the night watchman louise erdrich review

Determined to find Vera and her child, Patrice makes a fateful trip to Minnesota that introduces her to unexpected forms of exploitation and violence, and endangers her life.” Vera may have disappeared she hasn’t been in touch in months, and is rumored to have had a baby. But Patrice needs every penny to follow her beloved older sister, Vera, who moved to the big city of Minneapolis. Patrice’s shameful alcoholic father returns home sporadically to terrorize his wife and children and bully her for money. She makes jewel bearings at the plant, a job that barely pays her enough to support her mother and brother. Unlike most of the girls on the reservation, Patrice, the class valedictorian, has no desire to wear herself down with a husband and kids. Since graduating high school, Pixie Paranteau has insisted that everyone call her Patrice. How can the government abandon treaties made in good faith with Native Americans “for as long as the grasses shall grow, and the rivers run”? The bill is a “termination” that threatens the rights of Native Americans to their land and their very identity.

It is 1953 and he and the other council members know the bill isn’t about freedom Congress is fed up with Indians. He is also a Chippewa Council member who is trying to understand the consequences of a new “emancipation” bill on its way to the floor of the United States Congress. Quick Book Summary (from the official blurb): “Thomas Wazhashk is the night watchman at the jewel bearing plant, the first factory located near the Turtle Mountain Reservation in rural North Dakota. Louise Erdrich’s The Night Watchman, winner of the 2021 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, is our next selection.

In a continuation of our series of micro-reviews, assistant editor Brandon Williams brought together a group of ardent readers to give their quick-hit impressions of recent novels which have won major awards from the literary world.

The night watchman louise erdrich review