Book Review: A Council of Dolls by Mona Susan Power

A Council of Dolls
by Mona Susan Power (Power)

Sissie, Lillian, Cora…three generations of Native American girls…facing the trauma and fallout from Indian schools.

 

Ethel, Mae, Winona…three very special dolls…who give council and consolation as best they can.

 

This book is fiction, but the boarding school experiences described within were reality, as is the fallout that has affected generations of Native Americans. Some of the events are hard to read about, including: the loneliness of being separated from family (being isolated from family members and even those who spoke your language as soon as you boarded the train — having your personal items stolen and destroyed); the tragedy of having as guardians people who despised your culture (cutting your hair, being punished for any instance of using your language); the deprivation of being separated from the familiar (being fed gruel instead of nourishing familiar food); and the denial of your worth as a human (constantly being put down as savage). These hardships were balanced by moments of joy in friendships, love in family bonds, pride in education, and the triumph of finding and remaining true to soul mates.

 

A Council of Dolls serves as a witness to many strains of thought about growing up Indian in the United States. It is based on the stories of the author’s family and relatives, as well as her research. Generational trauma is addressed, but there’s also hope for the future. It’s a novel about “persistence and Love.” and how healing the generational wounds mends not only the future but also the past.

 

The concept of time going forward and back can be a bit confusing. The first tale is about Sissie who grew up in the 60s, then we go back to Lillian who came of age in the 30s, and then finally Cora from the 1900s. It’s like the wooden puzzle that Cora’s father carved for her: the smallest inner button was the beloved daughter, held in a band that represented her parents. Another circle represented their close relations. Another circle stood for their bands, the next the nation complete and the final circle represent the world and all of its beings. Cora’s father used it to show how the circle can never be complete without Cora, but Cora liked to take the smallest piece, her “lonesome self” and surround herself, layer by layer with protection. Time is not exactly linear in the world of dolls and young girls. There’s a web of connections between the generations, while the spirits come to guide them and at the same time, enlist their help. Love is a thread with no beginning or end, and we, as the dolls, owe our existence to Love.

 

“Love Love Love Love Love,” as the council would say.

 

Mona Susan Power, is the award-winning author of four books of fiction, and is an enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe.

 

(If you enjoy this, you might also enjoy The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson, Five Little Indians by Michelle Good, Red Bird Sings: The Story of Zitkala-Sa, Native American Author, Musician, and Activist by Gina Capaldi, or Buffalo Bird Girl: A Hidatsa Story by S.D. Nelson.)

 

( official A Council of Dolls page on the official Mona Susan Power web site )

 

Recommended by Carrie K.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

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