"Don't say in the years to come that you would have lived your life
differently if only you had heard this story. You've heard it now."
--Thomas King, in this volume
Read, Listen, Tell brings together an extraordinary range of
Indigenous stories from across Turtle Island (North America). From short
fiction to as-told-to narratives, from illustrated stories to personal
essays, these stories celebrate the strength of heritage and the
liveliness of innovation. Ranging in tone from humorous to defiant to
triumphant, the stories explore core concepts in Indigenous literary
expression, such as the relations between land, language, and community,
the variety of narrative forms, and the continuities between oral and
written forms of expression. Rich in insight and bold in execution, the
stories proclaim the diversity, vitality, and depth of Indigenous
writing.
Building on two decades of scholarly work to centre Indigenous
knowledges and perspectives, the book transforms literary method while
respecting and honouring Indigenous histories and peoples of these
lands. It includes stories by acclaimed writers like Thomas King,
Sherman Alexie, Paula Gunn Allen, and Eden Robinson, a new generation of
emergent writers, and writers and storytellers who have often been
excluded from the canon, such as French- and Spanish-language Indigenous
authors, Indigenous authors from Mexico, Chicana/o authors,
Indigenous-language authors, works in translation, and "lost" or
underappreciated texts.
In a place and time when Indigenous people often have to contend with
representations that marginalize or devalue their intellectual and
cultural heritage, this collection is a testament to Indigenous
resilience and creativity. It shows that the ways in which we read,
listen, and tell play key roles in how we establish relationships with
one another, and how we might share knowledges across cultures,
languages, and social spaces.
