Five Little Indians (novel)

Five Little Indians
First edition
AuthorMichelle Good
Audio read byKyla Garcia
LanguageEnglish
SubjectCanadian residential schools
GenreHistorical fiction
Set in1960s Vancouver
PublishedApril 14, 2020
PublisherHarperCollins
Publication placeCanada
Media typePrint (hardcover, paperback), Audio
Pages304
ISBN9781443459198

Five Little Indians is the debut novel by Cree Canadian writer Michelle Good, published in 2020 by Harper Perennial.[1] The novel focuses on five survivors of the Canadian Indian residential school system, struggling to rebuild their lives in Vancouver, British Columbia after the end of their time in the residential schools.[2] It also explores the love and strength that can emerge after trauma.[3]

The book received a number of awards, and was CBC's number one book in 2021.[4] It was selected for and won the 2022 edition of Canada Reads, nominated by Christian Allaire, Ojibwe author and Vogue Fashion Editor.[5]

Background

[edit]

Although the novel is predominantly fictional, some of its stories were based on real experiences of Good's mother and grandmother, who were survivors of the residential school system.[1] Growing up, her mother talked about the traumatic histories and experiences of attending St. Barnabas Residential School in Onion Lake, Saskatchewan.[6] These discussions influenced Good's work.[7] The novel's development took more than a decade, beginning in 2011 when Good was a fine arts graduate student at the University of British Columbia.[8] As part of the writing process, Good relied on psychological assessments of children who experienced physical and sexual abuse in order to accurately depict these events' long-term impacts on a person's life.[9]

Reception

[edit]

As of August 2024, Five Little Indians has 4.48 out of 5 stars on Goodreads based on roughly 39,000 ratings.[10]

Five Little Indians was CBC's number one book recommendation in 2021.[4] The book also received positive reviews from the Toronto Star,[11] Vancouver Sun,[12] and Apple Books.[13]

Amnesty International Book Club selected Five Little Indians for their book club in 2021.

Now named Five Little Indians one of the top ten novels of 2020.[14] The Globe and Mail,[15] CBC,[16] Kobo,[17] and Indigo[18] also named the book in their lists of the best books of the year.

The novel was selected for the 2022 edition of Canada Reads, where it was defended by Christian Allaire.[19] It won the competition on March 31.[20]

Awards and honors

[edit]
Year Award Result Ref.
2020 Governor General's Awards English-language fiction Won [21][22]
HarperCollins/UBC Best New Fiction Prize — Won [23]
Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize — Shortlisted [24]
Scotiabank Giller Prize — Longlisted [25][26]
2021 Amazon.ca First Novel Award — Won [27]
Amnesty International Book Club Reader's Choice Selection [28]
BC and Yukon Book Prize Ethel Wilson Fiction Prize Shortlisted [29]
Jim Deva Prize Shortlisted [30]
City of Vancouver Book Award — Won [31]
Forest of Reading Evergreen Award — Won [32]
Indigenous Voices Award Published Prose in English: Fiction Shortlisted [33]
Kobo Emerging Writer Prize Fiction Won [34][35]
2022 Canada Reads Written Book Won [36]

Television adaptation

[edit]

Five Little Indians has been optioned by Prospero Pictures for development as a limited television series. Shannon Masters, a screenwriter of Cree Métis and Ukrainian descent, will serve as writer and show runner alongside Martin Katz and Karen Wookey, who will serve as executive producers.[37]

Good has expressed hopes that the adaptation will make the story accessible to a broader range of people.[37]

References

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  1. ^ a b Angelica Haggert, "'The story I was intended to write': Michelle Good on forthcoming novel 'Five Little Indians'". Canadian Geographic, February 20, 2020.
  2. ^ Marcia Kaye (April 16, 2020). "Michelle Good's "Five Little Indians" a fictional exploration of life after residential school". Toronto Star.
  3. ^ "Books and Reviews: Canada Reads roundup". The Suburban Newspaper. 25 March 2022. Retrieved 2022-03-27.
  4. ^ a b "The top 10 bestselling Canadian books of 2021". CBC Books. 2021-12-27. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
  5. ^ "Christian Allaire, championing Five Little Indians by Michelle Good, wins Canada Reads 2022". CBC Books. 1 April 2022.
  6. ^ Good, Michelle (2021-06-24). "Michelle Good: 'Imagine the terror of the children' — 'Non-Indigenous Canada, this is the time to raise your voices'". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2024-08-02.
  7. ^ Van Koeverden, Jane (March 14, 2022). "Michelle Good on her novel Five Little Indians, and the question that guides her writing". CBC.ca. Retrieved March 27, 2022.
  8. ^ Laskaris, Adam (1 June 2021). "Kamloops-area author wins prestigious awards for debut novel". Kamloops This Week. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  9. ^ Bresge, Adina (28 May 2021). "Michelle Good on why Indigenous people can't 'get over' residential school trauma". www.cp24.com. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
  10. ^ "Five Little Indians: Michelle Good". Goodreads. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
  11. ^ Kaye, Marcia (2020-04-16). "Michelle Good's "Five Little Indians" a fictional exploration of life after residential school". The Toronto Star. ISSN 0319-0781. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  12. ^ Gee, Dana (2020-04-16). "Five Little Indians follows young lives forced into residential school". Vancouver Sun. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  13. ^ Five Little Indians. Retrieved 2022-01-09. {{cite book}}: |website= ignored (help)
  14. ^ Cole, Susan G. (November 30, 2020). "The 10 best books of 2020". Now.
  15. ^ Cannon, Margaret; Canton, Jeffrey; Pereira, Judith; Rogers, Sean; Scott, Alec; Colbert, Jade (2021-11-30). "The Globe 100: Our favourite books of 2020". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  16. ^ "The best Canadian fiction of 2020". CBC Books. 2020-12-03. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
  17. ^ "Some of the best books by Indigenous writers in Canada". Kobo Blog. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  18. ^ "Our Best Books of 2020". Indigo Books & Music. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  19. ^ "Meet the Canada Reads 2022 contenders". CBC Books, January 26, 2022.
  20. ^ "And the winner of Canada Reads 2022 is..." CBC Books. 2022-03-31. Retrieved 2022-03-31.
  21. ^ "Past GGBooks winners and finalists". Governor General's Literary Awards. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  22. ^ "Requête rejetée / Request Rejected". www.ctvnews.ca. Retrieved 2024-11-11.
  23. ^ "Success Story with Michelle Good". 14 September 2020.
  24. ^ "Thomas King, Gil Adamson among finalists for $50K Writers' Trust Fiction Prize". Toronto Star. 2020-10-06. Retrieved 2024-08-02.
  25. ^ Truax, Emma. "2020 Finalists". Scotiabank Giller Prize. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  26. ^ Dundas, Deborah (2020-09-08). "Thomas King, Emma Donoghue make the 2020 Giller longlist in a year marked by firsts". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2024-08-02.
  27. ^ Vicky Qiao, "Five Little Indians by Michelle Good wins $60K Amazon First Novel Award". CBC Books, May 28, 2021.
  28. ^ "Five Little Indians". Amnesty International Book Club. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  29. ^ "Winners & Finalists". BC and Yukon Book Prizes. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  30. ^ "Winners & Finalists". BC and Yukon Book Prizes. Retrieved 2023-11-20.
  31. ^ "City of Vancouver Book Award". City of Vancouver. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  32. ^ Qiao, Vicky (2021-10-21). "Five Little Indians by Michelle Good wins Forest of Reading Evergreen Award for best title for adults". CBC Books. Retrieved 2022-01-09.
  33. ^ Drudi, Cassandra (2021-05-03). "Finalists announced for 2021 Indigenous Voices Awards". Quill and Quire. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  34. ^ Dundas, Deborah (2021-06-22). "Michelle Good wins Kobo Emerging Writer fiction prize — making it three wins for the three noms she got on that big day in May". Toronto Star. Retrieved 2024-08-02.
  35. ^ "2021 Rakuten Kobo Emerging Writer Prize Winners Announced". Kobo Blog. Retrieved 2022-01-10.
  36. ^ "Meet the Canada Reads 2022 contenders". CBC Books, January 26, 2022.
  37. ^ a b Vicky Qiao, "Michelle Good's Five Little Indians to be adapted into limited TV series". CBC News, June 9, 2021.
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