Hope Matters

by Lee Maracle, Columpa Bobb, Tania Carter

Hope Matters , written by multiple award-winner Lee Maracle, in collaboration with her daughters Columpa Bobb and Tania Carter, focuses on the journey of Indigenous people from colonial beginnings to reconciliation.

Maracle states that the book, "is also about the journey of myself and my two daughters." During their youth, Bobb and Carter wrote poetry with their mother, and eventually they all decided that one day they would write a book together. This book is the result of that dream.

Written collaboratively by all three women, the poems in Hope Matters blend their voices together into a shared song of hope and reconciliation.

Genres: Poetry, Indigenous

176 pages, Paperback

First published April 24, 2019

About the author

Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, she grew up in the neighbouring city of North Vancouver and attended Simon Fraser University. She was one of the first Aboriginal people to be published in the early 1970s.

Maracle is one of the most prolific aboriginal authors in Canada and a recognized authority on issues pertaining to aboriginal people and aboriginal literature. She is an award-winning poet, novelist, performance storyteller, scriptwriter, actor and keeper/mythmaker among the Stó:lō people.

Maracle was one of the founders of the En’owkin International School of Writing in Penticton, British Columbia and the cultural director of the Centre for Indigenous Theatre in Toronto, Ontario.

Maracle has given hundreds of speeches on political, historical, and feminist sociological topics related to native people, and conducted dozens of workshops on personal and cultural reclamation. She has served as a consultant on First Nations’ self-government and has an extensive history
in community development. She has been described as “a walking history book” and an international expert on Canadian First Nations culture and history.

Maracle has taught at the University of Toronto, University of Waterloo, Southern Oregon University and has served as professor of Canadian culture at Western Washington University. She currently lives in Toronto, teaching at the University of Toronto First Nations House. She most recently was the writer-in-residence at the University of Guelph.

Reviews

[Big Al · Rating 4 out of 5]

Combination mother/daughter/sister poetry collections need to be more of a thing!!!

[Jbondandrews · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought the poems by Lee and her daughters were incredibly moving. I hope they collaborate again in future.

[graciela · Rating 4 out of 5]

so touching. reminds me of my own Native mom and my sister very much. how we are constantly holding onto who we are as we brace against society. some language used in poems, specifically those written by CCB, felt a little difficult to navigate and i have a degree in communications lol but overall an excellent read that i would recommend to others

[Kailyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5. My favourite was "After the Sorry Clears Who Will Pay for the Headstones."

[Sarah Flynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sad, beautiful, occasionally happy poetry collection that has a lot to teach and a lot to share. I read this book in preparation for a book club, and I just happened to read it the week of the George Floyd Black Lives Matter rallies. I live on Treaty 7 territory, and have been doing work and educating myself on the settler/Indigenous relationship/issues, and this week there has also been a strong solidarity between Black Lives Matter and Indigenous groups in my city. All by way of saying, the backdrop I think made this book seem even more significant and accessible.

For me, the experience of reading this book was several-fold. Most significantly, it was a way to be near and witness much pain that Indigenous women have felt and experienced in a safe but intimate setting- the page, the poem. I have learned and thought much about that pain, but as someone outside of that community, I have to acknowledge that learning and thinking only take it so deep. This was sort of like when you just sit with someone who's going through something, even tho you're not going through it, it's a closer understanding of what they are going through because you are just sitting near and witnessing. In that way the book was very moving and affecting and sad and sometimes hard to read. Sometimes I wondered if I should be there at all.

Otherwise, it is simply a lovely collection of poems, from a poetry standpoint. Lots of beautiful haunting images, powerful turns of phrase, and insights.

I'm looking forward to the book club discussion of this book. I urge anyone to read it who is not afraid to sit with some uncomfortable truths.

[Kelsey Brennan · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Raven told me you'd come around
said you had letters
making magic inside your crown"

A lovely poetry collection - it's always interesting to read a collection with multiple authors, to be able to see the different ways poetry can help people express themselves, and the different styles you connect to as a reader.

[Mills College Library]

811.54 M298h 2019

[Arlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the idea of a family poetry collaboration. A few really stood out to me. I enjoyed reading the books slowly - a poem or two a day.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this collection of poetry - and especially enjoyed that it is a collaboration between her and her daughters.

[Tanya Neumeyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is poetry that works a spell. It's visceral, melodic, and richly textured with the complexity of 3 interwoven voices. I'm grateful to have read this book.