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Will's Garden
Prepararations for Will's Coming of Age Ceremony are in full swing as Will deals with increasingly difficult issues, and a sudden illness gives him time to think about what it means to be a loh man.
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2002
1 person is currently reading
128 people want to read
About the author
Lee Maracle
33 books284 followersBorn 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.
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.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 8, 2012
What I love most about this novel is the author invites you into Will’s Sto:loh home and invites you to visit each room at your leisure. You get to hear the hopes, dreams, laughter and history of Will’s family expressed in the laugh and worry lines on the faces of his parents, aunties, uncles, brothers, cousins, nephews, nieces and ancestors. I can’t remember a family in any book that I felt so privileged to spend time with as Will’s. I love the love stories within this 194 page novel. Very romantic. I have meditated non-stop on the insight one of the men provides in this novel on what sacrifices parents have to make when they do have children and how lovers can become strangers when they become parents. I think this is Lee’s finest work yet in terms of her novels; I think her short story “The Canoe” is my favourite of her short stories, and that’s reviewed a few pages from now. (Grades 5 and up)
September 27, 2017
A deceptively simple narrative that magically unfolded before your eyes, and keeps opening into a much larger and astounding work. Early I felt it was unrealistic, but then realized it was meant to present a model of ideal family life, or a model of traditional values. There is so much going on in this one little book about one family that everyone should read.
Having said on that, I wished the copy-editing had been less sloppy (ie "Whose MVP?" instead of "Who's MVP?"). Isn't grammar and spelling also worth modelling? Especially in the last 50 pages the number of errors was unfortunate and distracting. And the version I read was marked as "revised".
Having said on that, I wished the copy-editing had been less sloppy (ie "Whose MVP?" instead of "Who's MVP?"). Isn't grammar and spelling also worth modelling? Especially in the last 50 pages the number of errors was unfortunate and distracting. And the version I read was marked as "revised".
March 3, 2018
I really enjoyed this story about being oneself - within your family, community and history.
one to go back to in the future.
one to go back to in the future.
March 20, 2021
I really enjoy Lee Maracle's books.
March 22, 2015
I was very eager to read a novel of Lee Maracle's, as she is one of the most prolific Canadian aboriginal authors. Her poetry and short stories often appear in anthologies. I chose Will's Garden because I have also wanted to beef up my experience with young adult literature. I was a bit disappointed this time, but remain willing to try other works.
Will's Garden is a coming-of-age novel about a young Sto: Loh Indian. Will is the youngest sibling in his family and at age 16 is just beginning to be recognized as an adult within his culture. Much of the book describes Will's responses to what manhood means -- whether to reach out to people who are different from himself, how to handle bullies in school, how to make meaningful contributions to his community. Despite the "dumb questions" he is known and teased for, Will shows remarkable -- almost inauthentic -- maturity.
I believe Will's Garden is strongest in portraying work ethic and tight family bonds. Day and night, Will's relations help him prepare for his "Becoming a Man" ceremony and the give-aways that follow. Throughout the book, parents, aunts, and siblings provide advice, comfort, and prayers. Even long-dead ancestors continue to offer inspiration and guidance. This is a welcome counterpoint to "lazy Indian" stereotypes in the popular media and to authors like Sherman Alexie who focus on reservation pathologies.
One aspect of this book I intensely disliked, however, are episodes involving Wit, a gay schoolmate of Will's who is part of the "nerd" crowd that Will begins to hang out with. Somehow, Will figures out the sexual orientation of his "limp-wristed" friend, confronts Wit with questions mainly to satisfy his own curiosity, then brings Wit home to test the strength of his family's commitment to accept Will and his choices. His mother's homophobia becomes clear, and although Will defends his decision to be Wit's friend, there are no significant scenes with Wit after that. It really bother me when LGBT characters are instrumentalized in these ways.
Some reviewers have given Will's Garden poor ratings because the story seems disjointed -- there are various plot lines that are introduced but not developed. I personally contextualize this by remembering that the book begins and ends with Will being in semi-conscious states. In the opening pages, he is drifting off to sleep; in the final chapter, a near-deadly attack of appendicitis has landed him in the hospital. With this in mind, I take the entire book as Will's reflections upon his life up to that point. Thus it seemed realistic to me that trains of thought flit in and out, and that as a teenager, that some parts of Will's life story are ongoing. This said, I can understand other readers' dissatisfaction. I particularly want to know more about Will's talent with beadwork, the journals his mother kept of her days in boarding school, and whether a deeper friendship develops between Will and Wit, who appear to be alter egos. Thus to me, Will's Garden is crying for a sequel.
Will's Garden is a coming-of-age novel about a young Sto: Loh Indian. Will is the youngest sibling in his family and at age 16 is just beginning to be recognized as an adult within his culture. Much of the book describes Will's responses to what manhood means -- whether to reach out to people who are different from himself, how to handle bullies in school, how to make meaningful contributions to his community. Despite the "dumb questions" he is known and teased for, Will shows remarkable -- almost inauthentic -- maturity.
I believe Will's Garden is strongest in portraying work ethic and tight family bonds. Day and night, Will's relations help him prepare for his "Becoming a Man" ceremony and the give-aways that follow. Throughout the book, parents, aunts, and siblings provide advice, comfort, and prayers. Even long-dead ancestors continue to offer inspiration and guidance. This is a welcome counterpoint to "lazy Indian" stereotypes in the popular media and to authors like Sherman Alexie who focus on reservation pathologies.
One aspect of this book I intensely disliked, however, are episodes involving Wit, a gay schoolmate of Will's who is part of the "nerd" crowd that Will begins to hang out with. Somehow, Will figures out the sexual orientation of his "limp-wristed" friend, confronts Wit with questions mainly to satisfy his own curiosity, then brings Wit home to test the strength of his family's commitment to accept Will and his choices. His mother's homophobia becomes clear, and although Will defends his decision to be Wit's friend, there are no significant scenes with Wit after that. It really bother me when LGBT characters are instrumentalized in these ways.
Some reviewers have given Will's Garden poor ratings because the story seems disjointed -- there are various plot lines that are introduced but not developed. I personally contextualize this by remembering that the book begins and ends with Will being in semi-conscious states. In the opening pages, he is drifting off to sleep; in the final chapter, a near-deadly attack of appendicitis has landed him in the hospital. With this in mind, I take the entire book as Will's reflections upon his life up to that point. Thus it seemed realistic to me that trains of thought flit in and out, and that as a teenager, that some parts of Will's life story are ongoing. This said, I can understand other readers' dissatisfaction. I particularly want to know more about Will's talent with beadwork, the journals his mother kept of her days in boarding school, and whether a deeper friendship develops between Will and Wit, who appear to be alter egos. Thus to me, Will's Garden is crying for a sequel.
November 10, 2016
A different kind of novel that's mostly conversation, and a clear window into a young Sto : Loh man's coming of age journey, centring on his coming of age ceremony. Not a lot actually happens; it's more of a slice of life kind of writing that really plunks you right in the thick of his life. Community and family are really important in this novel, especially all the women in his life. The novel also has some things to say about homophobia, gender roles, and bullying. It was a real peek into Sto: Loh culture for me and I feel privileged to have been able to see a piece of it through Lee Maracle's words. A lot of food for thought and pieces of wisdom on how to live that felt appropriate not just for teens like Will the protagonist but readers of all ages, like me!
I read that Theytus press is putting out a new edition of this book, which I hope is true and that they get a chance to fix the unfortunate amount of typos in here. At the bottom of one page a sentence stops mid-sentence and doesn't continue on the next page!
I read that Theytus press is putting out a new edition of this book, which I hope is true and that they get a chance to fix the unfortunate amount of typos in here. At the bottom of one page a sentence stops mid-sentence and doesn't continue on the next page!
July 14, 2015
The plot and underlying messages were enjoyable, but the ending threw me off a bit. And, as a sidenote, the (lack of) editing throughout this book was atrocious. A minimum of four "Too" vs. "To" mistakes, an multiple grammatical errors and typos. It was baffling.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews