news | Thursday April 13, 2023

Hot Off the Press! “Spells, Wishes, and the Talking Dead: ᒪᒪᐦᑖᐃᐧᓯᐃᐧᐣ ᐸᑯᓭᔨᒧᐤ ᓂᑭᐦᒋ ᐋᓂᐢᑯᑖᐹᐣ mamahtâwisiwin, pakosêyimow, nikihci-âniskotâpân” Is Here!

The latest collection from Wanda John-Kehewin has arrived! Spells, Wishes, and the Talking Dead: ᒪᒪᐦᑖᐃᐧᓯᐃᐧᐣ ᐸᑯᓭᔨᒧᐤ ᓂᑭᐦᒋ ᐋᓂᐢᑯᑖᐹᐣ mamahtâwisiwin, pakosêyimow, nikihci-âniskotâpân plays with form, space, and language, demonstrating which magics cannot be suppressed. Here is an unflinching look at colonialism’s sickening trail: its ongoing detriment to the safety and mental health of Indigenous people, its theft of language, and its intergenerational harms. But here also is the unrelenting power of resistance, and the great strength in truth.

From “Confusion”:

“Would my words in English translated to Cree make any sense question mark Or would it sound like someone lost in the past of sadness comma betrayal comma and anything but mindfulness question mark How will I ever know that if I do not speak my language question mark A good Cree joke told in Cree translated to English is not funny anymore comma but instead becomes contention for the Cree speaker trying to relate it to you in English and you’re left with a longing and a lack of belonging period”

Spells, Wishes, and the Talking Dead: ᒪᒪᐦᑖᐃᐧᓯᐃᐧᐣ ᐸᑯᓭᔨᒧᐤ ᓂᑭᐦᒋ ᐋᓂᐢᑯᑖᐹᐣ mamahtâwisiwin, pakosêyimow, nikihci-âniskotâpân refuses to avert its gaze from the past, the present, and the reader.

Pick up your copy here.