Cover of the book The Night Watchman
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The Night Watchman

byLouise Erdrich

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction 2021 It is 1953. Thomas Wazhushk is the night watchman at the first factory to open near the Turtle Mountain Reservation in rural North Dakota. He is also a prominent Chippewa Council member, trying to understand a new bill that is soon to be put before Congress. The US Government calls it an 'emancipation' bill; but it isn't about freedom - it threatens the rights of Native Americans to their land, their very identity. How can he fight this betrayal? Unlike most of the girls on the reservation, Pixie - 'Patrice' - Paranteau has no desire to wear herself down on a husband and kids. She works at the factory, earning barely enough to support her mother and brother, let alone her alcoholic father who sometimes returns home to bully her for money. But Patrice needs every penny to get if she's ever going to get to Minnesota to find her missing sister Vera. In The Night Watchman multi-award winning author Louise Erdrich weaves together a story of past and future generations, of preservation and progress. She grapples with the worst and best impulses of human nature, illuminating the loves and lives, desires and ambitions of her characters with compassion, wit and intelligence.

Language

en

Published on

03/04/2021

Format

Paperback

ISBN

9781472155368

Who is this book for? Readers interested in Native American culture, historical fiction, and character-driven narratives.

Topics IdentitySurvivalFamily
MoodReflective, Hopeful
Female protagonist
HumorOccasional Humor
RomanceMinor Subplot
ViolenceMild
Explicit scenesSuggestive Themes

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