The Orenda: A novel

by Joseph Boyden | Literature & Fiction |
ISBN: 0385350732 Global Overview for this book
Registered by wingGoryDetailswing of Nashua, New Hampshire USA on 5/26/2017
Buy from one of these Booksellers:
Amazon.com | Amazon UK | Amazon CA | Amazon DE | Amazon FR | Amazon IT | Bol.com
This book is in the wild! This Book is Currently in the Wild!
1 journaler for this copy...
Journal Entry 1 by wingGoryDetailswing from Nashua, New Hampshire USA on Friday, May 26, 2017
I got this good-condition ex-library hardcover from Better World Books for another release copy of this riveting book. It's about the collision between the indigenous peoples and Europeans in Canada, and is a wonderfully-involving saga with some lovely moments and some brutally wrenching ones.

The story's told through three characters' viewpoints: young Snow Falls, an Iroquois girl who is taken captive by Bird, a Huron war chief who killed her family in vengeance for the Iroquois attack that cost him his wife and daughters; Bird himself, who finds that this young adopted daughter may be much more trouble than he expected; and Father Christophe, a Jesuit priest who's been sent into the wilderness to try and convert the natives, and who has, so far, barely managed to be tolerated by the Huron tribe (they refer to him as "crow" and "charcoal" for his black robes and what they consider his general worthlessness).

The alternating viewpoints give us quite a picture of life at that time and place, with running conflicts between different tribes, rivalries within tribes, concerns over the encroaching white men, and the ongoing battle for survival against droughts and crop-failures, plagues and war.

The characters are well-drawn, conveying their own beliefs - which are often quite at odds with modern Western thought, the Jesuit's hardcore "everything the heathen believe is wrong" line being, for me, almost as extreme as the Huron and Iroquois fondness for ritual torture that manages to combine vengeance with intense admiration of personal bravery.

Snow Falls, who is one of several characters prone to having prophetic dreams, starts out as a furious and desperate survivor of a massacre, determined to avenge her dead family if she can't find a way to die outright. (The adoption of captives by various tribes is a normal part of their lives, so the concept can't be new to her, but when it's applied to her personally she doesn't take it well.) The book covers the passage of several years, though, and while her rebellion takes many forms, from childish acts of petty revenge to more overt and brutal ones, she gradually finds herself wanting the approval of Bird. And later on she falls for a handsome young Huron warrior, even though he acts like a jerk at first (ah, teenagers!).

Bird himself is clearly a skilled and responsible leader, and while he continues to mourn his lost loved ones - in his segments he often addresses his late wife - he spends most of his time trying to help his people, aided by his longtime friend Fox (one of the most able warriors in the story; I'd like to see a film on "The Adventures of Bird and Fox"!).

Christophe... ah, Christophe! I was prejudiced against him for the longest time, as I never did sympathize with the concept of missionaries who try to tell people that everything they think is wrong, and Christophe was also rather inept in his preparations and Huron-language studies (though that wasn't entirely his fault). He managed to misinterpret a great many things about his new potential flock, and while they misinterpreted him too, his judgments often came across as snobbish and foolish. And in one clumsy attempt to be useful he manages to derail an early expedition that would have changed the course of the story significantly. But as the story progressed and the years passed, it became clear that he was truly devoted to his cause, and while I still didn't agree with it, I could admire his persistence.

There are lots of other wonderful characters here, including the wisewoman Gosling - while she's given so many fine attributes that she's almost too good to be true, I still liked her, and when she took Snow Falls under her wing I was much more hopeful about things. But this story is set during a very tumultuous time, with illnesses sweeping through the tribes and with external politics causing even more trouble than long-standing rivalries. By the novel's end, an escalating series of events results in mass tragedy, and not all of our characters survive - with some of them suffering mind-bendingly painful ends.

There are lovely scenes here too, tenderness and humor, loyalty and care for others. There's bravery, from the Jesuits (poor Isaac, who survived Iroquois torture, is only one example) and from the captive warriors who undergo the most severe traumas. There are surprises - beware Chekov's mushrooms! - and glorious battles and heartbreaking losses. A truly fascinating novel!

[I recently enjoyed listening to a really good audiobook version, with three narrators taking on the principle roles.]

Journal Entry 2 by wingGoryDetailswing at Little Free Library, Rollins Park in Concord, New Hampshire USA on Saturday, June 24, 2017

Released 6 yrs ago (6/25/2017 UTC) at Little Free Library, Rollins Park in Concord, New Hampshire USA

WILD RELEASE NOTES:

I'd planned to leave this book somewhere in Rollins Park, and while looking for benches or other handy spots I noticed a Little Free Library near the gazebo. Left the book there; hope the finder enjoys it! (Turns out Concord NH has *five* LFLs, not appearing on the official maps yet but located in a number of parks. Will have to swing by again soon!)

[See other recent releases in NH here.]

*** Released for the 2017 Canada Days release challenge. ***

Are you sure you want to delete this item? It cannot be undone.