November

Becoming Little Shell: A Landless Indian's Journey Home by Chris La Tray, 2024

Ever since my trip to New Mexico where I visited the Taos Pueblo, I have been fascinated by the history and present day story of our Native Americans. There is so much oppression, cruelty and killing that I am not aware of. 

Not just the initial spreading of small pox through blankets while the American Native Americans helped the settlers survive harsh winters, but the continued genocide and stealing of the lands of the Indians because of greed.

La Tray's story centers around Montana, where he grew up and the Metis people (French Canadian and Indian) lived. French Canadian men who were in the West went to make their fortunes and some took Indian wives, creating the blended Metis people. 

La Tray's memoir tells of his exploration of his heritage, something he knew little about given his father's refusal to acknowledge his heritage. I understand his father's struggle - it was difficult embracing my Chinese-American identity while growing up given how Asian Americans were ridiculed in movies like Sixteen Candles.

When his father passes away, La Tray decides to explore his heritage, something he has always been proud of.

A mix of his personal discovery and history of the Little Shell Tribe, including it becoming the 547th tribe (I had no idea there were that many Indian tribes) to be recognized by the United States government in 2019,

With recognition, came government support (e.g. health services managed by government bureaus, COVID-19 relieve) as well as pride and relief. After decades of fighting for recognition and swallowing many injustices, the Little Shell Tribe could finally start rebuilding and providing services for its tribe members after decades of being driven to poverty by the actions of fellow Americans.

After reading in-depth researched books such as New York: The Novel and Isabella: Warrior Queen, La Tray's novel was lighter in history than I had come to take for granted. It provides insight into modern day Indians though, the intent of the memoir.

It also provides insight into Montana, a state that I have never really thought of before, and am keen to visit now.

New York: The Novel by Edward Rutherfurd, 2009

A compelling historical fiction tome, New York follows generations of the van Dyck (Dutch), Master (English), Hudson (African), O' Donnell (Irish), Keller (German), and Caruso (Italian) families.

From a Dutch outpost led by Governor Stuyvesant to the World Towers falling in 2001, the novel is a sweeping saga punctuated by historic events such as the Civil War Draft Riots of 1863 and the Great Blizzard of 1888.

I learned so much about history and having the history of how New York City was shaped makes for a clearer understanding of the city. The description of the greed in the 1990s and 2000s only scrapes the surface of what the city and its finance breathers have become.

With characters from every country and ethnicity (including Jewish, Puerto Rican & Chinese in the later years), New York is a stunningly researched.

I had previously read New York, but much of it did not stick with me. Having recently been to the city and really appreciating it, this time around, the book came alive. I have also read Rutherfurd's London and Paris, and plan to re-read them again before I visit those countries again.

One Goal: A Coach, A Team, And the Game That Brought A Divided Town Together by Amy Bass, 2018

I found this book while looking for books about soccer for my daughter. It tells the story of Lewiston, Maine in the 2010s, where the depressed town was handling an influx of Somalian refugees. 

The refugees were dealing (and probably continue to deal with) the racism of that the previous generations of French-Canadians ancestors dealt with when they first moved to Lewiston.

Similar to how my parents ended up in Boston, it takes one to build a community. Fleeing from refugee camps in Kenya, Somalians settled throughout the U.S. but soon heard through friends and family of a place in Maine where there were people who like them who could support them.

Although cold (one Somalian thought snow was salt when he saw it on the ground), Somalians preferred staying in Maine where they had a community rather than being isolated in other part of the U.S.

For the boys who grew up (some born) in refugee camps, soccer was the one escape. Even in Lewiston, the boys play soccer non-stop. Soon, the Lewiston High School boys soccer team became a top team in the state of Maine.

The book chronicles the team's state championship run, with deep back stories about the the conflict in Somalia, how they settled in Lewiston and the revitalizing impact they have had on the town. 

Being majority white, not all of Maine was not welcoming to Somalians. The community had to deal with overt racism, even the young boys experiencing taunting from opponents and crowds during soccer games.

We also meet legendary soccer coach Mike McGraw, who brought the team together, and players such as Abdi Shariff-Hassan (who would go onto to play Division I soccer), Moe Khalid, Maulid Abdow (master of the front handspring flip through in), and Austin Wing (whose parents were the ultimate Boosters supporting the team).

This is a heartwarming story how McGraw created a team that embraced and incorporated Somalian culture. Missing practice to help parents became an acceptable reason, practices were modified in attempts to take into account Ramadan fasting, and the team cheer of 'Pamoja Ndugu' (Swahili for Together Brotherhood) became the war cry.

Although sports can divide, it is magical in how it can bring people together. It is also magical how much the human spirit can endure. The Somalians are driven from their homes - physically, emotionally and culturally - by a brutal civil war to end up in a cardboard or carp home in the dessert where there is no running water or electricity. 

They come to a freezing cold climate where nothing is familiar and where slurs are yelled at them and reported about them in the media. Yet, they carry on and thrive. 

I'm embarrassed to admit that I could not find Somalia on a map, or could picture the Horn of Africa, before reading this book...  I have studied the map though and plan to working on improving my geographic ignorance...