Review by Deborah Locke
What if the Internet and all forms of communication and power failed completely, combined with climate changes that made the environment uninhabitable?
This fascinating book, “Moon of the Turning Leaves” by Waubgeshig Rice (Ojibwe) shows how a group of natives in northern Ontario set out to find a new home. Because the band members faced starvation, the move was imperative. But where could they go?
They had been isolated for 12 years following the power failure that caused governments and societies to self-destruct. The scouting group, led by Evan Whitesky, sought information about their ancestral home on Lake Huron and hoped to return there permanently. To get there, they had to cross areas now inhabited by white supremist militia groups, destroyed cities and towns, and a scorched earth.
I know what you’re thinking. You’re thinking, what a downer. But what else would one expect when setting a story in a post-apocalypse world where all of humanity is threatened? Disease and starvation killed millions of people. Pockets of isolated indigenous groups throughout Canada used the old ways of hunting and gathering to survive.
The plot dragged at first and I wondered how long it would take to get to the good parts. Then suddenly I was hooked, and curious about the fate of these courageous, amazing people who sought security and a future.
The cohesive group of six led by Whitesky included his daughter, Nangohns, a gifted hunter and archer. Early in the summer they consulted a ragged map and walked south with lakes and rivers as guideposts. Paved roads were cracked and washed out after years of neglect. Few power poles were left standing. Homes stripped of wood used as firewood were falling apart with broken windows and missing doors. Some were overtaken by trees growing through walls and collapsed roofs. There was evidence of gun violence.
The environment posed challenges as the group slowly moved south, hunting for food and water along the way while wary of encountering people. It’s the humans they finally encounter who pose the greatest threat, people without integrity driven by violence and theft. I thought of the U.S. era of forced removal of American Indians from their homelands in the 1800s, where government-imposed upheaval, violence and massive theft of land took place.
The Civil War era in U.S. history is another example of destruction and madness on U.S. soil. Reading the book helps you easily visualize a similar fate: imagine no power, no communication, no food, no heat, an abundance of guns, a preponderance of racism, and then what? How would the outcome here and now differ from what Rice described?
Maybe that question is best left to a book club meeting. Or a classroom. I read the book in two sittings, anxious to learn what happened. The story was a satisfying account with believable characters in unimaginable circumstances. Yes, there was loss and sadness. Also, there was strength and love and kinship and unwavering determination. I really liked the book, which turned out to be a good way to conclude 2024 books reviews for The Circle.
