Louise Erdrich's novel is based on her grandfather's preparation to testify at a Congressional hearing in 1954. Names have been changed, except for that of Arthur Watkins, a Republican senator from Utah who held strong feelings against American Indian tribes. Thomas Wazhashk, a member of the Chippewa, was a night watchman at a jewel bearing plant. In the off-time, when he was not making his rounds, he read up on tribal issues. He knew that the congressional plan to emancipate tribes was a ploy to further strip the Chippewa and other tribes of the little land that they still had in North Dakota, which would force the people from their homes, where they were already living in deprivation. He helped spread the word about the bill, rallied tribesmen to collect signatures against it, and gathered a contingent to go to the hearing in Washington, DC.
A related storyline shows Patrice, a nineteen-year old woman who also worked at the jewel bearing plant, and how her wages were necessary for her family's subsistence. She has complicated feelings dealing with women her own age, as well toward young men who are interested in her. The relationship between Patrice and her mother show tribal customs related to health and death. We learn that each has had dreams which made them certain that Patrice's sister, who left the reservation to marry, is in trouble. We see strong loving relationships as well as abusive ones throughout the novel. It's easy to understand why the book won the 2021 Pulitzer Prize.
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