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Under This Unbroken Sky
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Under This Unbroken Sky / Shandi Mitchell - 5*****
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Under This Unbroken Sky – Shandi Mitchell
5*****
From the book jacket: Spring 1938. After nearly two years in prison for the crime of stealing his own grain, Ukranian immigrant Teodor Mykolayenko is a free man. While he was gone, his wife, Maria, their five children, and his sister, Anna, struggled to survive on the harsh northern Canadian prairie, but now Teodor – a man who has overcome drought, starvation, and Stalin’s purges – is determined to make a better life for them. … But Anna’s husband, Stefan, unexpectedly returns, stirring up rancor and discord that will end in violence and tragedy.
My reactions:
This debut work just about broke my heart. Mitchell’s writing is luminous and poetic in places, making the landscape and weather central characters in the drama that unfolds. In the span of a year’s time, the novel touches on the immigrant experience, the injustice of prejudice against the newcomers, the harsh realities of prairie life during this time, domestic abuse, faith, loyalty, friendship, charity, pride, survival and forgiveness. If that seems like too much to handle, trust me, it isn’t; at least not in Mitchell’s capable hands.
Teodor embodies the immigrant ethic – hard work and steadfast movement toward a goal, championing a cause for the betterment of his family. But he also falls victim to his own faults: pride and anger. He is so caught in being justifiably outraged that he cannot see his way to compromise. And yet, he is a loving father, husband, brother and uncle.
Maria is a tower of strength, keeping her family together and carefully husbanding their meager resources to feed not only her own children, but her sister-in-law and her two children. Her work is no less difficult than Teodor’s back-breaking task of clearing the land for their homestead. She instills values of charity, love and faith in her family, and tries her best to do so for her niece and nephew.
The character that most distresses me is Petro, Anna and Stefan’s son. He tries so hard to emulate his older cousin and uncle, but is understandably most influenced by his father. He may be only nine when the novel ends, but I worry for his future.
This is a book, and an author, that deserves a wider audience.
LINK to my review