the night watchman by louise erdrich review

WINNER OF THE 2021 PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION

As she notes in her afterword, “…the mid-1950s supposedly the golden age for America, but in reality a time when Jim Crow reigned and American Indians were at the nadir of power.” Wrapped around this history is a compelling novel that is not to be missed. Erdrich presents a chapter in American history of which many of us are unaware, and the ramifications of which Native Americans continue to struggle with today. I absolutely recommend The Night Watchman.

Their strength lies in their reliance on one another. Although their situation in the United States is one of extreme poverty, Erdrich’s characters do not come across as impoverished, but face adversity with honesty, moral courage, and fortitude.

I have not read a book that so thoroughly reveals the spirit, the thinking, the rituals, and the beauty of Native American life and its seamless connection to the natural world as does The Night Watchman. I found myself totally immersed in this novel and the lives of each character. Relatives and friends whose lives are intertwined with his present their unique struggles as they face life in 1950s America. Thomas is not the only character whose story is told. It’s interesting to note that the term “Native American” is not used at all throughout the novel Erdrich’s characters refer to themselves and their relatives as “Indians.” By day, Thomas works to thwart the passage of the law he believes will result in the termination of Native American life, a law that would decimate the tribes, force them off what little lands they had been given by the government, and plunge Indians into even greater poverty. This bill, as described in the author’s notes, “called for the eventual termination of all tribes, and the immediate termination of five tribes, including the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa,” of which her grandfather was a tribal chairman.Įrdrich’s main character, Thomas Wazhushk, has secured a job as a night watchman for the Turtle Mountain Jewel Bearing Plant, as did her grandfather. House Concurrent Resolution 108 in 1953-1954. Louise Erdrich’s novel, The Night Watchman, is a tribute to her grandfather Patrick Gourneau, who worked tirelessly to block U.S.

The night watchman by louise erdrich review