A Grandmother Begins the Story

Memoirist and poet Porter (Scratching River) offers a groundbreaking debut novel that traces the love and dysfunction running throughout five generations of Métis women. A large cast of narrators, primarily made up of Indigenous people, brings this story to life. Mamé (voiced by Tantoo Cardinal) and her daughter Geneviève, a tough old bird narrated by Jani Lauzon, come to terms with moving on to the afterlife. Lucie (portrayed by Monique Mojica) adamantly insists on dying with the help of a granddaughter she has never met, while Lucie’s daughter Allie meekly tries to reconnect to this child whom she placed for adoption. The women cling to their culture and also reject it as they try to repair relationships that may be beyond fixing and search for reasons to go on with life. The women’s narratives are joined by the stories of many others, including bison, the grasslands, an old Volvo, and two dogs. A delightful soundtrack, resplendent with fiddle reels and subtle drums, completes an already superb audiobook.