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Becoming Little Shell: A Landless Indian’s Journey Home
From Montana Poet Laureate Chris La Tray, a singular story of discovery and embrace of Indigenous identity.
Growing up in Western Montana, Chris La Tray always identified as Indian. While the representation of Indigenous people was mostly limited to racist depictions in toys and television shows, and despite the fact that his father fiercely denied any connection, he found Indians alluring, often recalling his grandmother’s consistent mention of their Chippewa heritage.
When La Tray attended his grandfather’s funeral as a young man, he finally found himself surrounded by relatives who obviously were Indigenous. “Who were they?” he wondered. “Why didn’t I know them? Why was I never allowed to know them?” Catalyzed by the death of his father two decades later, La Tray embarks on a sprawling investigation. He takes a DNA test, which offers the first key clue to his heritage: a family tree. He scours the archives of used bookstores, interviews family, and travels to powwows, book fairs, and conferences. Combining diligent research with a growing number of encounters with Indigenous authors, activists, elders, and historians, he slowly pieces together his family history, and eventually seeks enrollment with the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians.
As La Tray comes to embrace his full identity, he discovers the rich history of his people. He learns of Métis origins and border crossings; usurped territories and broken treaties; exile and forced assimilation; poverty and food deprivation. He also encounters the devastating effects of settler colonialism rippling through surviving generations today, from the preservation of blood quantum laws and the trauma of boarding schools for Indigenous children to the ongoing crises of homelessness, addiction, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. And eventually he is moved to take part in their 158-year long struggle for federal recognition, unflinchingly documenting past and present along the way.
Brimming with propulsive, vibrant storytelling, Becoming Little Shell is a major contribution to the burgeoning literature of Native America.
Growing up in Western Montana, Chris La Tray always identified as Indian. While the representation of Indigenous people was mostly limited to racist depictions in toys and television shows, and despite the fact that his father fiercely denied any connection, he found Indians alluring, often recalling his grandmother’s consistent mention of their Chippewa heritage.
When La Tray attended his grandfather’s funeral as a young man, he finally found himself surrounded by relatives who obviously were Indigenous. “Who were they?” he wondered. “Why didn’t I know them? Why was I never allowed to know them?” Catalyzed by the death of his father two decades later, La Tray embarks on a sprawling investigation. He takes a DNA test, which offers the first key clue to his heritage: a family tree. He scours the archives of used bookstores, interviews family, and travels to powwows, book fairs, and conferences. Combining diligent research with a growing number of encounters with Indigenous authors, activists, elders, and historians, he slowly pieces together his family history, and eventually seeks enrollment with the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians.
As La Tray comes to embrace his full identity, he discovers the rich history of his people. He learns of Métis origins and border crossings; usurped territories and broken treaties; exile and forced assimilation; poverty and food deprivation. He also encounters the devastating effects of settler colonialism rippling through surviving generations today, from the preservation of blood quantum laws and the trauma of boarding schools for Indigenous children to the ongoing crises of homelessness, addiction, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. And eventually he is moved to take part in their 158-year long struggle for federal recognition, unflinchingly documenting past and present along the way.
Brimming with propulsive, vibrant storytelling, Becoming Little Shell is a major contribution to the burgeoning literature of Native America.
320 pages, Hardcover
First published August 20, 2024
149 people are currently reading
4665 people want to read
About the author
Chris LaTray
12 books158 followersChris La Tray is a Métis storyteller, a descendent of the Pembina Band of the mighty Red River of the North and a citizen of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians.
His third book, Becoming Little Shell: A Landless Indian’s Journey Home, was published by Milkweed Editions on August 20, 2024 and has received a number of accolades including a Pacific Northwest Book Award and a Writing the West Award and Best Memoir of the Year selections from both People and Esquire magazines.
His first book, One-Sentence Journal: Short Poems and Essays from the World at Large won the 2018 Montana Book Award and a 2019 High Plains Book Award. His book of haiku and haibun poetry, Descended from a Travel-worn Satchel, was published in 2021 by Foothills Publishing.
Chris served as the 2025 Kittredge Distinguished Visiting Writer at the University of Montana and was awarded the 2025 Montana Heritage Keeper Award by the Montana Historical Society. Chris writes the weekly newsletter "An Irritable Métis" and lives near Frenchtown, Montana. He was the 11th Montana Poet Laureate, holding that post for 2023–2025.
https://chrislatray.substack.com
His third book, Becoming Little Shell: A Landless Indian’s Journey Home, was published by Milkweed Editions on August 20, 2024 and has received a number of accolades including a Pacific Northwest Book Award and a Writing the West Award and Best Memoir of the Year selections from both People and Esquire magazines.
His first book, One-Sentence Journal: Short Poems and Essays from the World at Large won the 2018 Montana Book Award and a 2019 High Plains Book Award. His book of haiku and haibun poetry, Descended from a Travel-worn Satchel, was published in 2021 by Foothills Publishing.
Chris served as the 2025 Kittredge Distinguished Visiting Writer at the University of Montana and was awarded the 2025 Montana Heritage Keeper Award by the Montana Historical Society. Chris writes the weekly newsletter "An Irritable Métis" and lives near Frenchtown, Montana. He was the 11th Montana Poet Laureate, holding that post for 2023–2025.
https://chrislatray.substack.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
August 11, 2024
Phenomenal interweaving of personal journey and the story of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians in their efforts to achieve federal restoration. Authentic, emotional, yet grounded in facts.
December 30, 2024
I wrote a review on Latrays book:
While Becoming Little Shell: A Landless Indian’s Journey Home by Chris La Tray offers a heartfelt and personal account of the author’s quest to reconnect with his Indigenous heritage, the book has several notable shortcomings that hinder its overall effectiveness. One major flaw is the lack of critical engagement with the current leadership of the Little Shell Tribe, particularly the role of Gerald Gray Jr., who has been widely recognized as a fraud and not truly affiliated with the Little Shell people. La Tray’s omission of this controversy is surprising, especially given the memoir’s focus on the Little Shell Tribe’s identity and the complexities of their struggle for recognition. By failing to question Gray’s legitimacy and the broader implications of his leadership, La Tray misses an important opportunity to challenge a significant issue that has impacted the tribe’s credibility and governance.
Beyond this, the memoir’s subjective nature limits its ability to provide a comprehensive historical context of the Little Shell Tribe’s experiences. While La Tray’s personal journey offers insight into his individual connection to the tribe, it often veers away from a deeper exploration of the tribe’s collective history and struggles. The narrative sometimes feels like an introspective reflection rather than an informative, critical examination of the political, social, and cultural challenges faced by the Little Shell people.
While Becoming Little Shell: A Landless Indian’s Journey Home by Chris La Tray offers a heartfelt and personal account of the author’s quest to reconnect with his Indigenous heritage, the book has several notable shortcomings that hinder its overall effectiveness. One major flaw is the lack of critical engagement with the current leadership of the Little Shell Tribe, particularly the role of Gerald Gray Jr., who has been widely recognized as a fraud and not truly affiliated with the Little Shell people. La Tray’s omission of this controversy is surprising, especially given the memoir’s focus on the Little Shell Tribe’s identity and the complexities of their struggle for recognition. By failing to question Gray’s legitimacy and the broader implications of his leadership, La Tray misses an important opportunity to challenge a significant issue that has impacted the tribe’s credibility and governance.
Beyond this, the memoir’s subjective nature limits its ability to provide a comprehensive historical context of the Little Shell Tribe’s experiences. While La Tray’s personal journey offers insight into his individual connection to the tribe, it often veers away from a deeper exploration of the tribe’s collective history and struggles. The narrative sometimes feels like an introspective reflection rather than an informative, critical examination of the political, social, and cultural challenges faced by the Little Shell people.
May 30, 2024
4.5 stars
Extremely interesting historical information and personal experience. Plain spoken and beautifully told at the same time. The sequence of the chapters makes so much sense emotionally even as the author moves us around in space and time. Really glad to have read this one.
(NB I read an uncorrected proof of this book provided by its publisher.)
Extremely interesting historical information and personal experience. Plain spoken and beautifully told at the same time. The sequence of the chapters makes so much sense emotionally even as the author moves us around in space and time. Really glad to have read this one.
(NB I read an uncorrected proof of this book provided by its publisher.)
Read
November 21, 2024the investigation of native history and cultural issues can be a bit 101-level, although it generally deepens as the book progresses, fitting with the journey of discovery La Tray is on. as a memoir, the best and worst thing going for La Tray is La Tray: he’s very earnest, and comes off as a sweet guy, and that keep things rolling along even when the book itself starts to drag. his reflections are both fascinating and scattered, with the genuine insights distributed unevenly amidst biographical details that sometimes feel a bit chaff-heavy — there are some sections that feel a little too much like Grandpa Simpson telling you how he tied an onion to his belt, which was the style at the time…
November 4, 2024
What a gift of a book! I eagerly awaited this one since learning it was in the works, and it's a beautiful journey through what it means to embrace one's becoming. Highly recommended.
September 20, 2024
Part memoir, part Native American history that is not talked about in most places, part searching for family connection and tribal identity. All engaging. Chris La Tray shares his imagination, humor, wonder, frustration, sadness, hope and compassion.
August 16, 2024
i take a breath. i'm part of this, part of them. i wipe the sweat from my brow and take a quick look around me for snakes. then i follow the trail down the slope, across time, through genocide and diaspora, and fear and death and now rebirth, to food, to companionship, and increasingly, to community.chris la tray's becoming little shell is a moving, spirited memoir of self-discovery, governmental violence and betrayal, generational trauma, heritage reclaimed, and cultural (re)connection. la tray, métis storyteller and montana poet laureate, braids personal history and historical accounts into a compelling narrative of identity, legacy, and healing. as he sets out to discover his own indigenous roots, la tray's story broadens from one of self to one of community, leading to his eventual membership in the little shell tribe of chippewa indians and their fight for (long overdue) federal recognition. becoming little shell, like many such accounts, is a bittersweet reckoning with the injurious past, tempered by growth, acknowledgement, resilience, and restoration. la tray writes candidly, with a blunt and blackish humor, and becoming little shell is an emotive, expressive work of past and present.
i'm committed to uncovering the culture of my people. i'm committed to learning as much of the language as i can. i've always loved this land, and i've always loved indian people. the more i dig into it, the more i interact with my indian relatives, the more it blooms in my heart. the more it blooms in my spirit. focusing on this rhetoric over blood and race is a smokescreen to mask the slow roll of continued genocide.
September 5, 2024
Chris LaTray has a gift. He has written a memoir that is interesting and educational and also so personal. And, he does it in a way that feels completely conversational. This book goes into the history of Montana and the landless Indians as well as the background of Metis, Little Shell Tribe and colonization in the western states. It was a journey that I happily went on, as I followed LaTray in becoming an enrolled member as well as federal recognition for his tribe. His voice is similar to Gabrielle Union's and Michelle Obama's where it was personal and inviting, even with the serious subject matter. This is a love letter to his Indigenous roots as well as a love letter to Montana. Chris LaTray self describes as a Métis storyteller, but to me, he is a storyteller, full stop.
I received an arc from the publisher but all opinions are my own.
ETA: Staff Pick 9/24
I received an arc from the publisher but all opinions are my own.
ETA: Staff Pick 9/24
September 13, 2024
I learned so much about American Indians that I didn’t know and still feel unclear about since their treatment has been so varied and complicated compounded by a culture who values societal obligations differently. But to have these questions in my head helps me to understand what has been done to La Tray’s culture and family.
The concept of his subtitle ‘A Landless Indian’s Journey Home’ helps explain what he does in detail in the book. The writing becomes bogged down in excruciating specifics. I am sure they are necessary but I learn from storytelling and I found the facts exceeded the narrative and for me that’s a turn off.
What I am grateful for though is a shaky understanding of Blood Quotients, reservation decisions, border conceptions by different cultures, tribal cultures, and a vision of the difficulties of trying to sort out fair decisions for his people, Little Shell.
The concept of his subtitle ‘A Landless Indian’s Journey Home’ helps explain what he does in detail in the book. The writing becomes bogged down in excruciating specifics. I am sure they are necessary but I learn from storytelling and I found the facts exceeded the narrative and for me that’s a turn off.
What I am grateful for though is a shaky understanding of Blood Quotients, reservation decisions, border conceptions by different cultures, tribal cultures, and a vision of the difficulties of trying to sort out fair decisions for his people, Little Shell.
September 5, 2025
Ancestry can be a fraught exploration in all sorts of circumstances, but it is a particular mix of enlightening and painful when one's history is rooted in the forced movements and attempted eradication of North America's Indigenous tribes. When it came to Chris La Tray's ancestral past, both confirmed and denied by relatives, the revelations are even more bittersweet. Through his research, he learns more about the struggles and triumphs of the Métis people, and after piecing together more recent history, he applies to the tribe of their descendants, the Little Shell. Many of today's Little Shell call Montana home, but they have no "official" land of their own. This book gives a basic explanation of why (though at the end, La Tray lists many other further references one can read). As both a memoir and account of history, it's compelling.
Admittedly, many of us, myself included, have gaps in our knowledge. I grew up in Montana, and we are all required to have a certain amount of what they called "Indian Education" and Montana history, so I learned some things in my school days —and some teachers made an extra effort, and the Native American clubs in both my middle and high school were quite active— but most of my knowledge has been acquired as an adult. This book certainly gave me even more information.
Chris LaTray was on my radar as a Montana writer for a few years before the release of this memoir. Somewhere or another, I was recommended his newsletter (I recommend it to you, "An Irritable Métis"), and on some Missoula visit or another, I picked up his book One-Sentence Journal: Short Poems and Essays From the World At Large while shopping at Fact & Fiction, a store he once worked at, I learned from the bookseller on duty that day. Montana is a bit of a "small town" state in that you're never really more than a hop-skip-jump to mutual connection. When we were both on (the artist-formerly-known-as) Twitter, we followed each other, and we've spoken briefly at a handful of events. His writing voice is very near his public-facing event mode, and the man has a schedule that would exhaust most people. I really respect his way of doing things, and how seriously he has taken his role as Montana Poet Laureate.
I got a lot of enjoyment out of reading about places familiar to me, particularly Great Falls and Lewistown. Somehow, I didn't know the story of how Hill 57 got its name! Still, even if you're not from around here, I wholeheartedly recommend reading this. You'll probably learn a lot.
Admittedly, many of us, myself included, have gaps in our knowledge. I grew up in Montana, and we are all required to have a certain amount of what they called "Indian Education" and Montana history, so I learned some things in my school days —and some teachers made an extra effort, and the Native American clubs in both my middle and high school were quite active— but most of my knowledge has been acquired as an adult. This book certainly gave me even more information.
Chris LaTray was on my radar as a Montana writer for a few years before the release of this memoir. Somewhere or another, I was recommended his newsletter (I recommend it to you, "An Irritable Métis"), and on some Missoula visit or another, I picked up his book One-Sentence Journal: Short Poems and Essays From the World At Large while shopping at Fact & Fiction, a store he once worked at, I learned from the bookseller on duty that day. Montana is a bit of a "small town" state in that you're never really more than a hop-skip-jump to mutual connection. When we were both on (the artist-formerly-known-as) Twitter, we followed each other, and we've spoken briefly at a handful of events. His writing voice is very near his public-facing event mode, and the man has a schedule that would exhaust most people. I really respect his way of doing things, and how seriously he has taken his role as Montana Poet Laureate.
I got a lot of enjoyment out of reading about places familiar to me, particularly Great Falls and Lewistown. Somehow, I didn't know the story of how Hill 57 got its name! Still, even if you're not from around here, I wholeheartedly recommend reading this. You'll probably learn a lot.
October 8, 2024
On the last page of his book Chris La Tray writes that he set out to write it as a Little Shell person in service to his Little Shell people, but ended up writing it in service to the whole world. I was glad to read that, because I'm not "his people" and I almost felt guilty for enjoying this book so much.
I have trace amounts of native heritage, I learned recently, and upon getting the details, I was surprised and dismayed to learn that one of my forebears, a Chief of the Turtle Clan of the Mohawk Tribe in the 1600s gave his daughter in marriage to a Dutch settler. Chris's book helped me understand by his explanation about the Metis people how this wasn't a cruelty on the part of a Father. Marriages were arranged as the norm; it was mutually beneficial to both parties. The settler/colonizer needed the knowledge of the native for his mere survival, and the bride's whole tribe benefitted in certain ways from the union.
It was also thrilling for me to hear mentioned the names of towns, rivers, mountain ranges, and yes, Indian reservations, because Montana is my home state. I grew up in the Milk River country of Malta and Glasgow, as well as Butte and Helena as a child. When my high school basketball team played the Browning Indians and other rez towns in our class A school, I was in awe and thrilled to see those brown boys and their bball skills.
I went to college at U of MT in Missoula. But like so many other Montana kids that got degrees at the state schools there, we left Montana pretty much out of necessity, to find work worthy of our degrees. Like Chris, some of my classmates went west to Seattle, many to California. A couple of us from my class went east, and now, many years later, I find myself in the Great Lakes region. I suppose many make their way back, but I haven't been able to do so. Now a single woman, I am pretty much priced out of the real estate market, in a place that I hear is very popular for wealthy Californians to buy property. I am becoming increasingly sad about it. All my family reside in various towns in Montana.
Which brings me to another big take-away from Becoming Little Shell. Despite their suffering and terrible mistreatment by past and current white people, Native Americans have something many settler whites don't -- a strong sense of community. My daughter was told at her college orientation to "find her tribe" in order to have the best experience at school. I know now that the meaning behind this expression should not be underestimated. It is potent and sage advice for a happier life. My family is one of those that does not know how to be, or care to be close. I yearn for those familial connections for myself and my children, as La Tray has found with his Little Shell people.
As 7th graders in Montana school systems, we had a whole year of Montana History. It comes to my mind frequently, for some reason. I remember covering topics like the fur trade and the Hudson Bay Co., as well as weeks spent on the Lewis and Clark Expedition. But reading La Tray's book made me realize the gaps in my knowledge of my home state.
I have trace amounts of native heritage, I learned recently, and upon getting the details, I was surprised and dismayed to learn that one of my forebears, a Chief of the Turtle Clan of the Mohawk Tribe in the 1600s gave his daughter in marriage to a Dutch settler. Chris's book helped me understand by his explanation about the Metis people how this wasn't a cruelty on the part of a Father. Marriages were arranged as the norm; it was mutually beneficial to both parties. The settler/colonizer needed the knowledge of the native for his mere survival, and the bride's whole tribe benefitted in certain ways from the union.
It was also thrilling for me to hear mentioned the names of towns, rivers, mountain ranges, and yes, Indian reservations, because Montana is my home state. I grew up in the Milk River country of Malta and Glasgow, as well as Butte and Helena as a child. When my high school basketball team played the Browning Indians and other rez towns in our class A school, I was in awe and thrilled to see those brown boys and their bball skills.
I went to college at U of MT in Missoula. But like so many other Montana kids that got degrees at the state schools there, we left Montana pretty much out of necessity, to find work worthy of our degrees. Like Chris, some of my classmates went west to Seattle, many to California. A couple of us from my class went east, and now, many years later, I find myself in the Great Lakes region. I suppose many make their way back, but I haven't been able to do so. Now a single woman, I am pretty much priced out of the real estate market, in a place that I hear is very popular for wealthy Californians to buy property. I am becoming increasingly sad about it. All my family reside in various towns in Montana.
Which brings me to another big take-away from Becoming Little Shell. Despite their suffering and terrible mistreatment by past and current white people, Native Americans have something many settler whites don't -- a strong sense of community. My daughter was told at her college orientation to "find her tribe" in order to have the best experience at school. I know now that the meaning behind this expression should not be underestimated. It is potent and sage advice for a happier life. My family is one of those that does not know how to be, or care to be close. I yearn for those familial connections for myself and my children, as La Tray has found with his Little Shell people.
As 7th graders in Montana school systems, we had a whole year of Montana History. It comes to my mind frequently, for some reason. I remember covering topics like the fur trade and the Hudson Bay Co., as well as weeks spent on the Lewis and Clark Expedition. But reading La Tray's book made me realize the gaps in my knowledge of my home state.
May 11, 2025
After reading Chris LaTray's One Sentence Journal, I was excited to have the opportunity to spend the day with him last year on a cultural tour he led in partnership with Yellowstone Forever. That day, I bought this memoir and he signed it for me. I don't usually get Celebrity Syndrome, but Chris LaTray is the kind of person I want to be when I grow up, and I feel privileged to have spent some time in his presence.
Subscribe to his newsletter on Substack.
Subscribe to his newsletter on Substack.
October 11, 2024
A book of revelations. One revelation is the “creation” (defined as long overdue federal recognition) of the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians. Little Shell people, a.k.a. Metis people have an amazing, centuries-old Western history spanning the border of the U.S. and Canada. Unfortunately it was – and they were – marginalized for more than a century. “We haven’t gone anywhere,” author Chris LaTray defiantly writes, “and we’re still here, stronger than ever.” Becoming Little Shell’s twin revelation is LaTray finding and embracing his heritage. When his father dies, LaTray discovers he belongs “to something larger.” He is part of what he calls the “Metis Archipelago.” (Full disclosure: LaTray and I worked together for the University of Montana student newspaper.) The blended narratives of a man discovering himself and a people earning overdue recognition from Montana and the United States comes across as beautifully as fine Metis beadwork.
October 27, 2024
Montana's poet laureate embarks on a memoir of self discovery into his indigeneity, which his father has denied. An ordinary life shines in this masterful storytelling. His father's death was the catalyst for this journey. Heartfelt, sincere, and informative. Miigwech to Chris La Tray for educating us on the Little Shell Tribe, the 574th tribe recognized by the federal government in 2019.
December 12, 2024
Author Chris LaTray presents a compelling narrative of identity and history, offering both a and personal perspective on being a landless Native American. He embarks on a journey to secure federal recognition for the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewas of Montana. This book is ideal for those who support Native American causes and others in their history.
May 9, 2025
I loved the narrative of this book and the amount of research the author took in finding his roots in the tribe he was most associated with. In his writing you can tell how passionate he was in being accepted into the Little Shell tribe and the injustice the Indians, as a whole in the Montana area, they received in terms of land treaties and their rights as citizens of the land.
August 31, 2025
I was hoping this would be more of a narrative about a quest for identity. Instead, it read more like a history book with tangents about a search for identity and tangents raging (though justified) against the actions of historical US government administrations.
October 30, 2024
I liked this mix of history and personal journey!
December 17, 2024
Great read, very nice blend of memoir and history.
October 12, 2024
There were times I struggled with the pace of this book, but in the end it’s really lovely. As the author researches his heritage, he offers us vivid, lyrical descriptions of the landscapes he loves.
October 1, 2024
Chris LaTray's story is an important piece of living history. The amount of American History completely passed over by the public school system is shameful. I'm thankful to books like this and others like Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz An Indigenous People's History of the United States, for filling in some of my gaps of knowledge. This book was great because it read like a memoir yet contained a lot of important interesting history. Even more fun, I was reading this book while visiting Missoula, so the places mentioned all felt very real and present. What happened to the indigenous people in the USA is not old news, as Chris's story highlights, and it's very much ongoing. I highly recommend this book as an interesting piece on identity, self-exploration, and Native history of the Montana/Northwest region of the US.
October 12, 2024
I am not an Indian. Oh, there's rumored to be some Cherokee blood floating around in here, but the overwhelming majority of the family is Second Potato Famine Irish. For that reason I was reluctant to pick up Becoming Little Shell: A Landless Indian’s Journey Home. I was afraid that, not only would I not be the correct audience, but that my reading would take a copy of the book away from its proper audience. After reading Becoming Little Shell: A Landless Indian’s Journey Home I do not believe either of those worries were necessarily correct.
As a history/biography of his Indian community, I don't think I read a single word that was familiar to me. Other than seeking out the knowledge on my own, I'm not completely sure where I should have learned about things like the Hudson's Bay Company or how blood quantum actually works out. Being non-BIPOC, there were sections where I needed to sit with my discomfort. It's not enough to blithely disclaim that "I didn't do it, and most of my family wasn't here to do it, either!" I am the recipient of privileges because of people who did "do it." I'm not sure exactly what I'm supposed to do about it now. I'm not completely sure Chris LaTray wants me to generally do anything other than go forth with a greater consciousness and understanding. That, I can certainly do.
I think the number one thing that I liked about Chris LaTray was that he is open and honest about being on a journey. I like Chris LaTray. He's a fellow Gen X, for sure! I was completely unfamiliar with him or his work prior to reading. (I need to look up his band. It sounds right up my alley.) He's a gifted storyteller, honest in his emotions. I am glad to have "met" him. If I ever found myself somehow able to chat with him I think we would have a lot to talk about.
I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways. #LittleShell
As a history/biography of his Indian community, I don't think I read a single word that was familiar to me. Other than seeking out the knowledge on my own, I'm not completely sure where I should have learned about things like the Hudson's Bay Company or how blood quantum actually works out. Being non-BIPOC, there were sections where I needed to sit with my discomfort. It's not enough to blithely disclaim that "I didn't do it, and most of my family wasn't here to do it, either!" I am the recipient of privileges because of people who did "do it." I'm not sure exactly what I'm supposed to do about it now. I'm not completely sure Chris LaTray wants me to generally do anything other than go forth with a greater consciousness and understanding. That, I can certainly do.
I think the number one thing that I liked about Chris LaTray was that he is open and honest about being on a journey. I like Chris LaTray. He's a fellow Gen X, for sure! I was completely unfamiliar with him or his work prior to reading. (I need to look up his band. It sounds right up my alley.) He's a gifted storyteller, honest in his emotions. I am glad to have "met" him. If I ever found myself somehow able to chat with him I think we would have a lot to talk about.
I received this book for free through Goodreads Giveaways. #LittleShell
September 9, 2024
Becoming Little Shell by Chris LaTray is the deeply moving telling of his personal journey as he seeks connection with his Native ancestors while also revealing the struggles of his tribe, the “landless” Little Shell Tribe of the Chippewa Indians. “Landless” because of the nonstop broken treaties and land grab by the relentless stream of settlers moving west, resulting in the removal of Native people from the lands they had inhabited for centuries. In this case, the tribe lived in Montana, near the Canadian border. LaTray is direct and compassionate in his storytelling without being sentimental. When he delves into his Metis ancestry, his discussion of the racism the Metis encountered is very matter-of-fact. Poignantly, near the end of Becoming Little Shell, LaTray says, “The Indigenous part of who I am is still blossoming, and I do my best to embody it every day.” A charge for all of us to embrace- to blossom- be it with our Native roots or those of other cultures. The book ends with the satisfying news that the Little Shell Tribe did receive the federal recognition they had been seeking.
September 18, 2024
I am so, so glad I read this book. Chris La Tray is a storyteller of the highest order.
September 8, 2024
Chris LaTray has written an engrossing read about the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians in Montana, and his connection to the community. Filled with little-known information about the tribe and the process of how the United States has failed the Indigenous people in this country due to broken treaties. He provides a wealth of information about the process of what it means to be a federally recognized tribe. I found this book incredibly interesting and important for all Americans to understand the history of this tribe and that of other Indigenous communities. Outstanding.
February 9, 2025
Missoulan, Montanean and Little Shell Tribe member, Chris La Tray weaves his story of discovering and embracing his heritage with the history and story of the Little Shell Tribe of the Chippewa Indians of Montana, their 156 years as landless Indians, how this happened, its part of Metis culture, it's connection to the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, its fight for recognition as a tribe from the federal government - granted in Dec 20th 2019 in the Daines-Tester amendment Little Shell Tribal Recognition Act added to the defense bill. The bill was spearheaded by Tester who brought Daines on-board and being a man of valor and integrity did not impede the bill's progress when the status concious Repbulican Majority Leader Senator McConnell required the name be changed from its original Tester-Daines amendment.
In his telling the tribe has been landless for the 156 years since the Treaty of Old Crossing was passed in 1863. The treaty was explained to the Indians as : US government wanted "right of passage" through 11 million acres of prime woodlands and prairie on either side of the Red River. However, as it was revised it was a land grab. Little Shell II refused to sign the changes made by the US government thus being left out of recognition as part of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Tribe. The revised agreement Little Shell II refused to sign brought the size of the land the US government "allotted" to the Turtle Mountain Band Tribe down from their original 11 million acres of ancestral lands to a reservation with the area of 12 miles by 6 miles.
Chris La Tray writes in a very down-to-earth manner almost as if he were simply across the table talking to you. I am thankful for the Notes at the back which allowed me to look up Nicholas Vrooman's "The Whole Country Was.. One Robe" presentation on CSPAN and find photos of Metis culture and the sash among other interesting points of history. Living in Montana myself it was also interesting to read about all the places with their rich history of Native Americans which is so largely unknown.
From the Jacket Cover:
Growing up in Western Montana, Chris La Tray always identified as Indian. While the representation of Indigenous people was mostly limited to racist depictions in toys and television shows, and despite the fact that his father fiercely denied any connection, he found Indians alluring, often recalling his grandmother’s consistent mention of their Chippewa heritage.
When La Tray attended his grandfather’s funeral as a young man, he finally found himself surrounded by relatives who obviously were Indigenous. “Who were they?” he wondered. “Why didn’t I know them? Why was I never allowed to know them?” Catalyzed by the death of his father two decades later, La Tray embarks on a sprawling investigation. He takes a DNA test, which offers the first key clue to his heritage: a family tree. He scours the archives of used bookstores, interviews family, and travels to powwows, book fairs, and conferences. Combining diligent research with a growing number of encounters with Indigenous authors, activists, elders, and historians, he slowly pieces together his family history, and eventually seeks enrollment with the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians.
As La Tray comes to embrace his full identity, he discovers the rich history of his people. He learns of Métis origins and border crossings; usurped territories and broken treaties; exile and forced assimilation; poverty and food deprivation. He also encounters the devastating effects of settler colonialism rippling through surviving generations today, from the preservation of blood quantum laws and the trauma of boarding schools for Indigenous children to the ongoing crises of homelessness, addiction, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. And eventually he is moved to take part in their 158-year long struggle for federal recognition, unflinchingly documenting past and present along the way.
Brimming with propulsive, vibrant storytelling, Becoming Little Shell is a major contribution to the burgeoning literature of Native America.
In his telling the tribe has been landless for the 156 years since the Treaty of Old Crossing was passed in 1863. The treaty was explained to the Indians as : US government wanted "right of passage" through 11 million acres of prime woodlands and prairie on either side of the Red River. However, as it was revised it was a land grab. Little Shell II refused to sign the changes made by the US government thus being left out of recognition as part of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Tribe. The revised agreement Little Shell II refused to sign brought the size of the land the US government "allotted" to the Turtle Mountain Band Tribe down from their original 11 million acres of ancestral lands to a reservation with the area of 12 miles by 6 miles.
Chris La Tray writes in a very down-to-earth manner almost as if he were simply across the table talking to you. I am thankful for the Notes at the back which allowed me to look up Nicholas Vrooman's "The Whole Country Was.. One Robe" presentation on CSPAN and find photos of Metis culture and the sash among other interesting points of history. Living in Montana myself it was also interesting to read about all the places with their rich history of Native Americans which is so largely unknown.
From the Jacket Cover:
Growing up in Western Montana, Chris La Tray always identified as Indian. While the representation of Indigenous people was mostly limited to racist depictions in toys and television shows, and despite the fact that his father fiercely denied any connection, he found Indians alluring, often recalling his grandmother’s consistent mention of their Chippewa heritage.
When La Tray attended his grandfather’s funeral as a young man, he finally found himself surrounded by relatives who obviously were Indigenous. “Who were they?” he wondered. “Why didn’t I know them? Why was I never allowed to know them?” Catalyzed by the death of his father two decades later, La Tray embarks on a sprawling investigation. He takes a DNA test, which offers the first key clue to his heritage: a family tree. He scours the archives of used bookstores, interviews family, and travels to powwows, book fairs, and conferences. Combining diligent research with a growing number of encounters with Indigenous authors, activists, elders, and historians, he slowly pieces together his family history, and eventually seeks enrollment with the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians.
As La Tray comes to embrace his full identity, he discovers the rich history of his people. He learns of Métis origins and border crossings; usurped territories and broken treaties; exile and forced assimilation; poverty and food deprivation. He also encounters the devastating effects of settler colonialism rippling through surviving generations today, from the preservation of blood quantum laws and the trauma of boarding schools for Indigenous children to the ongoing crises of homelessness, addiction, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women. And eventually he is moved to take part in their 158-year long struggle for federal recognition, unflinchingly documenting past and present along the way.
Brimming with propulsive, vibrant storytelling, Becoming Little Shell is a major contribution to the burgeoning literature of Native America.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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April 7, 20254.5 STARS
I've been following La Tray's newsletter, An Irritable Métis, for a little over a year now (bless Anne Helen Petersen for recommending him). This is his most recent publication, and I put it on hold long before it became available at my library. Alas, I started reading this book when work picked up and I sank into a reading slump, so I returned the book before I finished but put it on hold again, and now I've completed it!
I'm sad that it's only in the last few years that I've learned more about indigenous communities and the unique struggles they face. Years ago, many higher education institutions started implementing Land Acknowledgement statements (Ohlone for where I'm from in California; the Menominee and the Ho-Chunk nations where I teach in Wisconsin). When I moved to Wisconsin, I found that I had a lot of interactions with indigenous students. I taught at least two or three students per semester, and many times these students wanted to speak on issues impacting their communities. I learned a lot through their speeches and also found myself reading more material, both fiction and non-fiction, that covered topics like boarding schools and blood quantum. (Most recently, I read Angeline Boulley's The Firekeeper's Daughter.) So this book was welcome information for me, and I learned a lot more than I ever expected.
What I expected was something that felt more like a traditional memoir. While I think that would have been valuable, I like the direction that La Tray took instead. I think he felt it was his job to share what he learned, especially about the Little Shell tribe, but also on issues that impacted the tribal communities. I especially enjoyed chapters that highlighted women's issues and blood quantum. It's only recently that I've learned of what enrollment is, why it's important to sustaining tribal communities, and how difficult it can be to attain. La Tray sets out a very clear narrative for how tribal communities have suffered time and again against settlers and a federal government that, from the get-go, had the goal of annihilating these communities. What is ultimately so tragic is that these communities are beautiful in their connection to the land and their utter kindness to take others in, and it's so frustrating to see the US government inhibit these efforts and communities. Having read a little about groups of people who experience generational trauma, it becomes more understandable that some of these folks don't speak out, don't tell their kids their history, and turn their back on their heritage to appease others.
I really enjoyed reading about the Little Shell tribe in particular and the struggles it has gone through to federally recognized. (Also, wow, Jon Tester is a boss.) Collectively, all tribes have gone through significant harm, but a landless people like the Little Shell tribe underwent such dramatic isolation.
I would have enjoyed listening to this book, but the audiobook (if there is one) is not yet available to me. Having read some of La Tray's work in his newletter, I was familiar with his writing style. His prose is informative, often gentle and patient, with sparks of frustration. I love all of it. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to read this book.
--
PS. My days on GoodReads are likely numbered. If you all ever go to The StoryGraph, let's be friends there! Here's my profile.
I've been following La Tray's newsletter, An Irritable Métis, for a little over a year now (bless Anne Helen Petersen for recommending him). This is his most recent publication, and I put it on hold long before it became available at my library. Alas, I started reading this book when work picked up and I sank into a reading slump, so I returned the book before I finished but put it on hold again, and now I've completed it!
I'm sad that it's only in the last few years that I've learned more about indigenous communities and the unique struggles they face. Years ago, many higher education institutions started implementing Land Acknowledgement statements (Ohlone for where I'm from in California; the Menominee and the Ho-Chunk nations where I teach in Wisconsin). When I moved to Wisconsin, I found that I had a lot of interactions with indigenous students. I taught at least two or three students per semester, and many times these students wanted to speak on issues impacting their communities. I learned a lot through their speeches and also found myself reading more material, both fiction and non-fiction, that covered topics like boarding schools and blood quantum. (Most recently, I read Angeline Boulley's The Firekeeper's Daughter.) So this book was welcome information for me, and I learned a lot more than I ever expected.
What I expected was something that felt more like a traditional memoir. While I think that would have been valuable, I like the direction that La Tray took instead. I think he felt it was his job to share what he learned, especially about the Little Shell tribe, but also on issues that impacted the tribal communities. I especially enjoyed chapters that highlighted women's issues and blood quantum. It's only recently that I've learned of what enrollment is, why it's important to sustaining tribal communities, and how difficult it can be to attain. La Tray sets out a very clear narrative for how tribal communities have suffered time and again against settlers and a federal government that, from the get-go, had the goal of annihilating these communities. What is ultimately so tragic is that these communities are beautiful in their connection to the land and their utter kindness to take others in, and it's so frustrating to see the US government inhibit these efforts and communities. Having read a little about groups of people who experience generational trauma, it becomes more understandable that some of these folks don't speak out, don't tell their kids their history, and turn their back on their heritage to appease others.
I really enjoyed reading about the Little Shell tribe in particular and the struggles it has gone through to federally recognized. (Also, wow, Jon Tester is a boss.) Collectively, all tribes have gone through significant harm, but a landless people like the Little Shell tribe underwent such dramatic isolation.
I would have enjoyed listening to this book, but the audiobook (if there is one) is not yet available to me. Having read some of La Tray's work in his newletter, I was familiar with his writing style. His prose is informative, often gentle and patient, with sparks of frustration. I love all of it. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to read this book.
--
PS. My days on GoodReads are likely numbered. If you all ever go to The StoryGraph, let's be friends there! Here's my profile.
October 4, 2024
I have gently followed Chris La Tray on social media and through his Substack newsletter “An Irritable Métis.” Shortly after the release of his new book, Becoming Little Shell; a Landless Indian’s Journey Homeward, I somewhat reluctantly purchased a digital copy.
I’m happy to report that my reluctance was completely unfounded. This book is a fascinating dive into the history of our nation in the aftermath of the invasion of Europeans (or Settlers) in the 17th and 18th centuries. La Tray weaves the story of his life and search for self-identity with the story of Indigenous ethnic cleansing, genocide, and theft at the hands of the new inhabitants.
La Tray was denied his very ancestry due to the settler brain washing that stripped Indigenous peoples of their heritage, their pride, and the ties to the land and animals they had lived with for so long. In reflecting on this journey backward in time, he says:
I have no record of my father ever identifying as anything but white. Now, with so many different shades of people marrying and having children and trying on and abandoning identities, it’s that much more difficult to “prove” Indigenous heritage for those of us trying to, especially in a nation with such a narrow idea of what a Native person should look like. [p 40]
The book describes La Tray’s deep dive into where his people came from, how they became landless, and how inter-related landless Indian communities are. [p 95] His tribe, The Little Shell, was obliterated along with the buffalo. The formal name was adopted in 1978 to recognize a specific band of Chippewa/Ojibwe Indians. That was only the very beginning of a lengthy and complicated process to birth a sovereign nation. [p 270] Ancestral lines are polyethnic and difficult to connect. The children born of Settler blood mixed with Native blood came to be known as Métis, a blanket category that ignores specific tribal specifics and dehumanizing the progeny of such unions.
DNA doesn’t help all that much in the battle of proving that perplexing and divisive Blood Quantum registry. From reading this book, I have a slightly better understanding of Blood Law and a much better understanding of the term Métis.
La Tray brings the landscape to life with vivid descriptions that come from a heart that is open to wonder and through eyes that miss nothing. The description of a buffalo jump in Chapter 10 was visceral and alive—the best I’ve ever read of that practice. At times the writing is chatty, as if the author were sitting beside the fire with his reader. Despite the many threads, timelines, and locations this book encompasses, it is seamlessly fused with chapter titles that serve as road signs. The digital version also includes many links to important background material and even a link to a 1958 NBC program about the government’s Indian termination policy from 1940 to 1960. Throughout the book, the author humbly credits the people who helped him along in this journey of self-discovery. A lump formed in my throat and my eyes swam just a bit as I skimmed through his generous acknowledgements at the end of the book.
I enjoyed reading this book so much that I anticipate purchasing copies to give as Christmas gifts in December.
I’m happy to report that my reluctance was completely unfounded. This book is a fascinating dive into the history of our nation in the aftermath of the invasion of Europeans (or Settlers) in the 17th and 18th centuries. La Tray weaves the story of his life and search for self-identity with the story of Indigenous ethnic cleansing, genocide, and theft at the hands of the new inhabitants.
La Tray was denied his very ancestry due to the settler brain washing that stripped Indigenous peoples of their heritage, their pride, and the ties to the land and animals they had lived with for so long. In reflecting on this journey backward in time, he says:
I have no record of my father ever identifying as anything but white. Now, with so many different shades of people marrying and having children and trying on and abandoning identities, it’s that much more difficult to “prove” Indigenous heritage for those of us trying to, especially in a nation with such a narrow idea of what a Native person should look like. [p 40]
The book describes La Tray’s deep dive into where his people came from, how they became landless, and how inter-related landless Indian communities are. [p 95] His tribe, The Little Shell, was obliterated along with the buffalo. The formal name was adopted in 1978 to recognize a specific band of Chippewa/Ojibwe Indians. That was only the very beginning of a lengthy and complicated process to birth a sovereign nation. [p 270] Ancestral lines are polyethnic and difficult to connect. The children born of Settler blood mixed with Native blood came to be known as Métis, a blanket category that ignores specific tribal specifics and dehumanizing the progeny of such unions.
DNA doesn’t help all that much in the battle of proving that perplexing and divisive Blood Quantum registry. From reading this book, I have a slightly better understanding of Blood Law and a much better understanding of the term Métis.
La Tray brings the landscape to life with vivid descriptions that come from a heart that is open to wonder and through eyes that miss nothing. The description of a buffalo jump in Chapter 10 was visceral and alive—the best I’ve ever read of that practice. At times the writing is chatty, as if the author were sitting beside the fire with his reader. Despite the many threads, timelines, and locations this book encompasses, it is seamlessly fused with chapter titles that serve as road signs. The digital version also includes many links to important background material and even a link to a 1958 NBC program about the government’s Indian termination policy from 1940 to 1960. Throughout the book, the author humbly credits the people who helped him along in this journey of self-discovery. A lump formed in my throat and my eyes swam just a bit as I skimmed through his generous acknowledgements at the end of the book.
I enjoyed reading this book so much that I anticipate purchasing copies to give as Christmas gifts in December.
November 3, 2024
We’re all a little lost, most of us anyway, and we’re coming together to reengage with who we are, what we’ve been. It’s slow going—we are all just people after all, many of us buffeted by generations of trauma—but we make the effort. I make the effort, even when the urge to stand apart from it all is just as present as love.
I take a breath. I’m part of this, part of them. I wipe the sweat from my brow and take a quick look around me for snakes. Then I follow the trail down the slope, across time, through genocide and diaspora, and fear and death and now rebirth, to food, to companionship, and increasingly, to community.
In researching and writing this book, I’ve become more involved with the tribe than I imagined I would when all this started. I’ve learned much of our history and met some wonderful people. It’s so beautiful, and I’m so grateful to be part of it. I hope others feel the same way, even about the details I’ve probably misunderstood or gotten wrong. I’m so, so proud of who we are. I hope we’re all proud of who we are. I’m here writing to urge you, anyone who has fought against and continues to fight against erasure, oppression, genocide, and hatred, to be proud. Look at what we Little Shell have done. It’s been a fight at least 156 years in winning, but we’ve managed to outlast our opponents. All of them. We endured and we survived, and we triumphed. It’s what we do. We are the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians, and we’re the 574th federally recognized Indian tribe in the United States of America. And I am Little Shell.
A wonderful, wide-ranging memoir of an indigenous man recovering his lost identity as a Little Shell member, a must-read, inspiring and so important.
I take a breath. I’m part of this, part of them. I wipe the sweat from my brow and take a quick look around me for snakes. Then I follow the trail down the slope, across time, through genocide and diaspora, and fear and death and now rebirth, to food, to companionship, and increasingly, to community.
In researching and writing this book, I’ve become more involved with the tribe than I imagined I would when all this started. I’ve learned much of our history and met some wonderful people. It’s so beautiful, and I’m so grateful to be part of it. I hope others feel the same way, even about the details I’ve probably misunderstood or gotten wrong. I’m so, so proud of who we are. I hope we’re all proud of who we are. I’m here writing to urge you, anyone who has fought against and continues to fight against erasure, oppression, genocide, and hatred, to be proud. Look at what we Little Shell have done. It’s been a fight at least 156 years in winning, but we’ve managed to outlast our opponents. All of them. We endured and we survived, and we triumphed. It’s what we do. We are the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians, and we’re the 574th federally recognized Indian tribe in the United States of America. And I am Little Shell.
A wonderful, wide-ranging memoir of an indigenous man recovering his lost identity as a Little Shell member, a must-read, inspiring and so important.
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March 5, 2025Part memoir, part history: this is the story of 1) how the Little Shell finally became officially recognized by the United States, and 2) how the author connected with his Little Shell roots. His father never spoke of his background, and it was only recently that La Tray began his quest to establish a connection with the Little Shell people. This quest forever changed his life.
I'm not going to give this one a star rating. Mostly because memoirs aren't a genre I read often, and it's a genre whose norms don't line up with my focuses. I find history compelling and absorbing, as well as the way history influences the story of the present day. But although there was definitely history in this book, it felt a bit limited and never explored it as deeply as I wanted it to. The focus is instead on La Tray's journey, his exploration of his identity, and how that recognition of his identity (by both himself and his people) mirrors the extremely belated recognition of the identity of the Little Shell people by the US.
La Tray's style is meandering and at times poetic, slowly winding its way through the years in a conversational style. He thoughtfully explores his identity and how he interacts with many other Little Shell people now that he has claimed it. My instinct (not knowing genre norms for memoirs very well) is to say that I imagine this is a very good memoir. I just may not be a memoirs person.
(By way of contrast, I just finished Rebecca Nagle's By The Fire We Carry: The Generations-Long Fight for Justice on Native Land, and I found that book incredibly compelling and impossible to put down.)
I'm not going to give this one a star rating. Mostly because memoirs aren't a genre I read often, and it's a genre whose norms don't line up with my focuses. I find history compelling and absorbing, as well as the way history influences the story of the present day. But although there was definitely history in this book, it felt a bit limited and never explored it as deeply as I wanted it to. The focus is instead on La Tray's journey, his exploration of his identity, and how that recognition of his identity (by both himself and his people) mirrors the extremely belated recognition of the identity of the Little Shell people by the US.
La Tray's style is meandering and at times poetic, slowly winding its way through the years in a conversational style. He thoughtfully explores his identity and how he interacts with many other Little Shell people now that he has claimed it. My instinct (not knowing genre norms for memoirs very well) is to say that I imagine this is a very good memoir. I just may not be a memoirs person.
(By way of contrast, I just finished Rebecca Nagle's By The Fire We Carry: The Generations-Long Fight for Justice on Native Land, and I found that book incredibly compelling and impossible to put down.)
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