The Shoe Boy
A Trapline Memoir
Format:Paperback
Publisher:University of British Columbia Press
Published:2nd Apr '20
Currently unavailable, and unfortunately no date known when it will be back
The Shoe Boy is an evocative exploration of Indigenous identity and connection to the land, expressed in guise of a unique coming-of-age memoir set on a trapline in northern Quebec.
At the age of seventeen, an Anishinabe boy who was raised in the south joined a James Bay Cree family in a one-room hunting cabin in the isolated wilderness of northern Quebec. He learned a way of life on the land that few are familiar with. Reflecting on those five months and his search for his own personal identity, that boy – Duncan McCue – takes us on an evocative exploration of the teenage years, growing up in a mixed-race family, and the culture shock of moving to the unfamiliar North. In the process, he illustrates the relationship Indigenous peoples have with their lands, and the challenges urban Indigenous people face when they seek to reconnect to traditional lifestyles.
The Shoe Boy is a contemplative, honest, and unexpected coming-of-age memoir set in the context of the Cree struggle to protect their way of life, after massive hydro-electric projects forever altered the landscape they know as Eeyou Istchee.
Frank, funny and evocative, The Shoe Boy deftly entwines the challenges of identity for First Nations youth, the sexual frustration and hopeful confusion of the teenage years, and the realities of living in an enduring state of culture shock. * CBC Books *
If you’re like me, you’ll have watched Duncan McCue’s journalism on the CBC for a number of years now, admiring his skill and diligence as a reporter. If you read his new book, his first, you’ll no doubt admire him a little bit more. -- Joseph Planta * The Commentary *
It’s a thoroughly enjoyable, nicely balanced and ideal summer read (or winter read really, as it takes place in the cold). -- Daniel J. Rowe * Eastern Door *
[Duncan McCue’s] voice is familiar as it is fresh. -- Bryan Lynch * The Straight *
The Shoe Boy is a valuable read and will enrich anyone who tunes in to CBC Radio One on Sunday afternoons, as McCue establishes his voice in the conversation of Canada. -- Thomas Billingsley * Globe and Mail *
McCue’s book, succinctly but beautifully written, takes the reader right to the people and places described, and leaves one wishing for more. -- Wilfred Laurier University * Announcement of Edna Staebler Nonfiction Award Shortlist *
ISBN: 9780774880572
Dimensions: unknown
Weight: 100g
88 pages