Wagamese uses poetic language and evocative emotional phrases when he describes Saul and his peers’ fishing trip, and the tension between their longing for their old way of life and the nuns’ assumption that they are happily embracing Christianity. Yet even without the physical abuse that surrounded these policies, Indian Horse also emphasizes the tragedy of the loss itself. Jerome’s illustrate how literal that “killing” could be policies that prohibited Indigenous language, religion, and dress could be enforced only through brutality.

This is accurate to Canadian history-residential schools were built with the explicit purpose of “killing the Indian” in Indigenous people. While assimilation can happen gradually due to primarily economic and social factors, Wagamese emphasizes that the assimilation of Canadian Indigenous people into White settler culture was forced and violent. Indian Horse dramatically brings the dark history of Canada to the big screen and in the process tells a universal story of hope.Assimilation, or the loss of group identity in favor of the dominant culture, is central to Saul’s story. The sto ry is one of loss and fear, but also one of hope and resilience. Sa ul Indian Horse’s story is one that needs to be shared with all Canadians - settler and Indigenous people alike. Forced to confront painful memories and revelations, he draws on the strength of his ancestors and the understanding of his friends to gain the compassion he sorely needs to begin healing. Saul’s talent leads him away from the misery of the Residential School to a Norther n Ontario Ind igenous league and eventually to the pros - but the terrors of Saul’s past seem to follow him.

It’s as if he has eyes in the back of his head and can see the game in a way no other player can. Fascinated by the game, he secretly teaches himself how to play, and develops a unique and rare skill.

Despite this, Saul finds salvation in the unlik eliest of places and the most favourite of Canadian pastimes - hockey. In this oppressive environment, Saul is denied the freedom to speak his language or embrace his Indigenous culture and he witnesses and experiences all kinds of abuse at the hands of the very people who were entrusted with his care. The story takes place in late 1950s Ontario, where eight-year-old Saul Indian Horse is torn from his Oji bway family and committed to one of Canada’s notorious Catholic Residential Schools. About the Book Winner of Canada Reads People's Choice award A Globe and Mail top 100 book of 2012 2013-2014 First Nation Communities Read Selection CODE's Burt Award for First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Literature

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