PRAISE FOR TANYA TALAGA AND ALL OUR RELATIONS: Finalist, Hilary Weston Writers'' Trust Prize for Nonfiction A Globe and Mail Book of the Year A CBC Book of the Year A Hill Times Book of the Year "All Our Relations: Finding the Path Forward is an impeccably researched and unflinching documentation of how both colonial histories and ongoing genocidal practices have created the suicide crisis among Indigenous youth across the globe. Tanya Talaga expertly folds together interviews, storytelling, and statistics to bring us directly to the startling truth that Indigenous youth are fighting to find themselves through the multiple separations forced on them by settler states: separation of parents from children, separation of peoples from their land, and separation of tongues and hearts from their languages and traditions. All Our Relations is a call to action and a testament to the strength and tenacity of Indigenous people around the world." -- Hilary Weston Writers'' Trust Prize for Nonfiction Jury Citation "This book is both moving and effective; it creates the space for readers to understand the complexity of these issues . An excellent read." -- Ottawa Review of Books "An essential work of nonfiction . Through storytelling, on-the-ground reporting, literature surveys, and plenty of statistics, Talaga demonstrates the extent to which Indigenous children continue to live under the full weight of colonial history . All children, she writes, ''need to know who their ancestors are, who their heroes and villains are.
'' In All Our Relations, Talaga restores that basic right to Indigenous children who have been robbed of it. And the rest of us, as an epigraph from author Thomas King makes clear, no longer have the excuse of saying we haven''t heard this story. Talaga alone has told it twice now." -- Quill & Quire "Talaga''s passion for the topic is palpable as she shares eye-opening stories and heartbreaking statistics . Thoughtful and thought-provoking." -- Parvati Magazine PRAISE FOR TANYA TALAGA AND SEVEN FALLEN FEATHERS: Winner, RBC Taylor Prize Finalist, Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing Finalist, Hilary Weston Writers'' Trust Prize for Nonfiction Finalist, BC National Award for Canadian Nonfiction Finalist, Speaker''s Book Award Longlist, CBC Canada Reads A Globe and Mail Top 100 Book A National Post 99 Best Book of the Year A Chatelaine 20 Best Books of 2017 CBC''s Nonfiction Book of the Year National Bestseller "Talaga has written Canada''s J''Accuse, an open letter to the rest of us about the many ways we contribute -- through act or inaction -- to suicides and damaged existences in Canada''s Indigenous communities. Tanya Talaga''s account of teen lives and deaths in and near Thunder Bay is detailed, balanced and heart-rending. Talaga describes gaps in the system large enough for beloved children and adults to fall through, endemic indifference, casual racism, and a persistent lack of resources.
It is impossible to read this book and come away unchanged." -- RBC Taylor Prize Jury Citation "In Seven Fallen Feathers, Tanya Talaga delves into the lives of seven Indigenous students who died while attending high school in Thunder Bay over the first eleven years of this century. With a narrative voice encompassing lyrical creation myth, razor-sharp reporting, and a searing critique of Canada''s ongoing colonial legacy, Talaga binds these tragedies -- and the ambivalent response from police and government -- into a compelling tapestry. This vivid, wrenching book shatters the air of abstraction that so often permeates news of the injustices Indigenous communities face every day. It is impossible to read Seven Fallen Feathers and not care about the lives lost, the families thrust into purgatory, while the rest of society looks away." -- Hilary Weston Writers'' Trust Prize for Nonfiction Jury Citation "Seven Fallen Feathers is achingly blunt in confronting recurring damage that must be repaired. The book puts a human face to the headline statistics, reveals the continuing harm of unequal educational opportunity, and delivers the evidence of systemic racism in Canada with an insistent voice. Tanya Talaga draws the reader into communities of hurt and flawed responses surrounding the deaths of seven Indigenous students, the ''fallen feathers.
'' Talaga yanks at the reader''s complacency with her story of separated families, untethered youths, and the seemingly unbridgeable distance between cultures. She offers painful lessons while courting hope." -- BC National Award for Canadian Nonfiction Jury Citation "Tanya Talaga''s powerful book is a hard-hitting story of the realities of Canadian racism, complicity, and Indigenous suffering. It is also a testament to the resilience of the Anishinaabe families who endure the crushing impacts of historic and contemporary injustices. In spare prose and a direct voice, Talaga documents the tragedies of the lost lives of Indigenous youth while creating a compelling narrative that educates the reader on the sad history of Indigenous-White relations. This book is a crucial document of our times, and vital to the emergence of a true vision of justice in Canada." -- Shaughnessy Cohen Prize for Political Writing Jury Citation "Once started, this book is difficult to put down. At just over 300 pages, Seven Fallen Feathers moves from one compelling story to the next, and seamlessly weaves in facts and history.
The writing is crisp and thoughtful. Seven Fallen Feathers . fosters understanding, and is a book that can benefit everyone." -- Ottawa Review of Books "Where Seven Fallen Feathers truly shines is in Talaga''s intimate retellings of what families experience when a loved one goes missing, from filing a missing-persons report with police, to the long and brutal investigation process, to the final visit in the coroner''s office. It''s a heartbreaking portrait of an indifferent and often callous system . Seven Fallen Feathers is a must-read for all Canadians. It shows us where we came from, where we''re at, and what we need to do to make the country a better place for us all." -- The Walrus "Devastating, angry, and thought-provoking" -- Open Letters Monthly (blog review) "What is happening in Thunder Bay is particularly destructive, but Talaga makes clear how Thunder Bay is symptomatic, not the problem itself.
Recently shortlisted for the Hilary Weston Writers'' Trust Prize for Nonfiction, Talaga''s is a book to be justly infuriated by." -- Globe and Mail "An urgent and unshakable portrait of the horrors faced by Indigenous teens going to school in Thunder Bay, Ontario, far from their homes and families . Talaga''s incisive research and breathtaking storytelling could bring this community one step closer to the healing it deserves." -- Booklist, STARRED REVIEW "Talaga''s research is meticulous and her journalistic style is crisp and uncompromising . The book is heartbreaking and infuriating, both an important testament to the need for change and a call to action." -- Publishers Weekly, STARRED REVIEW "A poignant, emotional glimpse into the lives of the seven fallen feathers -- Jethro Anderson, Curran Strang, Kyle Morriseau, Paul Panacheese, Reggie Bushie, Robyn Harper, and Jordan Wabasse -- through the eyes of their friends and families." -- TBNewswatch "Seven Fallen Feathers . is a must read.
One can hope in Seven Fallen Feathers people in our community might find a path forward to true understanding and reconciliation." -- NetNewsLedger "This is a book that everyone should read . [it] will grip you, make you think and help you understand better what has led up to the horrific experiences of young people cut down too soon. It connects the local experience to the larger experience of Canada and is a cry for justice, human rights, and respect." -- Chronicle Journal "Talaga''s work brings stories to the fore when mainstream media have covered them up for decades . Seven Fallen Feathers is a difficult read. It deals with death and racism; it tackles pain and suffering head on. Telling the students'' stories is also an act of hope and healing based on the certainty that things can be better, and that they must.
This book is a solid piece of investigative journalism and should be read, and shared far and wide." -- Citizens'' Press "Tanya Talaga investigates the deaths of seven Indigenous teens in Thunder Bay -- Jethro Anderson, Curran Strang, Robyn Harper, Paul Panacheese, Reggie Bushie, Kyle Morrisseau, and Jordan Wabasse -- searching for answers and offering a deserved censure to the authorities who haven''t investigated, or considered the contributing factors, nearly enough." -- National Post "This story is hard and harrowing, but Talaga tells it with the care of a storyteller and the factual attention of a journalist. She makes the difficult connections between this national tragedy and the greater colonial systems that have endangered our most vulnerable for over a century, and she does it all with a keen, compassionate eye for all involved, especially the families who are too often overlooked. These stories need to be heard. These young people deserve nothing less than to be honoured everywhere." -- Katherena Vermette, bestselling author of The Break "You simply must read this book. Tanya Talaga has done the hard work for us.
She sat with the families, heard their stories. Now, with the keen eye and meticulous research of an uncompromising journalist, she is sharing their truths. We have to start listening. Parents are sending their children to school in T.