Firekeeper's Daughter: a haunting story about being true to yourself when you are caught between two worlds

Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angelina Boulley is a story of personal identity, communal identity and finding your place in a world that doesn’t quite fit you. As someone caught between two worlds, eighteen year old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in. Not in her hometown or on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. She dreams of a fresh start in college but when family tragedy strikes, she must alter her plans in order to look after her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting the new charming recruit, Jamie, on her brother Levi’s hockey team. Soon she realizes that there is more to Jamie than he’s telling. When Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, she realizes that Jamie has been lying to her and she is thrusted into an FBI drug investigation. She reluctantly goes undercover, using her knowledge of chemistry and the Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down the source of the drugs. As Daunis searches for the truth, secrets and old scars are exposed leaving her to fight her own demons. She is fully tested and learns what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and protect her community even if it tears apart the only world she has ever known. 

Firekeeper’s Daughter first caught my attention with it’s beautiful cover. The story synopsis piqued my interest. After I received a copy of Firekeeper’s Daughter for Christmas, I started reading and I discovered that it was a book to be read slowly. It was not a book to breeze through. It is a powerful and beautiful story that is complex and deeply moving. It is a book that is honest about history and current struggles without really pointing fingers. Simply stating facts and issues. Ms. Boulley presents the issues facing the modern Ojibwe communities including alcohol and drugs but also identity. What does it mean to be a member of the community as well who do you allow to be members of the community? I loved the character Daunis. She is feisty and ready to fight for herself and those she loves. But she is also a deeply wounded girl on the verge of womanhood in a very adult and complicated world. I also enjoyed the glimpse into the Ojibwe culture and people. There were many great quotes that I wrote down and will remember long after I have finished. It is a book I would definitely read again. I highly recommend Firekeeper’s Daughter. 

Firekeeper’s Daughter is available in hardcover, eBook, and audiobook.

Dreams

Dreams. I’m not talking about dreams of the future or dreams what you might want to do one day. No, I’m talking about dreams that occur in your head while you sleep. Dreams that can so sweet and nice that you don’t want to wake up even though you hear the real world calling you. Then there are the dreams that are so weird and so bizarre, you are asleep thinking “what the hell is going on?” You wake up shaking your head, trying to shake the images out of your mind’s eye. There are the dreams that are based on the physical world around you. For instance, you are dreaming you have to pee and are looking for the bathroom only to wake up and realize you really do have to pee. Then there are the nightmares. The heart pounding, I have to wake up dreams. The dreams that stay with you for days. Every time you close your eyes, you fear the images will come again.

I’ve had all these dreams. Dreams so vivid and so detailed that you don’t know how or why it was playing in your head. Some dreams so vivid that I believe they are there to tell us something, to remind us of something and sometimes even answers to prayers. Dreams of people long gone, hearing their voices clear as day telling you “it’s ok” or “you’ll be fine.”

Dreams sometimes are just images left over in your brain that it’s trying to deal with while you sleep. Some dreams are images that incorporated the sounds around you. Ever dreams that you are listening to a certain only to wake up and it’s on the radio.  Dreams are also your heart’s desire. The things you wish to do or people you wish to see. Just as Cinderella sings:

A dream is a wish your heart makes

When you're fast asleep

In dreams you lose your heartaches

Whatever you wish you, you keep

Have faith in your dreams and someday

Your rainbow will come smiling through

No matter how your heart is grieving

If you keep on believing

the dream that you wish will come true