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The Orenda Joseph Boyden 9780670064182 Books

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The Orenda Joseph Boyden 9780670064182 Books

I think this is a brilliant novel. It's hard to read because of the brutality, but, basically, it's a war novel, so it should be brutal. Boyden has beautifully explored and rendered all of his major characters to great depth and interwoven their stories masterfully. These are characters to care about. Additionally, this is a morally complex novel about a subject that deserves much greater attention than it has gotten.

I am a citizen of the U.S., not a Canadian, but additionally, I am a citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. I am aware of the controversy in Canada about Boyden's heritage, and am also fairly intolerant of cultural appropriation. However, let's face it, none of us are 17th century Huron. If he doesn't portray this culture, we would be waiting a long time for someone else to do it with such power, mystery, and beauty.


Tags : The Orenda [Joseph Boyden] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. A visceral portrait of life at a crossroads, The Orenda opens with a brutal massacre and the kidnapping of the young Iroquois Snow Falls,Joseph Boyden,The Orenda,Hamish Hamilton,0670064181,Fiction General

The Orenda Joseph Boyden 9780670064182 Books Reviews

I really enjoyed this book, except that I had to skip some passages that detailed torture. Another reviewer points out the cultural differences in views about torture, which is interesting, but I still couldn't stand to read those pieces. I found the character development and prose to be very much above-average. The story is gripping. I have distant ancestors among the Iroquois, as well as Hudson's Bay employees in Canada, and I've been reading other historical fiction (plus a bit of non-fiction) about those people and times, where I can. If you have similar interests, this is probably a must-read. I have done little actual research myself, so I have to assume that this book is well-researched, and some of the themes and events are similar to what I've read elsewhere. I read about 30 books per year in fiction and literature (I only know this because of my !), and I've gotten picky about what I'll spend time reading, so if I give this one four stars, it's a ringing endorsement from me.
A very difficult story written authentically and thoroughly by an author I enjoy reading. A compelling history of Canada that I found disturbing, heartbreaking and grim. The harshness of the climate sets the backdrop for disease, greed, savagery and revenge. The characters really come alive as do the lives and relationships between the many main characters. It is an amazing journey and a book that will stay with me for a very long time.
I read Joseph Boyden's Through Black Spruce and became a fan. So I ran to read The Orenda. I wasn't quite primed for the imagery required to understand the first couple of chapters and found it somewhat cryptic until I continued further in the book. That's when I truly appreciated his ability to viscerally transport the reader. His style of changing voice by alternating the characters between chapters creates anticipation from one chapter to the next. I've read about early Native American rituals of burning prisoners, and even though it was hard to read sometimes, he walked us through two days of gruesome torture. Somehow he was able to convey a message of honor that described this practice as more than just an act of cruelty. I really tried to skip that part but found I was missing too much of the message. There's a contemporary Native American voice that relatable and I love that he is able to bring his story full circle so you feel a sense of life's continuity. My only disappointment was that he sometimes jumped us forward in time and brought us into the future a little too soon. But, if he hadn't, the book would have been several hundred pages longer. Even though this is a review of The Orenda, if you can, go read Through Black Spruce.
I found this book very intense. Even though it is a novel, it is very educational and it highlights historical aspects that went on to form that part of Canada and also part of the US by the Great Lakes. I learned a lot from it. It is interesting how friction between cultures, eventually form a new civilization.
I found the book to be extremely violent, in terms of the torture and the killings between the Hurons and the Iroquais, but I guess that this really happened. The Jesuit misionarie were tortured too, but in some way accepted and their teachings were significant. Slowly at first but exponentially larger as they stayed along despite very difficult circumstances.
Lots of material to think about and to research; however, it took me time to get used to the writing style. The book is written primarily as a first person communication. But that first person could be the Jesuit Priest, "Bird" the Huron chief, or "Snow Falls", the step daughter of an Iroquais' family that the Hurons slaughterd and "Bird" adopted as an adopted child.
Intense, and difficult to digest sometimes, but definitely significant.
I hesitated for a long while in writing this review. I read the book in October ('14). It has stuck with me to this present day, which, I think, shows the measure of its quality. What is this book about? I've thought long and hard on this question, and my only real answer would be people. Specifically, peopleS. Contrary to what others have posted I didn't feel a bias or prejudice or favoritism towards any sect, order, tribe, nation, or culture.

This was simply a tale of different people coming together. It took me places and prescribed thoughts to which I had no notion I would ever have. I found beauty in the sacrifice of human beings. I found strength through courage. I was exposed to feelings that were both alien and primitive through my immersion into the written pages of this novel. I think, I understood some of the practices that many of us have just read about through the state-sponsored glass of official "history." It was exhilarating to travel back into time, so far away from the bounds and knowledge of our modern man.

This book is very good. Monsters and heroes abide everywhere I didn't have a rooting interest in any of the characters to start and cared about them all at the end.

Highly recommended.
I think this is a brilliant novel. It's hard to read because of the brutality, but, basically, it's a war novel, so it should be brutal. Boyden has beautifully explored and rendered all of his major characters to great depth and interwoven their stories masterfully. These are characters to care about. Additionally, this is a morally complex novel about a subject that deserves much greater attention than it has gotten.

I am a citizen of the U.S., not a Canadian, but additionally, I am a citizen of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. I am aware of the controversy in Canada about Boyden's heritage, and am also fairly intolerant of cultural appropriation. However, let's face it, none of us are 17th century Huron. If he doesn't portray this culture, we would be waiting a long time for someone else to do it with such power, mystery, and beauty.