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Sanaaq: An Inuit Novel
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Sanaaq is an intimate story of an Inuit family negotiating the changes brought into their community by the coming of the qallunaat, the white people, in the mid-nineteenth century. Composed in 48 episodes, it recounts the daily life of Sanaaq, a strong and outspoken young widow, her daughter Qumaq, and their small semi-nomadic community in northern Quebec. Here they live t
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Paperback, 248 pages
Published
January 1st 2014
by University of Manitoba Press
(first published 1987)
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Start your review of Sanaaq: An Inuit Novel
Quebec is such a vast province. Far north of my home in Montreal lies Nunavik, the northernmost region of Quebec, where fourteen Inuit communities are strung out along the coast. The lives of the Inuit of Northern Quebec have changed radically over the past century. When Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk was born in 1931, the Inuit had a primarily nomadic lifestyle intimately tied to the seasons and to the hunt. By the late 1960's, when Mitiarjuk was completing her manuscript, the Inuit had been settled into
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Jan 26, 2016
Alex
marked it as to-read
Jennifer D says: "just wanted to mention this book to you...because of its context in the history of the novel. the introduction is fascinating and talks about the process of getting the inuit oral tradition transcribed... then understood and translated."
Jennifer is right, I'm super into this. Thank you friend! ...more
Jennifer is right, I'm super into this. Thank you friend! ...more
i am having a hard time rating this book. its importance to the literary canon makes it a 5-star, necessary work. but i felt like there were oddities within the translation, and these kept pulling me out of the book. and, not that it is worth quibbling over, i would not necessarily label this as 'a novel'. it felt much more like each chapter was a vignette, as nappaaluk offers various scenes and activities of inuit life. so it did feel more like reading connected short stories.
a bit of backgroun ...more
a bit of backgroun ...more
This novel is not a novel in our literary structural sense but a beautiful insight into the Inuit culture and way of life that although part of this northern nation is perhaps the least understood. The episodes laid out are simple in language structure but complex in story. The reader is immersed into the intimate nomadic lives of the Inuit families as they deal with the daily and seasonal struggles of survival, nature and the encroaching southern white people. There are customs and attitudes th
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Fascinating!!
Wow, I really enjoyed this book! Sanaaq is a fascinating glimpse into the culture and traditional way of life of the Inuit. Written in Inuktitut by a woman who had never read a novel before, Sanaaq is in turns surprising and refreshing in its structure and tone. I found its construction to really aid in my immersion and understanding of Inuit perspectives; the novel’s depiction of children, elders, death, animals, and food were particularly thought-provoking. Really neat read.
“Jiimialuk! You must always remember that you are a hunter and that at all times you will face danger and live through unpleasant moments. You should act in such a way that your loved ones will never suffer from hunger and you should think more about them than about yourself. You should never sit still and do nothing when an opportunity comes to provide for their needs, ai!”
The first novel written in Inuktitut syllabics offers a valuable depiction of day to day life in Nunavik. It is set in the 1950s, but the characters in this novel are still incredibly self-reliant while living off the land and are only beginning to come into contact with the qalunaat (settlers). The novel’s episodic structure allows us to experience many moments from Sanaaq’s life, from major life milestones to minor daily routines. Perhaps there were more hunting trips described in detail that
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Brilliant! Relates a story of the Inuit before they settled in communities, a simple yet tough life -but so close to nature and the rhythm of the seasons.
You may also enjoy this humorous film by the NFB
https://www.nfb.ca/film/qallunaat_why...
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You may also enjoy this humorous film by the NFB
https://www.nfb.ca/film/qallunaat_why...
...more
This is a different type of novel. The plot of the novel is life, and the point of the novel is illustrating the life of a people as opposed to simply a life of person. The title character, Sanaaq, is a widowed mother who, along with her family, deals with everyday life and changing circumstances. It is not a “first people met the white man” novel though religion and modern society do play a role towards the end of the book.
Because of this it is a rather good book. It is a look at culture by a ...more
Oct 12, 2018
Scott Neigh
added it
Slices-of-life novel. Slow and deliberate. Fascinating. The first novel ever written in Inuktitut (between the 1950s and 1980s), published in French (2002), and further translated from French into English and published (2014). Not even remotely a polemic, but when read from here, saturated -- in its contents and in how the circumstances of its production are described in the Foreword -- with themes of survival in a colonial world. Worth a read.
In reading the English translation, I couldn't help but think that the original must have had a more flowing quality. As ethnography, I found it to be a fascinating read. I greatly enjoyed the descriptions of kayaks and their use in hunting.
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Saanaq, by Inuk author Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk, has been called the first 'Canadian Inuit novel.' Written over a period of two decades, first in Inuktitut syllabics (published in transliteration in 1984) and later translated into French (published in 2002) and English (2014), it was commissioned by Catholic missionaries working in Nunavut, who wanted to improve their ability to communicate with the indigenous peoples living in the region. What they asked for was a simple phrasebook. What Nappaluk b
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Huh, how to rate and review this one? It is tedious to read, coming across as something akin to Dick and Jane for grown-ups written by someone who had way too much coffee to drink while writing it.
I know at this point, I am supposed to say 'but it has great cultural value and is an important ethnography' but I am doubtful of the former and in firm disagreement with the latter.
If this book were really a wonderful ethnography, then I as a reader am now supposed to believe that Inuit people are s ...more
I know at this point, I am supposed to say 'but it has great cultural value and is an important ethnography' but I am doubtful of the former and in firm disagreement with the latter.
If this book were really a wonderful ethnography, then I as a reader am now supposed to believe that Inuit people are s ...more
this book is truly a marvel! it's a translation of an inuit novel that evolved from a written record of an inuit lexicon, authored in collaboration w/ a french anthropologist who sought to document (rather than exoticize) the people & their language. this is the kind of anthropological work that exists in community w/ its "subjects" rather than falling into the insider/outsider binary. something i rly appreciate about this book is the fact that there's a glossary rather than footnotes or in-text
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The first novel written in Inuttitut syllabics. It was transliterated into French, and later translated into English. It was the first book I read from an Inuk author. An insightful look into Inuk life in the (sub)Arctic.
Sanaaq somewhat eschews the definition of the word novel, and would more appropriately be described as a collection of forty eight vignettes about an Inuk woman named Sanaaq and her family and community. The back of the book teases “under it all, the growing intrusion of the Qallunaat and the battle for souls between the Catholic and Anglican missionaries”, as if that’s the major narrative arc of this book, but reading it I found the white man a far less prevalent topic than that blurb suggests.
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The narrative structure of this novel was wholly refreshing and fascinating at the same time. The linear quality of the novel wasn't so much defined by its plot but, rather, by the life of the Inuit family in Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk's wonderful book. The seasons, the constant push forward for food, the necessity of life in such a harsh environment--these make for riveting reading. But it's more than that, it's being wholly immersed in a different world. Of life in the north. Of the strength and dete
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Wow. If you're interested in the North and in the Inuit, this is a truly fascinating and recommended read. It gives you a sense of the harshness of life for these people living on the land, and the changes that took place with first contact. At the same time, you get a better sense of the family relations and community support that made it possible to live in such a harsh environment. You really feel the respect, love and humour that permeate these relationships.
The preface is fascinating and m ...more
The preface is fascinating and m ...more
This book is like nothing I've ever read. The first novel ever written in Inuttitut syllabics, it is the story of an Inuit family as their lives collide with an increasing presence of Qallunaat -- the white people. Nappaaluk was an educator and author who was dedicated to preserving Inuit culture her entire career. But this isn't just anthropology, it's a novel, and it tells as much about the worldview of its characters through its tone and style as it does its recounting of meal preparation, ig
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A record of difficult, but simple lives led in the Canadian Arctic. Much of the book laments the simple-mindedness of the Inuit characters who populate the author's world. They risk their lives to hunt and fish, yet often (read unbelievably often) leave the food out in the open where dogs, birds or other animals make off with the bounty. They make foolish choices which result in death or serious disease. They trust strangers and routinely ignore the good advice of their own companions.
If you ha ...more
If you ha ...more
A unique read that's not nearly as strange as some of the writing on it suggests. Nappaaluk's short chapters, slices of life at that moment, a hunt gone bad, the impact of domestic violence, storms, the intrusions of priests, are all highly relatable and beautifully written. Yes, there's something different in the way she tells her stories, more verbal, a lack of novelistic concerns and tropes, something a little cyclical in some of the repetitions that start some chapters but its all more felt
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This is an episodic novel that follows and an Inuit family through time. This book was written in Inuktitut, then translated to French, then English. The clunky translations made it difficult to get through, and I felt the dialogue and “train of thought” parts of the book made the characters non-relatable. While an interesting look into the daily life of the Inuit, this book was not my favourite.
An incredible book about the daily life of an Inuit family in Nunavik. I'd give it five stars for its cultural and literary importance, three stars for the pleasure derived from reading it. Would like to read the French version, once I find it.
Highly recommended to anyone who's interested in Northern Canada or Inuit culture (except perhaps those who are squeamish about hunting). ...more
Highly recommended to anyone who's interested in Northern Canada or Inuit culture (except perhaps those who are squeamish about hunting). ...more
a wonderful and vivid account of arctic life during a time of significant change. must be stunning in the original, because even having been translated into english from french (after being translated from inuktitut to french) it's fantastic.
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I found the language barrier was the most struggle for me while reading. Te glossary was good for telling the meaning for each authentically placed word, but without knowing how to phonically speak them, it distracted from a smooth flow of concept.
A good read beyond that hiccup though :)
A good read beyond that hiccup though :)
Note to self: the author's life reminds me that there is so much learning that can be accessed outside formal education and training.
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Not really a novel in the traditional sense but a set of very short stories. The book gave good insights into the lives of Inuit people.
1953-1984
the first Inuktitut novel, written by a women who had never read a novel?
Many of the chapters, or "episodes", of the novel were originally written at the request of Catholic missionaries stationed in Nunavik who were interested in improving their own knowledge of Inuktitut in order to better communicate with local communities and translate prayer books into the Inuit language.[3] Nappaaluk, who was asked to initially create a type of phrasebook using syllabics to record common words fro ...more
the first Inuktitut novel, written by a women who had never read a novel?
Many of the chapters, or "episodes", of the novel were originally written at the request of Catholic missionaries stationed in Nunavik who were interested in improving their own knowledge of Inuktitut in order to better communicate with local communities and translate prayer books into the Inuit language.[3] Nappaaluk, who was asked to initially create a type of phrasebook using syllabics to record common words fro ...more
May 16, 2019
Trevor LaForce
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
arctic-research
This is a truly tremendous experience to read. It's a novel that bears no conventions of the form. It's divorced from any Western literary tradition. It's pure, raw storytelling. It's a writer finding her feet with each vignette. Sanaaq is deeply strange and relentlessly relatable. It's native but profound, has little sense of pacing but incredible momentum, is directionless but resolves into a clear arc that you never realized you were racing towards. It is warm and real.
The translation will c ...more
The translation will c ...more
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Mitiarjuk Nappaaluk (1931 – 2007) was an educator and author based in the northern Quebec territory of Nunavik.
Dedicated to preserving Inuit culture, Nappaaluk authored over twenty books, including Sanaaq, the first novel written in syllabics. Among her many accomplishments, Nappaaluk also compiled an Inuttitut encyclopedia of Inuit traditional knowledge, translated the Catholic prayer book into ...more
Dedicated to preserving Inuit culture, Nappaaluk authored over twenty books, including Sanaaq, the first novel written in syllabics. Among her many accomplishments, Nappaaluk also compiled an Inuttitut encyclopedia of Inuit traditional knowledge, translated the Catholic prayer book into ...more
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