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Un parcours bispirituel: Récit d'une aînée ojibwé-crie lesbienne
« Quand tu seras grande, tu seras une éducatrice pour notre peuple. Tu aideras les autres. Tu seras une guérisseuse. » L’extraordinaire histoire de Ma-Nee Chacaby en est une de courage, de souffrance et d’amour. En prononçant ces paroles prophétiques, sa grand-mère n’aurait pu viser plus juste. C’est elle qui a vu chez la petite Ma-Nee les deux esprits, le masculin et le féminin. Chance ou malédiction? Pour une enfant bispirituelle dans les années 1950, à Ombabika, une communauté ojibwé-crie du nord de l’Ontario, la liberté est infinie. Elle apprend à trapper, à chasser et à survivre en forêt; elle sculpte le bois, fait de la couture, tanne le cuir et s’occupe des enfants et des aînés. Mais sa grand-mère, sa bien-aimée kokum, sait que la suite sera très dure. Après une jeunesse bouleversée par les tragédies, les abus, un mariage forcé et l’alcoolisme, elle s’enfuit à vingt ans avec ses enfants à Thunder Bay. Là-bas, elle n’échappe pas aux violences racistes, mais réussit à atteindre la sobriété. Une vie de militantisme commence. Elle devient intervenante auprès de toxicomanes, de sans-abri et de mères en difficulté, reçoit des dizaines d’enfants en famille d’accueil et, lorsqu’elle découvre qu’elle aime les femmes, ne tarde pas à s’impliquer dans le mouvement LGBTQ2S. Comme lesbienne, guide spirituelle autochtone et handicapée visuelle, Ma-Nee Chacaby fait aujourd’hui figure d’inspiration. Sa vie est une courtepointe faite des morceaux de l’histoire brisée des Premières Nations, où s’entrelacent les fils de la résistance et de la guérison.
288 pages, Paperback
First published May 3, 2016
91 people are currently reading
4728 people want to read
About the author
Ma-Nee Chacaby
1 book28 followersAs a child, Chacaby learned spiritual and cultural traditions from her Cree grandmother and trapping, hunting, and bush survival skills from her Ojibwa stepfather. She also suffered physical and sexual abuse by different adults, and by her teen years she was alcoholic herself. At twenty, Chacaby moved to Thunder Bay with her children to escape an abusive marriage. Abuse, compounded by racism, continued, but Chacaby found supports to help herself and others. Over the following decades, she achieved sobriety; trained and worked as an alcoholism counselor; raised her children and fostered many others; learned to live with visual impairment; and came out as a lesbian. In 2013, Chacaby led the first gay pride parade in her adopted city, Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Ma-Nee Chacaby has emerged from hardship grounded in faith, compassion, humor, and resilience. Her memoir provides unprecedented insights into the challenges still faced by many Indigenous people.
Ma-Nee Chacaby has emerged from hardship grounded in faith, compassion, humor, and resilience. Her memoir provides unprecedented insights into the challenges still faced by many Indigenous people.
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January 1, 2020I don’t have much to say for this book because it says so much for itself. Ma-Nee has led a life of tragedy and triumph, hardship and love, and the sheer scope of her life is impossible to contain. This is a fascinating and necessary look at an indigenous lesbian who has experienced and overcome so much. The writing is very dry, as a warning, but that’s why I think the afterward is so incredibly necessary. An essential read.
Tw: alcoholism, sexual assault, sexual abuse, physical and emotional abuse, smoking, death, terminal illness, suicide, homelessness, drug use, homophobia, homophobic slurs, homophobic abuse (from family and from many others), PTSD, racism, and racist slurs.
As a warning, there may be further triggers that I was not able to list from memory. Ma-Nee has experienced and been a witness to many tragic and triggering things in her life. This was a difficult read which is why I’ve been working my way though it for so long. Please go into this autobiography prepared for that.
Tw: alcoholism, sexual assault, sexual abuse, physical and emotional abuse, smoking, death, terminal illness, suicide, homelessness, drug use, homophobia, homophobic slurs, homophobic abuse (from family and from many others), PTSD, racism, and racist slurs.
As a warning, there may be further triggers that I was not able to list from memory. Ma-Nee has experienced and been a witness to many tragic and triggering things in her life. This was a difficult read which is why I’ve been working my way though it for so long. Please go into this autobiography prepared for that.
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March 13, 2024This book is so important. And I can never do a review justice. But these things are true:
1. Everyone should read this book.
2. Tread carefully if you do read this. Tigger warnings for sexual, physical and mental abuse, homophobia, alcoholism, and drug use.
3. Ma-Nee's voice as an indigenous woman is worthy of recording for the historical record. Ma-Nee's voice as Two-Spirit and queer is also invaluable.
I am in awe of her courage and reliance and completely heartbroken for the things she and many other people she references in this book had to experience. This was not an easy read, but it may be one of the most important things I've read, especially as non-indigenous person living in North America.
1. Everyone should read this book.
2. Tread carefully if you do read this. Tigger warnings for sexual, physical and mental abuse, homophobia, alcoholism, and drug use.
3. Ma-Nee's voice as an indigenous woman is worthy of recording for the historical record. Ma-Nee's voice as Two-Spirit and queer is also invaluable.
I am in awe of her courage and reliance and completely heartbroken for the things she and many other people she references in this book had to experience. This was not an easy read, but it may be one of the most important things I've read, especially as non-indigenous person living in North America.
March 23, 2018
I had never experienced romantic feelings or sexual desire for a man. At best, I felt sexually indifferent toward men, and, at worst, sickened by the idea of sex with them. The possibility of finding a female partner and experiencing happiness in a lesbian relationship was not something I even imagined at the time. In Thunder Bay in the late 1970s, there was no visible lesbian or gay community. I believed my crushes and attractions for women were my own unique, strange burden to bear. I had learned to suppress those feelings long ago. (120)
Different images come to my mind when I remember my experience of coming out. Some days I felt like I was unzipping a layer of unwanted skin, and shedding it from my body like a snake, so I could move freely for the first time. Other days I felt as if I was coming out of a dark prison cell into sunlight. And then there were days I saw myself as a piece of a jigsaw puzzle that, until then, had been forced into the wrong spaces, even into the wrong puzzle. But at last I had found the right puzzle, and I fit very well. (142)
It took me a while to get into this, because the telling is a little dry—one event after another, not a lot by way of full scenes or detailed descriptions.
But.
The farther I read, the more sense it made. There is so much here. She's lived more life than many, and there's a lot of hard material in here. To tell it all in full would take hundreds more pages. This isn't a memoir that builds those individual pictures, but what it does do is tell one hell of a story of a woman who fought and fought to build herself a life that was right for herself and to help others. Again: there is so much in here, good and bad. Being First Nations and growing up with a grandmother and seeing violence and alcoholism in the community. Being married off young. Abuse. Children and hard births (think spending hours on a sled to get to hospital) and loss. More abuse. More loss. Alcoholism and poverty and friendship and fostering and getting back on her feet. Coming out in a community that did not understand lesbianism. Violence. Vision loss. Finding ways to put those puzzle pieces together.
As a book, it's not amazing, but as a story, it's worth a read. It's a lot, but an important lot.
Different images come to my mind when I remember my experience of coming out. Some days I felt like I was unzipping a layer of unwanted skin, and shedding it from my body like a snake, so I could move freely for the first time. Other days I felt as if I was coming out of a dark prison cell into sunlight. And then there were days I saw myself as a piece of a jigsaw puzzle that, until then, had been forced into the wrong spaces, even into the wrong puzzle. But at last I had found the right puzzle, and I fit very well. (142)
It took me a while to get into this, because the telling is a little dry—one event after another, not a lot by way of full scenes or detailed descriptions.
But.
The farther I read, the more sense it made. There is so much here. She's lived more life than many, and there's a lot of hard material in here. To tell it all in full would take hundreds more pages. This isn't a memoir that builds those individual pictures, but what it does do is tell one hell of a story of a woman who fought and fought to build herself a life that was right for herself and to help others. Again: there is so much in here, good and bad. Being First Nations and growing up with a grandmother and seeing violence and alcoholism in the community. Being married off young. Abuse. Children and hard births (think spending hours on a sled to get to hospital) and loss. More abuse. More loss. Alcoholism and poverty and friendship and fostering and getting back on her feet. Coming out in a community that did not understand lesbianism. Violence. Vision loss. Finding ways to put those puzzle pieces together.
As a book, it's not amazing, but as a story, it's worth a read. It's a lot, but an important lot.
July 10, 2025
At first, I found it a little hard to get into the writing of this. As the afterword explains, this memoir came together through a series of structured interviews. Mary Louisa Plummer is a social scientist, and the tone is very matter-of-fact. Ma-Nee Chacaby’s life story, though, is engaging and memorable.
I recommend looking up the full content warnings for this book, because Ma-Nee has gone through so much in her life. There are descriptions of parental abuse, child sexual assault, domestic abuse, and more. Ma-Nee is a Two-Spirit disabled Indigenous woman who has faced so much systemic and individual cruelty. Her life is a glimpse into the generational effects of colonialism on Indigenous communities in Canada and how far that ripples out.
And yet, despite everything she endures, Ma-Nee is an incredibly kind and generous person. She is determined to take care of her family, including taking in distant relatives who have not offered her the same kindness. She adopts and raises so many kids and teens. She volunteers in various ways. After getting sober, she helps other people through their alcoholism. She fights for her Indigenous community even as she endures homophobia from them. She fights for her queer community even as she endures racism from them.
Full review at the Lesbrary.
I recommend looking up the full content warnings for this book, because Ma-Nee has gone through so much in her life. There are descriptions of parental abuse, child sexual assault, domestic abuse, and more. Ma-Nee is a Two-Spirit disabled Indigenous woman who has faced so much systemic and individual cruelty. Her life is a glimpse into the generational effects of colonialism on Indigenous communities in Canada and how far that ripples out.
And yet, despite everything she endures, Ma-Nee is an incredibly kind and generous person. She is determined to take care of her family, including taking in distant relatives who have not offered her the same kindness. She adopts and raises so many kids and teens. She volunteers in various ways. After getting sober, she helps other people through their alcoholism. She fights for her Indigenous community even as she endures homophobia from them. She fights for her queer community even as she endures racism from them.
Full review at the Lesbrary.
September 13, 2016
I can't say it better than the last paragraph of the afterword: "because of its difficult content, her account may be hard to read at times. Nonetheless, Ma-Nee's story is an inspirational example of courage, resilience and healing against great odds. We are fortunate she has shared it with us."
This book is so powerful and beautiful and necessary and fucking devastating. And also so uplifting. Thanks, Ma-Nee.
This book is so powerful and beautiful and necessary and fucking devastating. And also so uplifting. Thanks, Ma-Nee.
February 6, 2025
Read for Canada Reads 2025
In this exceptional, raw and powerful memoir Ma-Nee Chacaby recounts her, often times, harrowing life with a calm and steady voice filled with resilience and compassion.
She greatly appreciates the knowledge of her Elders and for their traditional ways of life.
Chacaby tells the story of her family from before her birth to present day (2014) in a complete chronological timeline.
We witness the unimaginable strength she possesses through such traumatic life events. I cried and cried! I had to close the book a few times because I couldn't take the atrocities any longer.
However, we can fully see the resilience of the human spirit to heal and carry forward in her story.
Ma-Nee's memoir is invaluable and we are fortunate to have her share her story with us.
In this exceptional, raw and powerful memoir Ma-Nee Chacaby recounts her, often times, harrowing life with a calm and steady voice filled with resilience and compassion.
She greatly appreciates the knowledge of her Elders and for their traditional ways of life.
Chacaby tells the story of her family from before her birth to present day (2014) in a complete chronological timeline.
We witness the unimaginable strength she possesses through such traumatic life events. I cried and cried! I had to close the book a few times because I couldn't take the atrocities any longer.
However, we can fully see the resilience of the human spirit to heal and carry forward in her story.
Ma-Nee's memoir is invaluable and we are fortunate to have her share her story with us.
April 25, 2018
Review originally published 23 April 2018 at Falling Letters.
The subtitle of this aptly describes its content. Born in 1950 in a tuberculosis sanatorium, Chacaby was raised in a remote Ojibwa-Cree community in Ontario by her extraordinary grandmother, who was estimated to have been born in the 1860s. The first chapter describes her grandmother’s and family history. Chacaby’s story then proceeds in chronological order, with the chapters divided by life stages. In telling her story, Chacaby has fulfilled a wish “to record her experiences and understanding for a broad audience” (215). Chacaby’s unique perspective as a “poor, recovering alcoholic, visually impaired, and lesbian Indigenous woman” (215) makes this a book well worth your time.
My favourite aspect of the book is Chacaby’s clear narrative voice. I felt like I was listening to a close friend sharing her story with me over coffee. Chacaby speaks with the wisdom of someone who has spent a lot of time reflecting on her experiences. She knows how to tell a story. Even when speaking of the abuses that were inflicted on her, she does so in a frank manner, without going into too many details while also acknowledging the significance of such events. While Chacaby’s co-author Plummer did the work of adapting Chacaby’s words into a written narrative, she “tried to use Ma-Nee’s original terminology and exact words as often as possible” with her “main goal [being] to write a first-person narrative in simple, clear and correct English that would be familiar to Ma-Nee herself” (217).
The afterword by Plummer, explains the process of writing A Two-Spirit Journey . She also places the book within the tradition of told-to memoirs, something I wasn’t familiar with before reading this book. Under the subheadings “Western social science and Indigenous knowledge-sharing”, “multiple authorship and voice”, and “Ma-Nee’s story within the broader literature”, Plummer explains the relationship between researchers and Indigenous persons, and the process of one person adapting another person’s words into a readable narrative. The afterward adds an important dimension to the book, opening it up beyond Chacaby’s own personal experiences.
Chacaby did not attend residential schools but had her own awful experiences while living at home. She acknowledges:
The Bottom Line: In this book, Chacaby shares an incredible story, giving voice to perspectives which are rarely heard. Plummer sums up the value of this book when she writes, “[Chacaby’s] rare, first-person perspective provides insight into how racism, homophobia, violence, substance abuse, and poverty have shaped Indigenous women’s experiences in Canada” (231).
The subtitle of this aptly describes its content. Born in 1950 in a tuberculosis sanatorium, Chacaby was raised in a remote Ojibwa-Cree community in Ontario by her extraordinary grandmother, who was estimated to have been born in the 1860s. The first chapter describes her grandmother’s and family history. Chacaby’s story then proceeds in chronological order, with the chapters divided by life stages. In telling her story, Chacaby has fulfilled a wish “to record her experiences and understanding for a broad audience” (215). Chacaby’s unique perspective as a “poor, recovering alcoholic, visually impaired, and lesbian Indigenous woman” (215) makes this a book well worth your time.
My favourite aspect of the book is Chacaby’s clear narrative voice. I felt like I was listening to a close friend sharing her story with me over coffee. Chacaby speaks with the wisdom of someone who has spent a lot of time reflecting on her experiences. She knows how to tell a story. Even when speaking of the abuses that were inflicted on her, she does so in a frank manner, without going into too many details while also acknowledging the significance of such events. While Chacaby’s co-author Plummer did the work of adapting Chacaby’s words into a written narrative, she “tried to use Ma-Nee’s original terminology and exact words as often as possible” with her “main goal [being] to write a first-person narrative in simple, clear and correct English that would be familiar to Ma-Nee herself” (217).
The afterword by Plummer, explains the process of writing A Two-Spirit Journey . She also places the book within the tradition of told-to memoirs, something I wasn’t familiar with before reading this book. Under the subheadings “Western social science and Indigenous knowledge-sharing”, “multiple authorship and voice”, and “Ma-Nee’s story within the broader literature”, Plummer explains the relationship between researchers and Indigenous persons, and the process of one person adapting another person’s words into a readable narrative. The afterward adds an important dimension to the book, opening it up beyond Chacaby’s own personal experiences.
Chacaby did not attend residential schools but had her own awful experiences while living at home. She acknowledges:
“I know that it was wrong for children to be taken away from their parents. I also understand that some of them experienced horrible abuse and neglect in residential schools. But it is hard for me to feel lucky. I experienced molestation and beatings in Ombabika, both before and after the other kids were taken away. So it is difficult for me to know whether it was better to stay, or to have been taken away.” (57)Although Chacaby endured many hardships throughout her youth, today, as an elder, she has learnt to find peace within herself. She acknowledges therapy, counselling, Anishinaabe spiritual practices, and painting all as positive methods that help her cope with difficult memories and difficult times. Chacaby’s story is ultimately one of “resilience and healing against great odds” (231).
The Bottom Line: In this book, Chacaby shares an incredible story, giving voice to perspectives which are rarely heard. Plummer sums up the value of this book when she writes, “[Chacaby’s] rare, first-person perspective provides insight into how racism, homophobia, violence, substance abuse, and poverty have shaped Indigenous women’s experiences in Canada” (231).
April 16, 2025
Canada Reads picks are hit or miss for me every year, but 2025 totally got it right.
Ma-Nee experienced so much over their life, both traumatic and incredible, and remained so grounded and whole through all of it.
Delivering stories, that would have crushed most people's souls, with a matter of fact manner and moving on with their life.
It was both inspiring and heartbreaking to hear how much Ma-Nee went through over the decades.
Ma-Nee discusses so much about finding themselves and the road blocks they had to overcome while doing that. I am so happy they were able to get to a place in life where they felt completely comfortable in their skin and were able to get some counselling to unpack the past.
If you are looking for a fascinating story, I highly recommend reading Ma-Nee's.
Ma-Nee experienced so much over their life, both traumatic and incredible, and remained so grounded and whole through all of it.
Delivering stories, that would have crushed most people's souls, with a matter of fact manner and moving on with their life.
It was both inspiring and heartbreaking to hear how much Ma-Nee went through over the decades.
Ma-Nee discusses so much about finding themselves and the road blocks they had to overcome while doing that. I am so happy they were able to get to a place in life where they felt completely comfortable in their skin and were able to get some counselling to unpack the past.
If you are looking for a fascinating story, I highly recommend reading Ma-Nee's.
November 12, 2017
My brain was brimming over with thoughts during and after reading this remarkable autobiography. Chacaby's resilience and kindness are striking, given the many challenges she has faced. Her memoir presents an important opportunity for the reader to understand more about the challenges faced by many indigenous women and families, as well as the strengths that can be offered by a grounding in their culture, language, and spirituality. I also appreciated the afterword by the co-author, dealing with the ethical and practical issues around responsibly co-creating a written work 'as told to' someone else by an indigenous person.
May 21, 2025
Parts of this book hurt my heart. Parts of this book made me so very angry. What I do know is that Ma-Nee is a very strong, resilient person that I have a lot of respect for. Even though this book is full of trigger warnings, I believe it's a very important read that all of us can learn from.
September 30, 2017
I think this was a good book and a compelling memoir. The reason it only got three stars for me was that it was in no way what the title led me to believe the story would be. To be clear, Ma-Nee's journey is her own to tell and it is completely valid. My issue is less with the content than with the title. I was hoping to learn about what it is to be two-spirit from this memoir. I literally found it by Googling 'books about two-spirit' because I wanted a better understanding of what it was to be a two-spirit person. That isn't what I got from the story.
Ma-Nee focused more on her struggles with alcoholism, poverty, and sexual assault than her two-spirit identity. Again, that is totally valid if that is how she defines herself and the focus of her personal journey, but I could have been better prepared if that was how the material was presented. She mentions her sexuality and her spirituality only as an aside to her other life paths and so I know so much more about AA and being a survivor than about what the title of the book has led me to expect. In the end I was disappointed because I kept waiting to hear about her two-spirit journey, but I never did.
Ma-Nee is an amazing woman and an inspiration, but I feel like she kept so much of her journey out of these pages that I don't know the side of her that I wanted to know.
Ma-Nee focused more on her struggles with alcoholism, poverty, and sexual assault than her two-spirit identity. Again, that is totally valid if that is how she defines herself and the focus of her personal journey, but I could have been better prepared if that was how the material was presented. She mentions her sexuality and her spirituality only as an aside to her other life paths and so I know so much more about AA and being a survivor than about what the title of the book has led me to expect. In the end I was disappointed because I kept waiting to hear about her two-spirit journey, but I never did.
Ma-Nee is an amazing woman and an inspiration, but I feel like she kept so much of her journey out of these pages that I don't know the side of her that I wanted to know.
January 20, 2025
My first read from the 2025 CBC Canada Reads Longlist! One of the best indigenous biographies I’ve read in the past few years - I really felt like I was sitting down, having a cup of tea, and listening to Ma-Nee tell me her life story. I also appreciated the author’s note at the end describing in detail the collaborative process that went into writing the book and making sure Ma-Nee’s voice came through.
May 26, 2020
An incredible look into aspects of Native American history and of Ma-Nee’s life; discussing land, culture, spirituality, education, sexuality, abuse, harassment, rape, marriage, adoption and fostering, alcoholism in her community etc.
April 13, 2025
love love loved this. what an incredible journey and inspiration of resilience.
May 5, 2019
Ma-Nee Chacaby is clearly an amazing elder who has survived traumatic experiences (CW rape, child abuse, addiction, acquired disability, sexism, racism, homophobia) and has dedicated much of her life to helping other survivors. However, I found the writing style flat, more of a listing of facts than an actual narrative. Given the title, I was also disappointed that there were only a handful of rather superficial mentions of two-spirit beliefs.
February 23, 2025
This was an incredibly difficult book to read, with so many topics and stories that were tough to read and digest. And at the same time, reading about Ma-Nee’s resilience, bravery, and strength are so inspiring. What a beautiful soul she is and a gift to all those who know and meet her.
At times I felt the writing didn’t tell the full story properly, or that details were missing. But reading the Afterword explained so much. This final section of the book is not to be skipped.
Quotes I Loved: Possible Spoilers
With all that she has lived through and her ability to carry on and help so many others in the process, there were few quotes that really stuck with me as great reminders when we find ourselves in challenging or difficult situations:
“Today, I know how to help myself get through difficult times positively, I drum, I sing, and smudge myself daily. I focus on love and forgiveness, for myself and others. I talk to the Great Spirit, sometimes at home, and at other times by a river in town, or in the bush… I walk long distances every day. I take pleasure in whatever nature there is around me, whether I am in the city or in the country.”
“Given the discrimination and violence I have experienced in my sixty-three years, it would have been easy for me to become a hateful person. Even today, when I am grateful to lead a peaceful and happy life, there are moments when I feel anger, bitterness, and regret. But those feelings only make me miserable, and I don’t want to live like that. I have learned to manage difficult emotions… I believe I am whole today because I confront and feel such pain fully.”
“Sometimes, during a crisis, I have to function in the moment, but sooner or later I try to take the time to focus on my loss. I do not let those feelings take over my life. I try to work through them. I take long walks and express myself by writing or painting, or talking with a friend, or a counsellor, or my Higher Power. That is the only way I know how to let negative emotions go and move on.”
At times I felt the writing didn’t tell the full story properly, or that details were missing. But reading the Afterword explained so much. This final section of the book is not to be skipped.
Quotes I Loved: Possible Spoilers
With all that she has lived through and her ability to carry on and help so many others in the process, there were few quotes that really stuck with me as great reminders when we find ourselves in challenging or difficult situations:
“Today, I know how to help myself get through difficult times positively, I drum, I sing, and smudge myself daily. I focus on love and forgiveness, for myself and others. I talk to the Great Spirit, sometimes at home, and at other times by a river in town, or in the bush… I walk long distances every day. I take pleasure in whatever nature there is around me, whether I am in the city or in the country.”
“Given the discrimination and violence I have experienced in my sixty-three years, it would have been easy for me to become a hateful person. Even today, when I am grateful to lead a peaceful and happy life, there are moments when I feel anger, bitterness, and regret. But those feelings only make me miserable, and I don’t want to live like that. I have learned to manage difficult emotions… I believe I am whole today because I confront and feel such pain fully.”
“Sometimes, during a crisis, I have to function in the moment, but sooner or later I try to take the time to focus on my loss. I do not let those feelings take over my life. I try to work through them. I take long walks and express myself by writing or painting, or talking with a friend, or a counsellor, or my Higher Power. That is the only way I know how to let negative emotions go and move on.”
July 23, 2023
Read the trigger warnings, this book address things head on
This is a hard read, there is child abuse, child death, sexual abuse, domestic violence, substance abuse, ptsd, racism, sexism and homophobia. Ma-Nee’s life story are full of moments where she is treated horribly but she continues to love and share with those that need her help. She is a very strong person but that’s not someone she should have had to be. I think she’s incredible and I hope finds peace and continues to enjoy her time with loved ones.
I started listening to it on Kobo plus and I enjoyed the narration but I wanted to see the images that kept being referenced. I ended up fining it on Libby and I enjoyed reading it much more. However having listened to the first 30% of the book I felt it really helped me read the Ojibwe words and know their pronunciation. Honestly I think both offer you information you can’t as easily get from the other and they go better together. The pictures descriptions in the audiobook were very basic and were not informative, for example there is a map in the beginning and we are just told what cities and provinces are on the map but no idea of the distances between them. There is a glossary of Ojibwe terms in the back but no pronunciation guide. Read or listen or both this book is important and if you can, you should grab it right away.
This is a hard read, there is child abuse, child death, sexual abuse, domestic violence, substance abuse, ptsd, racism, sexism and homophobia. Ma-Nee’s life story are full of moments where she is treated horribly but she continues to love and share with those that need her help. She is a very strong person but that’s not someone she should have had to be. I think she’s incredible and I hope finds peace and continues to enjoy her time with loved ones.
I started listening to it on Kobo plus and I enjoyed the narration but I wanted to see the images that kept being referenced. I ended up fining it on Libby and I enjoyed reading it much more. However having listened to the first 30% of the book I felt it really helped me read the Ojibwe words and know their pronunciation. Honestly I think both offer you information you can’t as easily get from the other and they go better together. The pictures descriptions in the audiobook were very basic and were not informative, for example there is a map in the beginning and we are just told what cities and provinces are on the map but no idea of the distances between them. There is a glossary of Ojibwe terms in the back but no pronunciation guide. Read or listen or both this book is important and if you can, you should grab it right away.
March 23, 2025
4.5 ⭐️
An absolutely heartbreaking life story of an extremely resilient Indigenous elder. It’s a story worth telling that provides important insight into the experiences of the Indigenous populations whose lands we live on.
Ma-Nee Chacaby has demonstrated a deep sense of empathy and caring for those in need throughout her life, and I am grateful she has shared her story with all of us.
Based on the title, I would have loved if the book dug a little deeper into Chacaby’s 2-spirit identity, but I think this is without a doubt a worthwhile read nonetheless.
An absolutely heartbreaking life story of an extremely resilient Indigenous elder. It’s a story worth telling that provides important insight into the experiences of the Indigenous populations whose lands we live on.
Ma-Nee Chacaby has demonstrated a deep sense of empathy and caring for those in need throughout her life, and I am grateful she has shared her story with all of us.
Based on the title, I would have loved if the book dug a little deeper into Chacaby’s 2-spirit identity, but I think this is without a doubt a worthwhile read nonetheless.
February 17, 2025
There is nothing wrong with this book and if this was the first story someone read about the life of an Indigenous person in Canada, they would get an excellent idea of what challenges were faced by the author (and many other Indigenous people). It is certainly an autobiography and not a memoir; it is told in facts and events with some reflection in the final chapter. The author had a VERY difficult life and was incredibly brave and courageous to share it with the world.
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March 23, 2025This is a very hard read; major TW for Rape, SA, Domestic Violence, Addiction/Alcoholism.
Ma-Nee’s story is absolutely devastating, but also very empowering.
Ma-Nee’s story is absolutely devastating, but also very empowering.
March 13, 2017
This was a great read. What this woman survived is beyond words. And the physical disabilities she's facing now, after everything else that happened in her life, is incredible. Well written and moving. She overcame so many odds that would have broken a lot of people, but not her. She endures today,enjoying a peaceful and serene life. What a story of courage and spirit.
August 21, 2017
This book is giving me all the feels. This woman is incredible. To be able to survive and thrive through tremendous physical/sexual/emotional abuse is a testament to how strong she is. I can only hope to have a sliver of her strength. This book hurts my heart to read but there is so much hope and love as well. This is one of the best books I've read this year.
March 27, 2024
I read this one over the weekend as part of the #transrightsreadathon #TRR 🏳️⚧️ @transrightsreadathon, and I can't wait to tell you about it!
A Two-Spirit Journey: The Autobiography of a Lesbian Ojibwa-Cree Elder
Ma-Nee Chacaby (she/her)
With Mary Louisa Plummer
In A Two-Spirit Journey, Ma-Nee Chacaby chronicles her life growing up under the legacy of colonialism, in a remote Ojibwa community plagued by alcoholism and poverty, into her adulthood where she faced many more hardships.
It isn't often I'm moved to tears by a book, but the tremendous suffering Chacaby experiences throughout her life is astounding and gut-wrenching. If you could make a list of the worst things to happen to a person in their lifetime, Chacaby has probably experienced the majority of them: child abuse, domestic violence, homelessness, addiction, racism, homophobia, sexual abuse, blindness, and the list goes on.
Chacaby is the epitome of resilience and endurance in the face of unimaginable adversity, and is one of the most remarkable people I've ever read about. Despite all that she went through, and the lasting impact of a life of hardships, she maintains a level of optimism and hope. Chacaby finds solace in her spiritual and cultural traditions, her tight-knit friend group, and the LGBTQ community. What an inspirational human being!
I recommend this book wholeheartedly!
A Two-Spirit Journey: The Autobiography of a Lesbian Ojibwa-Cree Elder
Ma-Nee Chacaby (she/her)
With Mary Louisa Plummer
In A Two-Spirit Journey, Ma-Nee Chacaby chronicles her life growing up under the legacy of colonialism, in a remote Ojibwa community plagued by alcoholism and poverty, into her adulthood where she faced many more hardships.
It isn't often I'm moved to tears by a book, but the tremendous suffering Chacaby experiences throughout her life is astounding and gut-wrenching. If you could make a list of the worst things to happen to a person in their lifetime, Chacaby has probably experienced the majority of them: child abuse, domestic violence, homelessness, addiction, racism, homophobia, sexual abuse, blindness, and the list goes on.
Chacaby is the epitome of resilience and endurance in the face of unimaginable adversity, and is one of the most remarkable people I've ever read about. Despite all that she went through, and the lasting impact of a life of hardships, she maintains a level of optimism and hope. Chacaby finds solace in her spiritual and cultural traditions, her tight-knit friend group, and the LGBTQ community. What an inspirational human being!
I recommend this book wholeheartedly!
July 7, 2020
In this tremendous autobiography, Ma-Nee Chacaby recounts more than sixty years of her life with stunning detail. This is a fairly short book, densely packed with so many years and hardships. I keep typing out and deleting a list of Chacaby’s experiences, but I’d actually rather not summarize the entire book. This one is well worth reading for anyone who is interested in autobiography/memoir, in Indigenous history through a personal lens, in rural life in the late twentieth and early twenty-first century, in disability (Chacaby is blind), and/or in a wide LGBTQ2S+ canon. Chacaby very naturally realizes a highly intersectional story, but the book is first and foremost completely personal.
This text was created through collaboration between Chacaby and Plummer, who conducted extensive interviews then wrote out and organized Chacaby’s narrative chronologically, using her exact wording often, and editing collaboratively to keep the entirety of the text in clear English that reflected Chacaby’s words and tone. It was fascinating to learn in the afterword some of the history of “told-to” narratives of Indigenous peoples’ lives, and how Plummer sought to incorporate both Western social science theory and Indigenous knowledge-sharing methods in the construction of this book.
Cw for rape, sexual violence, domestic violence, homophobic violence, alcoholism and drug use, children taken to residential schools and by the foster care system, death both of children and adults.
This text was created through collaboration between Chacaby and Plummer, who conducted extensive interviews then wrote out and organized Chacaby’s narrative chronologically, using her exact wording often, and editing collaboratively to keep the entirety of the text in clear English that reflected Chacaby’s words and tone. It was fascinating to learn in the afterword some of the history of “told-to” narratives of Indigenous peoples’ lives, and how Plummer sought to incorporate both Western social science theory and Indigenous knowledge-sharing methods in the construction of this book.
Cw for rape, sexual violence, domestic violence, homophobic violence, alcoholism and drug use, children taken to residential schools and by the foster care system, death both of children and adults.
February 17, 2025
I’m really happy this books exists. It sounds like a feat to have accomplished given all of the incidents of ptsd she might have had to go through in recounting information.
I hope that she continues into her peaceful life that she’s built around her. I appreciated the prologue where they also addressed “told-to” stories and literature and the possibility or idea of colonization. There’s some details into the former attitudes and more contemporary attitudes to this form of authorship.
I hope that she continues into her peaceful life that she’s built around her. I appreciated the prologue where they also addressed “told-to” stories and literature and the possibility or idea of colonization. There’s some details into the former attitudes and more contemporary attitudes to this form of authorship.
April 21, 2025
Simply, powerfully written account of and by Ma-Nee Chacaby.
It's a love story to her grandmother;
a story of incredible trauma and a descent into self-destruction;
it's a story of nature and it's healing properties;
it's a story of community and its many shapes, sizes and makeups;
it's a story of strength and coming to a place of joy, contentment and self-awareness.
This will stay within my library.
It's a love story to her grandmother;
a story of incredible trauma and a descent into self-destruction;
it's a story of nature and it's healing properties;
it's a story of community and its many shapes, sizes and makeups;
it's a story of strength and coming to a place of joy, contentment and self-awareness.
This will stay within my library.
September 24, 2025
Very important yet rough autobiography, which covers topics like sexual assault, alcoholism, domestic abuse, child abuse, drug abuse, homophobia, and racism graphically (TW!!), as well as indigeneity in Canada and the U.S. and queerness within and beyond that community.
Given the title, I really wish the authors had discussed more about the two-spirit identity; after reading this, I don't know that I could really describe what it encompasses and what it means to Ma-Nee Chacaby.
Given the title, I really wish the authors had discussed more about the two-spirit identity; after reading this, I don't know that I could really describe what it encompasses and what it means to Ma-Nee Chacaby.
October 14, 2021
It’s challenging to “review” a autobiography. Ma-Nee’s life story is contains content that is challenging to read at times. The writing is straightforward and clear which helps to pull the reader through the challenging movements. I learned a lot about canada through Ma-Nee’s experiences. I also enjoyed the note about how the book was written at the end.
I can’t recommend this book enough.
I can’t recommend this book enough.
April 5, 2025
Wow - a heart-breaking and important narrative that is not often published, that of a lesbian Indigenous woman. The writing is at times dry and the content can be triggering, but her honesty of her struggles throughout her life is amazing.
August 9, 2025
Ma-Nee's voice is an important one. I started this book with a physical copy but found it abrupt and challenging to follow. Given the history of oral storytelling, I wondered if it might be better as an audiobook and I was glad to have made the switch. The audiobook was engaging and easy to follow, and allowed me to really listen to Ma-Nee's life with the reverence it deserves.
I really appreciated the afterword at the end of the book that explained the processes and care that went into the writing.
Thank you for sharing your stories.
I really appreciated the afterword at the end of the book that explained the processes and care that went into the writing.
Thank you for sharing your stories.
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