DREAMING IN COLOR

A 14-year-old artist navigates her racial identity and anti-Indigenous racism.

Jen has brown skin like her Cree mother, but her older brother resembles their pale, redheaded Irish father. Though Jen has a loving and supportive family, she wonders if her life wouldn’t be easier if she were light-skinned. Once she’s accepted to a prestigious arts high school, Jen thinks she’s finally found a place where she belongs. But bigotry knows no bounds, and racist students accuse her of only getting in because of her heritage and mock the Indigenous influences in her work. When their racism manifests as destruction of property, Jen at first chooses not to tell any adults about the incident. Instead, she strives on her own to prove that she belongs at art school, possibly leading readers to believe the narrative is suggesting racism should be “overcome” by victims instead of putting the responsibility squarely on the shoulders of the perpetrators. Jen gets a happy ending and, fortunately, is able to express herself through her art. The writing is sometimes clunky, but the representation of a contemporary biracial Indigenous girl is valuable. Rather than delving into the larger history of oppression of Indigenous peoples in Canada, the Scottish/Cree author offers a mirror to the sometimes painful emotions and everyday experiences of Indigenous teens of mixed heritage.

A rare and welcome reluctant reader title featuring an Indigenous protagonist.