escaped the worse of the abuse and "only" had to deal with physical abuse, criminal neglect and dehumanization. The title refers to the number the nuns and staff at the school would call her - children had no names and were reduced to numbers.
But Bev does not just recount all the injustices - she shares the little moments of joy that let her get through the residential school experience and eventually take on a leadership role as an adult. As she tells us her story, her warm and charm shine through, and there is a note of hope.
Bev states she is one of the lucky ones, that she had a warm stable family to return to, and escaped the worse of the abuse and "only" had to deal with physical abuse, criminal neglect and dehumanization. The title refers to the number the nuns and staff at the school would call her - children had no names and were reduced to numbers.
But Bev does not just recount all the injustices - she shares the little moments of joy that let her get through the residential school experience and eventually take on a leadership role as an adult. As she tells us her story, her warm and charm shine through, and there is a note of hope.