Medicine River

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On sale Nov 06, 2018 | 7 Hours and 5 Minutes | 9780735237100
When Will returns to Medicine River, he thinks he is simply attending his mother’s funeral. He doesn’t count on Harlen Bigbear and his unique brand of community planning. Harlen tries to sell Will on the idea of returning to Medicine River to open shop as the town’s only Native photographer. Somehow, that’s exactly what happens.

Through Will’s gentle and humorous narrative, we come to know Medicine River, a small Albertan town bordering a Blackfoot reserve. And we meet its people: the basketball team; Louise Heavyman and her daughter, South Wing; Martha Oldcrow, the marriage doctor; Joe Bigbear, Harlen’s world-travelling, storytelling brother; Bertha Morley, who has a short fling with a Calgary dating service; and David Plume, who went to Wounded Knee. At the centre of it all is Harlen, advising and pestering, annoying and entertaining, gossiping and benevolently interfering in the lives of his friends and neighbours.

© Hartley Goodweather
THOMAS KING has written several highly acclaimed children's books, including My Lala (illustrated by Charlene Chua). A Coyote Solstice Tale (illustrated by Gary Clement) won the American Indian Library Association Youth Literature Award for Best Picture Book and A Coyote Columbus Story (illustrated by Kent Monkman) was a Governor General's Literary Award finalist. King, who is of Cherokee and Greek descent and was a Professor of English at the University of Guelph for many years, won a Governor General's Literary Award for his adult novel The Back of the Turtle; he won both the BC National Award for Canadian Nonfiction and the RBC Taylor Prize for The Inconvenient Indian. His novel Indians on Vacation was shortlisted for the Govenor General's award and won the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour. Thomas lives in Guelph, Ontario with his family. View titles by Thomas King

About

When Will returns to Medicine River, he thinks he is simply attending his mother’s funeral. He doesn’t count on Harlen Bigbear and his unique brand of community planning. Harlen tries to sell Will on the idea of returning to Medicine River to open shop as the town’s only Native photographer. Somehow, that’s exactly what happens.

Through Will’s gentle and humorous narrative, we come to know Medicine River, a small Albertan town bordering a Blackfoot reserve. And we meet its people: the basketball team; Louise Heavyman and her daughter, South Wing; Martha Oldcrow, the marriage doctor; Joe Bigbear, Harlen’s world-travelling, storytelling brother; Bertha Morley, who has a short fling with a Calgary dating service; and David Plume, who went to Wounded Knee. At the centre of it all is Harlen, advising and pestering, annoying and entertaining, gossiping and benevolently interfering in the lives of his friends and neighbours.

Author

© Hartley Goodweather
THOMAS KING has written several highly acclaimed children's books, including My Lala (illustrated by Charlene Chua). A Coyote Solstice Tale (illustrated by Gary Clement) won the American Indian Library Association Youth Literature Award for Best Picture Book and A Coyote Columbus Story (illustrated by Kent Monkman) was a Governor General's Literary Award finalist. King, who is of Cherokee and Greek descent and was a Professor of English at the University of Guelph for many years, won a Governor General's Literary Award for his adult novel The Back of the Turtle; he won both the BC National Award for Canadian Nonfiction and the RBC Taylor Prize for The Inconvenient Indian. His novel Indians on Vacation was shortlisted for the Govenor General's award and won the Stephen Leacock Memorial Medal for Humour. Thomas lives in Guelph, Ontario with his family. View titles by Thomas King

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