Customer Reviews

Stolen Life: Journey Of A Cree Woman

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4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have actually just begun to read the book as I became interested in this particular book very recently -- my family grew up in the same neighborhood as Yvonne Johnson and I felt compelled to read the book. I recall certain incidents from childhood such as her father on the front porch lining up all the children &(drunk) screaming "Indians on the Warpath" and one time grabbing my own sister off her bike, throwing her down (mistaking her for Yvonne) and then having to apologize profusely (he was drunk that time also)to my family. I recall her oldest brother dying while in the county jail, how my mother had him at times mow our lawns & we recalled how sad that time was, how the youngest, Perry, looked like a female with the long flowing hair (he had the lightest coloring), the girls Karen, Sharon, Kathy, Yvonne, how the Mother drove truck--the hard-scrabble life they led--I am sure it took a tremendous amount of courage to write this book, I recalled how she struggled with her speech, etc and how people could be mean to her.

Tansi,

I come from a small reserve in northern Manitoba. What I read in "Journey of a Cree Woman" was unbelievable. I cannot believe how many hardships this woman had to go through, and yet she still continues on. This book really opened my eyes as to what other women go through . This book touched my heart and many times I got shivers down my back. This book is an awesome book, that I recommend especially for women. There are many good things I could say about this book, but there is a limit. I commend Rudy on his awesome work and continuied support with Yvonne. I commend Yvonne for sharing her story with us as it is not easy to tell a story that is nothing but the truth!

Even though I felt like I was reading a novel, there was always the underlying sadness that came from knowing it was all true. Yvonne's story of abuse is heartbreaking because the reader can't help but wonder what kind of extraordinary life she might have led had she been raised in a loving, nurturing environment. Despite her horrendous childhood, she remains an articulate and thoughtful woman who seems to be at peace with the fact that she is a product of unfortunate circumstances. I just finished this book and now I want to buy it for a few of my girlfriends, to share the story, just as I'm sure Mr. Wiebe and Yvonne want to.

While I have found Rudy Wiebe's more recent writing difficult to get into I couldn't put this book down. Yvonne's story is horrendous, almost unbelievable except that it comes through in such a way that the reader is convinced that she really has experienced her life as she and Wiebe have written it. I feel saddened and inspired to do more to understand and support our fellow native Canadians. Yvonne and Rudy, thank you for this book.

I just finished the book about Yvonne and her hardships. I read it in Norwegian, but that did not diminish the affect it had on me. It's unbelievable what some people have to go through, without anyone doing something about it. And then actually surviving it all, amazing!
She said it herself in the book that people who have been through hard experiences easier can understand what others have to struggle with. And being as she is a Medicine Woman it is in her blood to try and help, wherever possible.
It is also a startling report on how the Natives are still treated in both America and Canada. One can only hope that books like this can help open at least a few peoples eyes...

I chose this book to read for a review assignment, and I must say, I'm glad I chose it. It is the life-story of a woman, the hardships she had to face throughout her life, as seen through her eyes. The book also shows how the judicial system, which we often view as having distinct boundaries, and as having the final hand in society, cannot ultimately be seen as such. While others may view Yvonne Johnson as a "cold-blooded criminal" and her subsequent novel as a "commercial enterprise", it is rather that this book is simply a means for her to have her voice heard, in a world that has silenced her for so long. We all want to have our voices heard, we all want to find our strengths. This book is how she found hers.

It's a shame when we put our criminals up on pedestals like this, especially with a murder so cold-blooded and senseless. That anyone can profit financially from such a heinous crime is deplorable and tells us something significant about our culture.

As to the questions of injustice, it's not pointed out very often that Ms.Johnson was not the only native involved in this crime. Her co-conspirators were also native, as was the victim Leonard Charles Skwarok. Where then can we point the finger of racism?

I personally did not find this book very poetic at all. Its narrative is uselessly disjointed, its grammar is often clumsy, and its poetic devices nearly non-existent. While Ms.Johnson writes most of the book in first person, the crucial chapters detailing the murder are written in third person. Is this because Ms.Johnson can't clearly remember what happened that night because she was drunk at the time, or because she wishes to detach herself from the incident, and have us see her more as an observer than as a participant? In any case, it's a clever device designed to separate the criminal from the crime. I for one don't buy it.