Three Day Road (Bird Family Trilogy, #1) in Retro Chapter Chicks

Feb 14, 2019 Candi rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, ni-book-voyage, canada-canadian, ww-1, native-american

"My body hums with Nephew’s pain and with the realization that he has come home only to die."

Xavier Bird has returned to northern Ontario after living through the hell of the fighting and trenches of WWI. He is wounded, dispirited, and addicted to morphine. The one soul who still cares for him in this world will journey several days to meet him at the train station and bring him home. Niska, or ‘Auntie’, is the last of the Ojibwa-Cree awawatuks, those that have rejected the ways of the white man "My body hums with Nephew’s pain and with the realization that he has come home only to die."

Xavier Bird has returned to northern Ontario after living through the hell of the fighting and trenches of WWI. He is wounded, dispirited, and addicted to morphine. The one soul who still cares for him in this world will journey several days to meet him at the train station and bring him home. Niska, or ‘Auntie’, is the last of the Ojibwa-Cree awawatuks, those that have rejected the ways of the white man by living apart from the ways of civilization. She also has the power of visions, of divining, a gift that has been passed down to her from her father. It is a three day journey back down the river, and as Xavier’s supply of morphine dwindles away, Niska has little time to save this broken young man from the three day road and certain death. "Their morphine eats men. It has fed on me for the last months, and when it is all gone I will be the one to starve to death. I will not be able to live without it."

What struck me about this novel was that the Native American tradition of storytelling is very compelling here. Author Joseph Boyden weaves together the first-person narratives of both Niska and Xavier. Xavier’s story is unfolded through a series of flashbacks during his drug-induced state. Niska’s history is shared with us as she recounts to Xavier the stories of her childhood and of her life as an isolated woman. We learn of Xavier’s best friend, Elijah Whiskeyjack. Growing up together and learning from one another, these two later set out for the European front. Here the horror and violence of the war is brutally but honestly depicted. War will change a man. You are forced to make choices that will ensure your survival. But even in wartime, is there not a line that should not be crossed? Can one go too far? At what point does the instinct for survival turn to something worse perhaps… savagery, madness? Memories haunt and torment Xavier. A striking similarity is made between the killing fields of war with Niska’s stories of the windigo. A windigo is one that has turned to consuming human flesh in order to satisfy his or her hunger as a result of desperation followed by insanity. Can the absurdity of war be likened to the windigo? Niska shares a vision she once had:

"I knew even as a young woman that destruction bred on the horizon. In my early visions, numbers of men, higher than any of us could count, were cut down. They lived in the mud like rats and lived only to think of new ways to kill one another. No one is safe in such times, not even the Cree of Mushkegowuk. War touches everyone, and windigos spring from the earth."

We are left to consider where that line exists between survival and madness, senselessness. Boyden will not necessarily give you the answers; instead he will leave you with much to ponder. I found this to be very powerfully written, with the strength being in the shared storytelling. If anything was lacking for me personally, it was in the writing style itself. The prose is fairly straightforward, which is fine and will suit many readers. I did not find myself reflecting on the beauty of the language in this book. Naturally, a war story depicting atrocities and what is worst in mankind may not necessarily be beautifully expressed. But it could be! Case in point – All Quiet on the Western Front. It is probably not fair to compare this book to that one, but having read the classic WW1 novel this past summer, I certainly could not help it. I use this only to illustrate a point, however, and would not at all hesitate to recommend Three Day Road. In fact, I highly recommend it to anyone that is interested in learning about a piece of The Great War that is rarely covered in literature – that of the Canadian Native American contribution to that war. In his acknowledgements, the author indicates that this book was written to honor those Native American soldiers. In particular, he references what he considers one of the most important heroes of the time, "Francis Pegahmagabow, sniper, scout, and later chief of Wasauksing First Nation." This is not an easy book to read but I am very glad to have done so. From what I understand, this is Boyden’s debut novel, although he did publish a group of short stories prior to this. I can only imagine that his skill will shine even more in later works, and I can’t wait to read more of those on my list.

"I realized then that sadness was at the heart of the windigo, a sadness so pure that it shriveled the human heart and let something else grow in its place." ...more

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Dec 30, 2018 Tasha rated it it was amazing

Shelves: own, historical-fiction, ww1-stories, favorites-2018

A powerful story, one I won't soon forget. This book is going on a Book Voyage so I hope those reading it will feel the same. Not always easy to read (as far as graphic and violent scenes) but this author can write an intense story/history. ...more

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Jul 16, 2014 Kris (My Novelesque Life) marked it as to-read

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May 21, 2017 Celia marked it as to-read

Shelves: historical-fiction

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