The "Firekeeper's Daughter" has her own identity (Week 5: Native American YA Selection)

"There are some who can go anywhere because they always know the way home."--Angeline Boulley   

For this week’s Young Adult selection, I wanted to choose a book that I have absolutely no preconceptions about. Angeline Boulley’s Firekeeper’s Daughter is the enthralling tale of  Daunis Fontaine. Daunis is an 18 year old hockey player torn between two worlds. Her mother is the daughter of a wealthy French family and her father is a member of the Ojibwe tribe. Because her father was not included on her birth certificate and her father died when she was seven, Daunis is not a full member of the tribe. Due to the death of her uncle and the stroke of her grandmother, Daunis choses to defer her enrollment at the University of Michigan and instead attends a smaller college to be close to her mother. Her friend Lily is thrilled to be able to have more time with her. A new member of her brother’s hockey team, Jimmy moves to town and forms an instant connection with Daunis. Everything is going well until Lily's ex-boyfriend, Travis, tries to win her back. Travis, the science prodigy, is struggling with addiction to crystal meth. When Lily refuses he advances, Travis kills her and then takes his own life. 

This cataclysmic event throws Daunis into a federal investigation about a new batch of crystal meth that may involve her tribe and community. How far will Daunis go to solve this case and save future generations from drug addiction?

Firekeeper’s Daughter captivated me from the beginning. I don’t know much about Native American cultures, but this book filled in some gaps for me. Both of Daunis’s heritages play a central role in the story, allowing the reader to understand her motivations and the heartbreak she feels when she is torn between them. 

In the Classroom

I often struggle to suggest young adult books for older students, because I know that parents are extremely particular when it comes to their student’s exposure to adult topics. This story contains sexual content, rape, death, and violence. Because of these themes, I recommend teachers use caution when assigning this book. With that being said, I recommend this book for students in 11th grade and up. This is a great story for students to read after they have developed knowledge of historical treatment of Native Americans. The characters discuss boarding schools and the perspective of elders of the practice. A teacher could assign a synthesis essay of the historical treatment of Native Americans and the modern day impacts utilizing the book as a jump-start.