The Night Watchman

The Night Watchman by Louise Erdritch, 451 pages.
Louise Erdrich is one of the best writers out there right now, and anything she writes is worth reading. Where her 2017 novel, Future Home of the Living God was further down the speculative and dystopian path, this, her 17th(?) novel, seems more familiar. Set in 1953 in and around the Turtle Mountain Reservation in North Dakota, the novel follows several stories at once. Thomas Wazhashk works as the titular night watchman at the Jewel bearing plant. He's also a member of the Chippewa council and in that capacity he helps argue that Congress should not abandon its treaty obligations. We also follow Patrice Paranteau in her quest to find and reconnect with her sister and her sister's child. Patrice, who works at the Jewelry Bearing plant follows a series of increasingly grim and disturbing clues as her search gets more and more desperate. Erdrich's characters and her stories never disappoint, and The Night Watchmen showcases her talent and skills.