This is an inspiring story of love and reconciliation. I appreciate the author's willingness to share his, and his father's, experiences and perspectives on issues that are relevant to all Canadians.

3.5

Moving memoir

This book was fantastic. It provided important insights into the recent history of Canada’s Indigenous people while at the same time being extremely relatable and engaging. I was a fan Wab Kinew before reading it, but now have a deepened respect for the way he’s chosen to live his life. I’d highly recommend this.

A bit uneven - but lots to think about. This is a very important topic in Canada with the report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission recently released. We need to know more about this black mark on Canadian history and how to move forward.

This wasn't what I thought it would be. It's largely a book about Kinew's father, but in that is specifically and proudly a book about being Anishinaabe, speaking Anishinaabemowin, and keeping the cultures and traditions of Anishinaabe society alive--while caring for the dying father who gave passed those traditions on to you after surviving the attempt by Residential Schools to destroy that culture in him. At the same time it's the type of memoir that captures a lot of detail that is massively important in a person's life (relationships, job postings, etc.) but incidental in a story like this, but it's written in an engaging voice that reads easily. And even the things that seem incidental underline the way that culture works in a person's day to day life: Kinew describes bringing his Anishinaabe identity to everything he does, and that alone makes this an exciting and important book--because it is not just about being "Native," but about being Anishinaabe, speaking and teaching Anishinaabemowin, and participating in traditions that are both cross-cultural among First Nations, and specific to Anishinaabe identity.

WOW,
What an amazing, beautiful, incredible book.
I blazed through it in one evening, I just couldn't put it down.
Wab Kinew was just elected as Premier of Manitoba. I voted for him and thought I knew quite a bit about him..I didn't.
I didn't know Wab was so deeply part of his Indigenous culture and spirituality. His dad's story, and the story of their evolving relationship, was so touching and real. The journey of Indigenous residential school survivors and their families was also deftly woven into this tale.
Everyone needs to read this, especially those that have negative things to say about him based on his past. He freely acknowledges his past, and has healed and learned from it.
He's been a great leader to his people and I'm looking forward to what he can do for Manitobans.

Really enjoyed reading this moving true story of a father-son reconciliation.....plus I was given keen insight to the lives of the First Nation's people....will likely re-read it again in the future.