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Truth And Bright Water
With a plethora of superb reviews and upcoming publication in the US, Thomas King’s latest work affirms him as one of our wittiest and wisest writers. Truth & Bright Water is the tale of two young cousins and one long summer. Tecumseh and Lum live in Truth, a small American town, and Bright Water, the reserve across the border and over the river. Family is the only reason most of the people stay in the towns, and yet old secrets and new mysteries keep pulling the more nomadic residents back to the fold.
Monroe Swimmer, famous Indian artist, returns to live in the old church with the hope of painting it into the prairie landscape and re-establishing the buffalo population. Tecumseh’s Aunt Cassie has come back too, already arguing with his mother. Why has his mother given Cassie a suitcase full of baby clothes? And why is Lum interested only in winning the Indian Days race?
Tecumseh has more questions than anyone will answer, until the Indian Days festival arrives and the mysteries of the summer collide in love, betrayal and reconciliation. Equally plainspoken and poetic, comic and poignant, Truth & Bright Water is a crackling good story that resonates with universal truths.
Monroe Swimmer, famous Indian artist, returns to live in the old church with the hope of painting it into the prairie landscape and re-establishing the buffalo population. Tecumseh’s Aunt Cassie has come back too, already arguing with his mother. Why has his mother given Cassie a suitcase full of baby clothes? And why is Lum interested only in winning the Indian Days race?
Tecumseh has more questions than anyone will answer, until the Indian Days festival arrives and the mysteries of the summer collide in love, betrayal and reconciliation. Equally plainspoken and poetic, comic and poignant, Truth & Bright Water is a crackling good story that resonates with universal truths.
288 pages, Paperback
First published August 19, 1999
33 people are currently reading
1598 people want to read
About the author
Thomas King
103 books1,286 followersThomas King was born in 1943 in Sacramento, California and is of Greek and German descent. He obtained his PhD from the University of Utah in 1986. He is known for works in which he addresses the marginalization of American Indians, delineates "pan-Indian" concerns and histories, and attempts to abolish common stereotypes about Native Americans. He taught Native American Studies at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta, Canada, and at the University of Minnesota. He is currently a Professor of English at the University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada. King has become one of the foremost writers of fiction about Canada's Native people.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 122 reviews
July 12, 2022
Jul 12, 2022, 430pm ~~ I added the paragraphs below to this original review just a few hours ago when I was setting up to read this book again. And as I mentioned, the print SHRANK since the last time I read it. I will have to save this reread for Someday when I get younger glasses. lol
Jul 12, 2022 ~~ To tell the truth it is a little too early for me to be reading this book. I enjoyed it the first time just a couple of years ago. But Thomas King is an author project this year and when I picked him (because I had four other titles that I had not read yet) I thought it would be fun to revisit older books too.
So here I am ready to start the fourth reread of the pile, and I must admit, I am glad that I can practically see the book unrolling in my mind even before I read because dang, the print on the pages is a heck of a lot smaller than it was two years ago!
Fair warning: if I get headaches, I will DNF but it will not be because of the story! lol
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Original review from 2020
As usual, when I have finished an awesome book like this one, I don't know quite what I want to say about it without sounding like a gushy teenager in love.
I've read four books by Thomas King now, and have given each one a five star rating. I think it is safe to say that I truly do think his books are amazing.
Here we dive into the story one summer. Our narrator is Tecumseh, but honestly I didn't know his name for a long time, he is just "I". Tecumseh lives in Truth on the American side of the Shield River, and his cousin Lum lives on the Bright Water Reserve on the other side of the river in Canada.
The first real incident happens right away, when the two boys and Tecumseh's dog Soldier are out one night and see a woman who first throws things off a high riverbank and then jumps off the bank herself. Who was she? What was she throwing? Why did she jump? Why couldn't they find her body when they went running down to the river to try and help? Oh, and that skull that Soldier found along the river right then, where did that come from?!
Aunt Carrie comes home trailing mystery. A Famous Indian Artist buys the old church and is Up To Something, but nobody knows exactly what. T comes close to figuring out a couple of family secrets, and the annual Indian Days festival over in Bright Water is once again the highlight of the summer. Sort of. It is certainly an event to remember.
There is always a lot going on in a Thomas King book. Layers beneath layers, slowly getting peeled away to reveal (or merely keep hinting at) the secrets beneath the surface. And with every book so far I want to immediately go back to page one and start over again once I reach the end. This one was no different.
The only detail I would have liked to have known earlier in the story was what breed of dog Soldier was. I am a fairly careful reader, but I never noticed his breed mentioned until long past the halfway mark when T told how the dog came to the family. Until that point I had no clear mental picture of him. He was a very important character, a nifty if slightly goofy beastie, and I don't see why King did not tell somewhere at the beginning what Soldier was. At least next time I read this I will be able picture him properly from the git-go.
And I think that is all I can say. The urge to start gushing is getting stronger so I'll quit now and just say please read this book. It is wonderful.
Jul 12, 2022 ~~ To tell the truth it is a little too early for me to be reading this book. I enjoyed it the first time just a couple of years ago. But Thomas King is an author project this year and when I picked him (because I had four other titles that I had not read yet) I thought it would be fun to revisit older books too.
So here I am ready to start the fourth reread of the pile, and I must admit, I am glad that I can practically see the book unrolling in my mind even before I read because dang, the print on the pages is a heck of a lot smaller than it was two years ago!
Fair warning: if I get headaches, I will DNF but it will not be because of the story! lol
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Original review from 2020
As usual, when I have finished an awesome book like this one, I don't know quite what I want to say about it without sounding like a gushy teenager in love.
I've read four books by Thomas King now, and have given each one a five star rating. I think it is safe to say that I truly do think his books are amazing.
Here we dive into the story one summer. Our narrator is Tecumseh, but honestly I didn't know his name for a long time, he is just "I". Tecumseh lives in Truth on the American side of the Shield River, and his cousin Lum lives on the Bright Water Reserve on the other side of the river in Canada.
The first real incident happens right away, when the two boys and Tecumseh's dog Soldier are out one night and see a woman who first throws things off a high riverbank and then jumps off the bank herself. Who was she? What was she throwing? Why did she jump? Why couldn't they find her body when they went running down to the river to try and help? Oh, and that skull that Soldier found along the river right then, where did that come from?!
Aunt Carrie comes home trailing mystery. A Famous Indian Artist buys the old church and is Up To Something, but nobody knows exactly what. T comes close to figuring out a couple of family secrets, and the annual Indian Days festival over in Bright Water is once again the highlight of the summer. Sort of. It is certainly an event to remember.
There is always a lot going on in a Thomas King book. Layers beneath layers, slowly getting peeled away to reveal (or merely keep hinting at) the secrets beneath the surface. And with every book so far I want to immediately go back to page one and start over again once I reach the end. This one was no different.
The only detail I would have liked to have known earlier in the story was what breed of dog Soldier was. I am a fairly careful reader, but I never noticed his breed mentioned until long past the halfway mark when T told how the dog came to the family. Until that point I had no clear mental picture of him. He was a very important character, a nifty if slightly goofy beastie, and I don't see why King did not tell somewhere at the beginning what Soldier was. At least next time I read this I will be able picture him properly from the git-go.
And I think that is all I can say. The urge to start gushing is getting stronger so I'll quit now and just say please read this book. It is wonderful.
August 30, 2021
King is a wry & thoughtful trickster storyteller of First Nations Native family, coming-of-age, and community on the Shield River bordering Alberta, CA and Montana, US. And he intentionally weaves his tale with uneven pacing. This author’s heritage is Cherokee and Greek; he earned the ALA Notable Book for Adults for this title.
June 30, 2012
First off, I want to nominate Soldier, the protagonist's boxer mutt, for the Literary Dogs Hall of Fame.
Since the publication of his first novel, Medicine River, Thomas King has steadily and without much fanfare established himself as one of the most important Native American, Canadian and all-purpose contemporary novelists. Truth and Bright Water lives up to the standards set by MR, Green Grass, Running Water and King's non-fiction book The Truth About Stories, which is the best place to start for anyone interested in what's distinctive about Native story-telling. Where Medicine River was essentially realistic (and hilarious) and Green Grass ventures into meta-fictional (and still hilarious) exploration, Truth and Bright Water negotiates the tension between modes in a way that provides plenty of food for thought without requiring prior knowledge of literary theory or the American literary tradition. King follows the growth of the protagonist Tecumseh as he wanders in and out of the communities of the title, one mostly white, the other mostly Native. The cast of characters includes the post-modern Native performance artist Monroe Swimmer, Tecumseh's friend Lum (won't provide spoilers on his plot), Tecumseh's father, mother and Aunt, and a host of tourists in town for "Indian Days."
Truth and Bright Water's funny as hell at points, but it's also about loss and grief, both personal and historical.
Probably the best place to start reading King and possibly the best place to start reading Native literature, especially if you're going to move on to Leslie Silko's Ceremony, N. Scott Momaday's Way to Rainy Mountain and House Made of Dawn, Louise Erdrich's Tracks (many other possibilities in her work), Sherman Alexie's Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven; and Ray Young Bear's Black Eagle Child and Remnants of the First Earth.
Since the publication of his first novel, Medicine River, Thomas King has steadily and without much fanfare established himself as one of the most important Native American, Canadian and all-purpose contemporary novelists. Truth and Bright Water lives up to the standards set by MR, Green Grass, Running Water and King's non-fiction book The Truth About Stories, which is the best place to start for anyone interested in what's distinctive about Native story-telling. Where Medicine River was essentially realistic (and hilarious) and Green Grass ventures into meta-fictional (and still hilarious) exploration, Truth and Bright Water negotiates the tension between modes in a way that provides plenty of food for thought without requiring prior knowledge of literary theory or the American literary tradition. King follows the growth of the protagonist Tecumseh as he wanders in and out of the communities of the title, one mostly white, the other mostly Native. The cast of characters includes the post-modern Native performance artist Monroe Swimmer, Tecumseh's friend Lum (won't provide spoilers on his plot), Tecumseh's father, mother and Aunt, and a host of tourists in town for "Indian Days."
Truth and Bright Water's funny as hell at points, but it's also about loss and grief, both personal and historical.
Probably the best place to start reading King and possibly the best place to start reading Native literature, especially if you're going to move on to Leslie Silko's Ceremony, N. Scott Momaday's Way to Rainy Mountain and House Made of Dawn, Louise Erdrich's Tracks (many other possibilities in her work), Sherman Alexie's Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven; and Ray Young Bear's Black Eagle Child and Remnants of the First Earth.
September 27, 2012
I found this in the recycle bin and was intrigued by the title. It turns out "Truth" and "Bright Water" are the names of two adjacent towns connected by an unfinished bridge on an American Indian reservation. The book was a pleasant surprise, with strong character development and an interesting narration. A quick read that I would recommend, if you think this sounds good.
January 12, 2017
2 cousins, one summer, and the hardships and questions of growing up as a Native American.
Review at The Pluviophile Reader: http://bit.ly/2im2SaV
3/5 stars.
Read from October 18 to 25, 2016.
Paperback, 288 pages.
Okay, I will admit it. I was suppose to read this book back in my Canadian lit class while I was still in university but I didn’t. I had about five novels a week to get through for a full year so this is one of the ones that just didn’t find the time to read.
A river, is the border that separates the small American town of Truth from the Canadian reserve of Bright Water, yet the two communities are very much connected as there are very few reasons to stay in these desolate towns.Tecumseh is a youth living in Truth and he is getting excited as the Indian Days are coming, which means that a mass of tourists will visit and buy what they believe to be symbolic Native American merchandise. Tecumseh’s cousin Lum is eager to win the the running race that takes place during Indian Days and is certain that he will win. However, this year is not going to be like the others. Tecumseh’s Aunt Cassie has returned and is being given all of his old baby clothes. The mysterious and very eccentric Monroe Swimmer, a local who left and found fame as Native artist in Toronto, has also returned with a peculiar art project aimed at bring the buffalo back to the plains. And why is Lum so eager to run as fast as he can? As Tecumseh has more questions than answers about the on-goings of the adults in his life and each new circumstance forces him to grow up a little bit quicker.
Aimed at the question of what it means to be be a Native American in present day, this novel also addresses aspects of the unique problems that face Native Americans the perceptions that many people have of them. I can see why this novel was picked for my Canadian literature class. After finishing the book I felt very neutral on it and neither liked or disliked it but having reflected on it afterwards the content of the book stops being so subtle. While I am not sure I appreciate King’s writing style as much as others he is very good at developing subtle stories with poignant messages. The Native Americans are reduces to selling trinkets at fairs to appease what people believe them to still be when in reality they are a group of people who are not longer living the way people imagine them to be. People idolize the “dead Indian (a term used by King in his book “Inconvenient Indian“) and idea of a people that never really existed where the live and legal Indians are living a life that goes unnoticed, and much of it with unnecessary hardship.
While this book didn’t sweep me off my feet by any means I am glad I finally got around to reading it. I would recommend this book to those interested in the continuing story of the Native American people.
Review at The Pluviophile Reader: http://bit.ly/2im2SaV
3/5 stars.
Read from October 18 to 25, 2016.
Paperback, 288 pages.
Okay, I will admit it. I was suppose to read this book back in my Canadian lit class while I was still in university but I didn’t. I had about five novels a week to get through for a full year so this is one of the ones that just didn’t find the time to read.
A river, is the border that separates the small American town of Truth from the Canadian reserve of Bright Water, yet the two communities are very much connected as there are very few reasons to stay in these desolate towns.Tecumseh is a youth living in Truth and he is getting excited as the Indian Days are coming, which means that a mass of tourists will visit and buy what they believe to be symbolic Native American merchandise. Tecumseh’s cousin Lum is eager to win the the running race that takes place during Indian Days and is certain that he will win. However, this year is not going to be like the others. Tecumseh’s Aunt Cassie has returned and is being given all of his old baby clothes. The mysterious and very eccentric Monroe Swimmer, a local who left and found fame as Native artist in Toronto, has also returned with a peculiar art project aimed at bring the buffalo back to the plains. And why is Lum so eager to run as fast as he can? As Tecumseh has more questions than answers about the on-goings of the adults in his life and each new circumstance forces him to grow up a little bit quicker.
Aimed at the question of what it means to be be a Native American in present day, this novel also addresses aspects of the unique problems that face Native Americans the perceptions that many people have of them. I can see why this novel was picked for my Canadian literature class. After finishing the book I felt very neutral on it and neither liked or disliked it but having reflected on it afterwards the content of the book stops being so subtle. While I am not sure I appreciate King’s writing style as much as others he is very good at developing subtle stories with poignant messages. The Native Americans are reduces to selling trinkets at fairs to appease what people believe them to still be when in reality they are a group of people who are not longer living the way people imagine them to be. People idolize the “dead Indian (a term used by King in his book “Inconvenient Indian“) and idea of a people that never really existed where the live and legal Indians are living a life that goes unnoticed, and much of it with unnecessary hardship.
While this book didn’t sweep me off my feet by any means I am glad I finally got around to reading it. I would recommend this book to those interested in the continuing story of the Native American people.
June 18, 2024
It took me a while to get into this one but I was so grateful once I got a hold of the narrative. The setting for this book is close to home, so even though the thoroughly imagined characters are unlike my own family, I felt a certain sense of kinship given the shared geography. Thanks for the Christmas present Carissa-Lynn!
June 2, 2021
I've been conflicted with this book since I started it. It's not bad but it's not amazing. I have so many questions. The ending was predictable and didn't give me the answer I wanted.
March 3, 2008
As I may have remarked before, characters in Thomas King's books speak to each other in strange parabolas. Characters who aren't the narrator are tightly wrapped up in their own impenetrable problems and give up very little, and only grudgingly. Stories are told which tell more about the listener than the teller; in the end, the voyage is internal.
In Truth and Bright Water, Thomas King takes us through a handful of days in the life of Tecumseh and Lum, teenagers on the Bright Water reserve in Canada and the town of Truth across the river in Truth as they approach Indian Days. But to boil it down to this is to leave out the bittersweet taste of the summer and the ideas about how people use stories to organize their lives. I am a fan.
In Truth and Bright Water, Thomas King takes us through a handful of days in the life of Tecumseh and Lum, teenagers on the Bright Water reserve in Canada and the town of Truth across the river in Truth as they approach Indian Days. But to boil it down to this is to leave out the bittersweet taste of the summer and the ideas about how people use stories to organize their lives. I am a fan.
July 10, 2017
I absolutely loved this book. Truth and Bright Water made me cry in public, an act I promise is VERY abnormal. When I finished the book, I decided it was the best book I had ever read. Just a few hours later, I still feel an emotional ache in my heart for the leaps and falls of the plot. A literary wizard, Thomas King created characters that felt so real that I grew attached to them like they were my real friends. This story has changed me forever, leaving an impression on my heart and mind. I would recommend this to anybody and everybody. This story will warm your heart, make you laugh and cry with the characters. Truth and Bright Water felt good in my head and Tecumseh, Lum, Soldier, Auntie Cassie etc. will be my lifetime friends.
November 24, 2011
Many descriptions of Thomas King's writing call it lyrical. While that is certainly the case, I'm more impressed by the polyphony of his writing (to stick to musical descriptions). Passages of dialog often split into two or more streams as characters talk about two or more things at the same time. The story telling often does the same thing as paragraphs move gracefully between the past and present or briefly touch upon sub-stories within the story. This works for King because his dialog is so credible. Coming as it does from such vivid characters and a powerful sense of place.
January 15, 2012
King is simply one of the best people to read in order to get an emotional semblance of life in Aboriginal Canada, or at least I think that's the case (not having any first-hand experience myself). Sad, funny, meaningful. I love the metaphors behind Monroe's art project, both in the present and in the past (the museums didn't want the Indians to come back). I wish I had some idea what the girl and the duck stand for, though.
November 28, 2013
Likeable characters living on a Prairie reserve along the Canadian-American border. Tecumseh,age fifteen has a lot of questions which the adults in his life seem to bypass skillfully, never giving a straight answer. There are a few mysterious situations going on and Tecumseh with his dog Soldier keeps busy trying to sort them out while going back and forth between his mother, father, aunt, cousin and the self-proclaimed "Famous Indian Artist".
October 21, 2007
I love Thomas King! His writing is so beautiful and so visual. While Green Grass Running Water is still my favourite, this one was a closer look at one particular character within a very insular prairie community. Very well done and very much worth the read.
November 20, 2008
language language language. thomas king is my imagery god. the only qualms i had, was with the characters always talking over each other. that got really annoying.
June 9, 2020
Beautifully written, sad and realistic.
Tecumseh’s parents are separated. His dad is a drunk who makes money smuggling. His mom runs a beauty shop. His aunt Cassie returned and has many secrets.
Lum is Tecumseh’s cousin. He’s older and has a violent abusive father who beats the hell outta him regularly. It’s too the point that Lum is also mean and has turned violent on his cousin and his dog Soldier more than once. Honestly Lum scared the hell out of me more than once. Especially since he carries a gun. It doesn’t surprise me that Lum gets a nasty beating right before Indian Days (a Pow Wow) as he planned to run in the big race. I’m sure his dad did it on purpose.
Monroe is a kinda nuts artist, celebrity, former home town boy come back. The times Tecomseh’s mom was away, I’m sure she was with him.
Rebecca and her “looking for my duck” i never understood the meaning behind.
This is a coming of age book that Tecumseh narrates over a course of several days. A lot can change in a summer...
Tecumseh’s parents are separated. His dad is a drunk who makes money smuggling. His mom runs a beauty shop. His aunt Cassie returned and has many secrets.
Lum is Tecumseh’s cousin. He’s older and has a violent abusive father who beats the hell outta him regularly. It’s too the point that Lum is also mean and has turned violent on his cousin and his dog Soldier more than once. Honestly Lum scared the hell out of me more than once. Especially since he carries a gun. It doesn’t surprise me that Lum gets a nasty beating right before Indian Days (a Pow Wow) as he planned to run in the big race. I’m sure his dad did it on purpose.
Monroe is a kinda nuts artist, celebrity, former home town boy come back. The times Tecomseh’s mom was away, I’m sure she was with him.
Rebecca and her “looking for my duck” i never understood the meaning behind.
This is a coming of age book that Tecumseh narrates over a course of several days. A lot can change in a summer...
September 2, 2020
I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I didn't realize Thomas King was such a prolific novelist; I was only familiar with him as a nonfiction writer until recently. This was really good, a bit more abstract (probably not the right word) than I am used to, but it worked well. I haven't read many books where the author puts you into the head of the narrator so well, without the narrator describing their thoughts much if that makes sense. Hard to say how I really felt about the story, but I liked it a lot, and look forward to reading more Thomas King. If you are trying to read more Canadian or Indigenous authors, you likely will not regret checking out this book.
November 7, 2024
Wow. Devastating. A bleak read but a very important one. This book begs the question of how a community who has been utterly devastated by colonization can move forward. King's style is excellent, and I think he encourages readers to ponder many important ethical tensions and dilemmas without giving any concrete answers, resolutions, or even ideas for pathways forward. Yes, it's unsatisfying how everything is shrouded by mystery and miscommunications, but I think that is kind of the point. The pessimism can be very challenging but I believe it's important to sit in that discomfort.
April 2, 2024
I got to present on this book in my class, so I’ve really had the opportunity to dive into allll of it. The Greek mythology references, Monroe Swimmer and all his weirdness, Indian culture and restoration… overall an enjoyable class read. Excited to discuss in class on Thursday.
November 2, 2022
whyd the dog have to die. he was the best part
April 8, 2021
*4.5 stars
April 4, 2025
Soldier :(
May 4, 2025
This took me ages to read because of two things: 1) I’m in school and don’t have time and 2) this was pretty boring.
Can’t say this was a real page turner to me. I don’t fully understand what the point of this story was. The main character is a big bland and the main intrigue of the story is a bit unfocused. I did not like the ending at all.
But overall, it was medium enjoyable - I’ll never read it again but I’m not mad that I did read it in the end. I liked Monroe’s character; definitely the most interesting part of the book.
Can’t say this was a real page turner to me. I don’t fully understand what the point of this story was. The main character is a big bland and the main intrigue of the story is a bit unfocused. I did not like the ending at all.
But overall, it was medium enjoyable - I’ll never read it again but I’m not mad that I did read it in the end. I liked Monroe’s character; definitely the most interesting part of the book.
April 4, 2017
I am torn between being irritated with this book and the characters and actually really liking it for the creative style. King's novel isn't narrated exactly the way you might expect from a reliable narrator. Tecumseh, in his narration skips around as he tells the story, skips to give back story, focuses on a single aspect about how a character is affecting his life, and then back to the story. Some could say it's confusing, but others would say it's genius in making the reader constantly work to fit the puzzle pieces (and it's not even meant as a mystery) together. Another thing that irritated me about the book were all of the loose ends left by the end of the book, and even throughout the book, there were loose ends as the characters would talk right over one another rather than having an actual discussion. But really, that made it all the more realistic because who doesn't get talked over when they're trying to say something or quickly change topics to avoid something private or uncomfortable to talk about?
That aside, it really was a well-written book-- maybe not my top pick as it was required for a research and analysis class, but it was still pretty good.
Basically, the story focuses on Tecumseh, a fourteen year old boy with a native american heritage whose life is pretty much what you would consider a jumbled up mess. His best friend and cousin, Lum, has been kicked out of his house and is worrying just about everyone except for Lum's father; his parents are divorced, and his dad is trying to get him into the smuggling business; and he finally finds a job... but it's with a man who swims in seas of grass in a bathing suit and goggles, quotes Shakespeare often, and swears that his buffalo decoys will move if Tecumseh doesn't keep an eye on them-- he's just a bit crazy. On top of that, Lum and Tecumseh are stuck trying to find what happened t that woman they saw dancing by the river that far away night, and why did they find the skull of a child once she disappeared. They have to be careful though because that mystery with the skull and the woman, caked on top of all of the other things happening in the story could drive them to the breaking point. How far can the characters in the story go before they snap? Who was the woman and why the skull? How does any of this tie together? Read to find out.
I would recommend this to high school kids and older because it is a bit harder to follow.
That aside, it really was a well-written book-- maybe not my top pick as it was required for a research and analysis class, but it was still pretty good.
Basically, the story focuses on Tecumseh, a fourteen year old boy with a native american heritage whose life is pretty much what you would consider a jumbled up mess. His best friend and cousin, Lum, has been kicked out of his house and is worrying just about everyone except for Lum's father; his parents are divorced, and his dad is trying to get him into the smuggling business; and he finally finds a job... but it's with a man who swims in seas of grass in a bathing suit and goggles, quotes Shakespeare often, and swears that his buffalo decoys will move if Tecumseh doesn't keep an eye on them-- he's just a bit crazy. On top of that, Lum and Tecumseh are stuck trying to find what happened t that woman they saw dancing by the river that far away night, and why did they find the skull of a child once she disappeared. They have to be careful though because that mystery with the skull and the woman, caked on top of all of the other things happening in the story could drive them to the breaking point. How far can the characters in the story go before they snap? Who was the woman and why the skull? How does any of this tie together? Read to find out.
I would recommend this to high school kids and older because it is a bit harder to follow.
August 3, 2012
This is a crazy bildungsroman as only Thomas King could craft one. The tale takes place in two towns, one named Truth, the other Bright Water, separated from each other by a river...and the U.S./Canada border. The only way to get across the river without driving many miles upriver or downriver is to ferry oneself across the gorge in a tin bucket suspended from a wire cable. One gets the sense that this river and its bridge-less state is a metaphor for something...
Actually, as in most of Thomas King's writing, pretty much everything in the book seems to be a metaphor for something. Whether it's Lucy Rabbit and her insistence that Marilyn Monroe was Native American or the child's skull our protagonist, Tecumseh, and his cousin Lum find (well, really, it's Tecumseh's dog, Soldier) along the river in the opening scene of the novel. Practically everything seems to stand for something else. But we won't be that different from Tecumseh himself if we find ourselves often wondering what.
Truth and Bright Water seem to be places where several versions of the truth co-exist. Take Tecumseh's parents, for example. There is Tecumseh's mother's version of their story. And there is his father's version. And then there is his grandmother's version. And his Aunt Cassie's version. Tecumseh has his own version, of course. But he doesn't have all the facts, and he hasn't totally made up his mind about it. So which version is true--is it the version the reader makes up for him or herself?
Complicating all this still further is the fact that the entire story is told from Tecumseh's point of view, and like most teenagers, he's not always the most reliable. Several times in the novel Tecumseh offers rather "revisionist" versions of the truth to certain of the other characters. An activity (re-visioning, that is) in which he is joined by Monroe Swimmer, a "famous Indian artist" who once painted the Indians "back in" to many famous nineteenth-century paintings and who has returned to Truth to "save the world."
King's writing is vivid and evocative, and the mysteries surrounding Truth and Bright Water, compelling. While I won't spoil the ending, I will say it's powerful, climactic, and incredibly emotionally resonant. Still not completely certain what it means, I've pondered it and pondered it and will continue to do so for a long time to come.
Actually, as in most of Thomas King's writing, pretty much everything in the book seems to be a metaphor for something. Whether it's Lucy Rabbit and her insistence that Marilyn Monroe was Native American or the child's skull our protagonist, Tecumseh, and his cousin Lum find (well, really, it's Tecumseh's dog, Soldier) along the river in the opening scene of the novel. Practically everything seems to stand for something else. But we won't be that different from Tecumseh himself if we find ourselves often wondering what.
Truth and Bright Water seem to be places where several versions of the truth co-exist. Take Tecumseh's parents, for example. There is Tecumseh's mother's version of their story. And there is his father's version. And then there is his grandmother's version. And his Aunt Cassie's version. Tecumseh has his own version, of course. But he doesn't have all the facts, and he hasn't totally made up his mind about it. So which version is true--is it the version the reader makes up for him or herself?
Complicating all this still further is the fact that the entire story is told from Tecumseh's point of view, and like most teenagers, he's not always the most reliable. Several times in the novel Tecumseh offers rather "revisionist" versions of the truth to certain of the other characters. An activity (re-visioning, that is) in which he is joined by Monroe Swimmer, a "famous Indian artist" who once painted the Indians "back in" to many famous nineteenth-century paintings and who has returned to Truth to "save the world."
King's writing is vivid and evocative, and the mysteries surrounding Truth and Bright Water, compelling. While I won't spoil the ending, I will say it's powerful, climactic, and incredibly emotionally resonant. Still not completely certain what it means, I've pondered it and pondered it and will continue to do so for a long time to come.
November 8, 2025
Half a star out of five
I actually don’t know if I’m going to publish this review, because it makes me a little sick to my stomach doing so. My Aunt Meg liked this book and my uncle gave it to me for my birthday last year because she thought I would enjoy it too. I miss Meg terribly every day, and I will love her long after my days are up. What makes me further upset I really didn’t enjoy this was its subject matter, Canadians with Indian heritage celebrating their culture and festivals, is one I hope the publishing world is forever willing to pay attention to. It hurts to have to talk trash about a book like that. This book was published 25 years ago and it found its audience. It was a national bestseller and I’m happy it did. I just can’t be a part of its fanbase.
Long story short, when referencing the title, Truth is a small town in rural Montana, and Bright Water is a reserve across the Canadian-American border that’s right next door. This “story”‘s main character is named Tecumseh, and he’s a 15-year-old Native American in a broken family, with separated parents, a rather anarchic cousin Lem, a ruthless uncle (and Lem’s dad) Franklin, plus an estranged auntie Cassie back in town after years away. Oh, and his trusty dog Soldier, who has more to do than any other human character. Lum is practicing his running, a stuck-up celeb named Monroe Swimmer has returned to try and reinvent himself, and some confrontations will take place before this annual Indian festival.
And that’s all I can really say about the plot. Even if I wanted to spoil things, I don’t think I’d be able to put much more, or add anything that would really generate excitement. So, I’ll just address this right here; in spite of said confrontations, Truth & Bright Water is one of the most plotless stories I’ve ever read ever. People occasionally begin yelling at each other, and then gears shift suddenly like a light-switch with no actual conclusion or compromise. Chapters go together like a short story collection of different writers, adventures that may share the subject of the town, but no hint that one chapter belongs in front of the last. The characters here just go about their days, small-talking to friends and killing time whenever they manage to get off of work. If that’s your thing, Truth & Bright Water is the book for you. But anyone hoping to advertise these people’s lives would most likely be called “not newsworthy” by the press, and most of the book is exactly the kind of thing teenagers expect adult books to be; all setting and character growth without any goals or heavy conflict to make it entertaining. What’s worse, Canadian fiction is often stereotypically not fast paced, and preachy of the godsend love of nature, farming and peace. Nature, farming and peace can be fast paced. There are books out there on those subjects I haven’t been able to put down. As a Canadian myself, it hurts extra to have to call this book a snooze fest, yet here we are.
Let me name some examples of how uninvolving the book is; Tecumseh and Lum think they see a woman jumping off a bridge to her presumptuous demise. It’s brought up here and there throughout the book, but just scattered, like the witnessing of a mysterious suicide was not something worth pursuing. Tecumseh one day gets a job out of the blue with the famous outsider artist back from the big city, and he never stops to think how insane it is and what opportunities might arrive. It’s just business as usual next chapter. He doesn’t even think about how he might have a challenge in front of him. I don’t know about you, but the day after getting hired for a new job tends to involve some pondering and worrying as you try to prepare. The main dog Soldier is nearly killed in an explosion involving a rifle, right in front of Tecumseh, and when it’s revealed it was Lum who fired the shot that just about did him in, they chat as if things are all fine. There’s no fear, anger, or even a hint of relief that his pet escaped death. I’m not exaggerating. Nothing! A twist comes up near the ending involving a goal a character was striving towards, and there is no sense of alarm that something went wrong that wasn’t supposed to. No emotion. There’s some talk about how Tecumseh’s mother wanted to be an actress at one point and gets a part in a local play. But there’s no discussion about what that will be down the road and what she truly wants out of it.
And I was going to say this; “it just feels lazy for a character to have lost her duck, and then spend days, weeks even, searching for it through the region, with no tears or backstory. Is she supposed to be heartbroken over her missing duck? Or just inconvenienced? And why is it so important?” Then I realized over some quick Google searches that this is a figure-of-speech character, a ghost from the past, a fact I’m unashamed to say I missed because of how disinterested I was. If you want to bring to light Indian-Canadians and discuss their ways of living, the best way to get people involved is to write with, oh, I don’t know. An emotional main conflict? Maybe a smidge of corruption that it’s up to the heroes to fix or at least confront? A goal to root for when the climax arrives? Maybe at least an idea of what it would mean for a goal to be accomplished? There’s an ambiguous ending towards an unknown character named Mia, and there’s a chance she and Tecumseh’s mother were a secret couple. That would be the sort of story I would’ve rather been reading. To top it all off, I knew halfway through I wasn’t going to recommend this book but I was expecting something grand at the end. What we get is a surprise conclusion that would be tragic if it made a lick of sense.
I was talking about all of this to my mother on a bike ride today, and when she mentioned my complaints, she said maybe the tone was the point, making readers think about how they picture arguments like that usually happening, and brought up that there’s a genre of books like this out there that focus on regular living instead of climbing to the top of a mountain. It’s true, the book has a strong point, and it’s the look into the lives of the characters. They’re thorough. Thomas King clearly understands what it feels like to go through the days in Canada being a racial minority in a little town where they can have their own tight groups. But the protagonist says at the start of Chapter 27 that summers in the towns of Truth and Bright Water are often boring, and there was no need to inform us of that.
- This review was originally published in 2021 on my website, williammcginn.com
I actually don’t know if I’m going to publish this review, because it makes me a little sick to my stomach doing so. My Aunt Meg liked this book and my uncle gave it to me for my birthday last year because she thought I would enjoy it too. I miss Meg terribly every day, and I will love her long after my days are up. What makes me further upset I really didn’t enjoy this was its subject matter, Canadians with Indian heritage celebrating their culture and festivals, is one I hope the publishing world is forever willing to pay attention to. It hurts to have to talk trash about a book like that. This book was published 25 years ago and it found its audience. It was a national bestseller and I’m happy it did. I just can’t be a part of its fanbase.
Long story short, when referencing the title, Truth is a small town in rural Montana, and Bright Water is a reserve across the Canadian-American border that’s right next door. This “story”‘s main character is named Tecumseh, and he’s a 15-year-old Native American in a broken family, with separated parents, a rather anarchic cousin Lem, a ruthless uncle (and Lem’s dad) Franklin, plus an estranged auntie Cassie back in town after years away. Oh, and his trusty dog Soldier, who has more to do than any other human character. Lum is practicing his running, a stuck-up celeb named Monroe Swimmer has returned to try and reinvent himself, and some confrontations will take place before this annual Indian festival.
And that’s all I can really say about the plot. Even if I wanted to spoil things, I don’t think I’d be able to put much more, or add anything that would really generate excitement. So, I’ll just address this right here; in spite of said confrontations, Truth & Bright Water is one of the most plotless stories I’ve ever read ever. People occasionally begin yelling at each other, and then gears shift suddenly like a light-switch with no actual conclusion or compromise. Chapters go together like a short story collection of different writers, adventures that may share the subject of the town, but no hint that one chapter belongs in front of the last. The characters here just go about their days, small-talking to friends and killing time whenever they manage to get off of work. If that’s your thing, Truth & Bright Water is the book for you. But anyone hoping to advertise these people’s lives would most likely be called “not newsworthy” by the press, and most of the book is exactly the kind of thing teenagers expect adult books to be; all setting and character growth without any goals or heavy conflict to make it entertaining. What’s worse, Canadian fiction is often stereotypically not fast paced, and preachy of the godsend love of nature, farming and peace. Nature, farming and peace can be fast paced. There are books out there on those subjects I haven’t been able to put down. As a Canadian myself, it hurts extra to have to call this book a snooze fest, yet here we are.
Let me name some examples of how uninvolving the book is; Tecumseh and Lum think they see a woman jumping off a bridge to her presumptuous demise. It’s brought up here and there throughout the book, but just scattered, like the witnessing of a mysterious suicide was not something worth pursuing. Tecumseh one day gets a job out of the blue with the famous outsider artist back from the big city, and he never stops to think how insane it is and what opportunities might arrive. It’s just business as usual next chapter. He doesn’t even think about how he might have a challenge in front of him. I don’t know about you, but the day after getting hired for a new job tends to involve some pondering and worrying as you try to prepare. The main dog Soldier is nearly killed in an explosion involving a rifle, right in front of Tecumseh, and when it’s revealed it was Lum who fired the shot that just about did him in, they chat as if things are all fine. There’s no fear, anger, or even a hint of relief that his pet escaped death. I’m not exaggerating. Nothing! A twist comes up near the ending involving a goal a character was striving towards, and there is no sense of alarm that something went wrong that wasn’t supposed to. No emotion. There’s some talk about how Tecumseh’s mother wanted to be an actress at one point and gets a part in a local play. But there’s no discussion about what that will be down the road and what she truly wants out of it.
And I was going to say this; “it just feels lazy for a character to have lost her duck, and then spend days, weeks even, searching for it through the region, with no tears or backstory. Is she supposed to be heartbroken over her missing duck? Or just inconvenienced? And why is it so important?” Then I realized over some quick Google searches that this is a figure-of-speech character, a ghost from the past, a fact I’m unashamed to say I missed because of how disinterested I was. If you want to bring to light Indian-Canadians and discuss their ways of living, the best way to get people involved is to write with, oh, I don’t know. An emotional main conflict? Maybe a smidge of corruption that it’s up to the heroes to fix or at least confront? A goal to root for when the climax arrives? Maybe at least an idea of what it would mean for a goal to be accomplished? There’s an ambiguous ending towards an unknown character named Mia, and there’s a chance she and Tecumseh’s mother were a secret couple. That would be the sort of story I would’ve rather been reading. To top it all off, I knew halfway through I wasn’t going to recommend this book but I was expecting something grand at the end. What we get is a surprise conclusion that would be tragic if it made a lick of sense.
I was talking about all of this to my mother on a bike ride today, and when she mentioned my complaints, she said maybe the tone was the point, making readers think about how they picture arguments like that usually happening, and brought up that there’s a genre of books like this out there that focus on regular living instead of climbing to the top of a mountain. It’s true, the book has a strong point, and it’s the look into the lives of the characters. They’re thorough. Thomas King clearly understands what it feels like to go through the days in Canada being a racial minority in a little town where they can have their own tight groups. But the protagonist says at the start of Chapter 27 that summers in the towns of Truth and Bright Water are often boring, and there was no need to inform us of that.
- This review was originally published in 2021 on my website, williammcginn.com
March 3, 2017
Tecumseh, the narrator and main character of Truth and Bright Water, is a little lost. Although this is a coming-of-age story, he doesn't really find himself in any permanently-problem-solving way by the end. That's not a criticism, but rather something I really liked about the book. It felt true to the character, and the world created by King.
King is also very good at portraying tight bonds between characters. They rarely say anything meaningful to each other, at least not outright, but you can sense the bindings between them; you are unlikely to understand these bonds entirely, but you know they are there. I think this is part of the reason the book is sad (although, actually, Tecumseh is very perceptive: he knows his mother, his father, and his cousin Lum very, very well . . . sometimes his hopes get in the way, is all). It is definitely sad, although it's not depressing.
I really liked the dialogue. King's dialogue is distinctive (I think! I haven't read his other works) and here often layered with Tecumseh's inner narrative. It both illuminates the characters and serves as a source of humor.
King is also very good at portraying tight bonds between characters. They rarely say anything meaningful to each other, at least not outright, but you can sense the bindings between them; you are unlikely to understand these bonds entirely, but you know they are there. I think this is part of the reason the book is sad (although, actually, Tecumseh is very perceptive: he knows his mother, his father, and his cousin Lum very, very well . . . sometimes his hopes get in the way, is all). It is definitely sad, although it's not depressing.
I really liked the dialogue. King's dialogue is distinctive (I think! I haven't read his other works) and here often layered with Tecumseh's inner narrative. It both illuminates the characters and serves as a source of humor.
June 23, 2017
King had me at The Truth About Stories, and I've been wandering into a few of his books since then. Green Grass, Running Water struck me as one of most quietly genius works of literature that I'd ever come across, and Truth & Bright Water has many of the same qualities: characters worth liking, metaphors worth puzzling through, and surrealist tweaks worth marveling at. The book centers on 15 year-old Tecumseh and his attempt to make meaning out of a mysterious event that is unloaded one night into the Shield River. The mystery expands into the pasts of friends and family, stitching together once-severed narratives across the Montana-Canadian border towns of Bright Water and Truth. There's pain and struggle in the story that would reflect the ongoing agonies of any displaced and historically threatened people, certainly, but there's also a profound sense of humor here and a palpable tenderness in the depiction of even the roughest characters.
I've heard it said that there are only two kinds of stories: The hero goes on a journey, or a mysterious stranger comes to town. King's a generous author, because in Truth and Bright Water, you'll get a good angle on both.
I've heard it said that there are only two kinds of stories: The hero goes on a journey, or a mysterious stranger comes to town. King's a generous author, because in Truth and Bright Water, you'll get a good angle on both.
December 29, 2015
Thomas King is that rare writer capable of not only telling a compelling, interesting story, but of seamlessly marrying that to literary devices which, like a painter who understands the medium, is capable of allowing the transfer of light off and through opaque and transparent pigments, creating depth where before there was only two dimensions.
Truth and Bright Water is a story of restoration, reparation, relocation of both the body and the spirit. It follows the lives of a two young boys, and an artist who restores paintings. And it is so much more than that.
In weaving together the narratives of these people, King creates a remarkable, sustained metaphor wherein a church is restored by the artist, returning it to the land by painting it to blend into the landscape around it, yet the church's interior, like a Tardis, remains, in this case the habitation and, if you will, the spirit of the artist who has taken an edifice of misery to the First Nations and made it part of his own self. It is a brilliant bit of writing.
Highly recommended.
Truth and Bright Water is a story of restoration, reparation, relocation of both the body and the spirit. It follows the lives of a two young boys, and an artist who restores paintings. And it is so much more than that.
In weaving together the narratives of these people, King creates a remarkable, sustained metaphor wherein a church is restored by the artist, returning it to the land by painting it to blend into the landscape around it, yet the church's interior, like a Tardis, remains, in this case the habitation and, if you will, the spirit of the artist who has taken an edifice of misery to the First Nations and made it part of his own self. It is a brilliant bit of writing.
Highly recommended.
January 27, 2016
A prairie church painted like a prairie landscape completely disappears, even when standing right in front of it. Possible? Of course not, and yet, so believable, so real in the setting of this story, a mixture of realism and satirical fantasy. Tecumseh and Lum are two teenage boys, trying to make sense of an insensible adult world in the days leading up to Indian Days in the town of Truth, a small American town, and the reserve, Bright Water just across the Canadian border. It is a summer of growth, of mystery, of love, of abuse and tragedy, of confusion and of dawning comprehension of the complexities of adult life. Although the community of Truth and Bright Water is an unfamiliar setting, the theme is universal. Children struggle to understand a confusing world by interpreting and searching for reality behind the lies, half-truths and evasions of the adults in their lives. Abuse, neglect and dysfunction do not preclude love, and beauty is to be found in the depths of sorrow. A beautiful book.
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