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A review by lauren_endnotes
Blue Bear Woman by Virginia Pesemapeo Bordeleau
4.0
• BLUE BEAR WOMAN by Virginia Pésémapéo Bordeleau, translated from the French by Susan Ourious and Christelle Morelli, 2007/2019.
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"Soon a sign warns: “Remote road, continue at your own risk.” We’re being told to exercise extreme caution. Here I’ve come to look in on the country of my Cree origins, and I’m being warned of danger. I’m torn between laughter and scorn."
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Bordeleau's debut novel in 2007, the "first novel in Quebec written by an Indigenous woman" (described on the publisher's website) is an immersive story of family mysteries, spiritual awakenings, and land/water rights surrounding the construction of a dam in the James Bay region of Quebec.
Victoria learns note about the family mystery of her uncle's disappearance, and begins to have vivid dreams leading her to find out what happened decades ago. Two timelines - the 1960s and 2000s - trace the family's history on their ancestral land and hunting/trapping grounds.
.
"Soon a sign warns: “Remote road, continue at your own risk.” We’re being told to exercise extreme caution. Here I’ve come to look in on the country of my Cree origins, and I’m being warned of danger. I’m torn between laughter and scorn."
.
Bordeleau's debut novel in 2007, the "first novel in Quebec written by an Indigenous woman" (described on the publisher's website) is an immersive story of family mysteries, spiritual awakenings, and land/water rights surrounding the construction of a dam in the James Bay region of Quebec.
Victoria learns note about the family mystery of her uncle's disappearance, and begins to have vivid dreams leading her to find out what happened decades ago. Two timelines - the 1960s and 2000s - trace the family's history on their ancestral land and hunting/trapping grounds.