I received a complimentary electronic copy of this intense historical First Nations novel from BookSirens, and author Vella Munn. I am so pleased to have been introduced to this prolific First Nations author. She writes a moving family saga that will keep you enthralled. I am happy to recommend her work to friends and family.
Please, read this book. Research the background of the Chumash, the Modocs, Tillamuck and Coastal Salish, Timbsha, and the list goes on. But know that this is a heartwarming, family tale as well as a key to our history, and also know that you can enjoy it and appreciate a story of faith, hope, and love.
We are in Central and Southern California in 1809, home at that time to the Chumash People. The Chumash have deep roots in this coastal area along the Santa Barbara Channel and had lived continuously along the central and southern California coast for millennia. The Spanish Missionary period, 1542–1834, was a period of intense change for First Nation tribes in all of the Americas. These things happened all over the Americas as Europeans took over the land, but were especially nasty in the Pacific Coastal, Southern, and Southwestern US. Spain used their missionary system to control natives and keep Russia out of territory they considered to be their own. There were many cases of abuse, well documented, during the rapid development of the 'new' world. In 1834, Mexico took over control of the Spanish missions in what was the United States. I was astonished at the number of readers not aware of these heinous practices and felt Ms. Munn was attacking the Catholic Church and the concept of Christianity. The kidnapping and 're-education' of native children, slave labor in mission workshops and farms, and production of food items, wine, hides, etc for export by those enslaved native children and adults are a fact of history we all must own, like it or not. It had nothing to do with religion or politics but was strictly a for-profit endeavor. The massive cemeteries being discovered beside native 'schools' across the US tell a tale we cannot deny.
Reviewed on May 18, 2023, at Goodreads and BookSirens. Reviewed on May 24, 2023, at AmazonSmile, Barnes&Noble, BookBub, and Kobo.