Historical American Tragedy

On a quiet Philadelphia morning in 1906, a newspaper headline catapults Alma Mitchell back to her past. A federal agent is dead, and the murder suspect is Alma’s childhood friend, Harry Muskrat. Harry—or Asku, as Alma knew him—was the most promising student at the “savage-taming” boarding school run by her father, where Alma was the only white pupil. Created in the wake of the Indian Wars, the Stover School was intended to assimilate the children of neighboring reservations. Instead, it robbed them of everything they’d known—language, customs, even their names—and left a heartbreaking legacy in its wake.

The bright, courageous boy Alma knew could never have murdered anyone. But she barely recognizes the man Asku has become, cold and embittered at being an outcast in the white world and a ghost in his own. Her lawyer husband, Stewart, reluctantly agrees to help defend Asku for Alma’s sake. To do so, Alma must revisit the painful secrets she has kept hidden from everyone—especially Stewart.

BETWEEN EARTH AND SKY by Amanda Skenandore is based on the experiences of a member of the Ojibwe Tribe, who survived an Indian mission school in the 1950s. Told between past and present timelines, this is not just historical fiction, but a coming-of-age story blended with drama and suspense. The murder of a corrupt federal agent leads to the discovery of severe criminal wrongdoing, which in turn reveals the many lies fed to Alma as a child. As she struggles to balance her memories with the truth she uncovers, Alma must reconcile the life she wanted with the life she now has.

As enthralling as this story is, one of the students should have had their own POV in addition to Alma's. Minowe could have provided both past and present timelines in contrast to the first woman's perspective. While this novel brings attention to a period in American history rarely found in any classroom textbooks, the tragedy would have been best served by a Native American voice.

In any case, this is a novel I strongly recommend to all readers who enjoy historical fiction.

As always,
AstraDaemon