The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich

I’ve always loved Native American culture so it didn’t tale much for me to get into this book.  Omakayas is a young woman who is part of a family that in many ways isn’t that different from the modern one.  Her father, Deydey is often away on work, hunting and trading, but when he is some the family dynamic completely changes.  Usually the household is run by their mother and grandmother.  She looks up to older sister Angeline but can’t stand little brother, Pinch and she adores baby brother, Neewo.  The book looks at a time when white men are becoming a large part of life and these children have grown up with calico and glass beads and other things that weren’t originally part of their culture.  A visitor comes bringing with him small pox and it changes their lives forever but not all of the results are bad.  This is a very beautifully told tale.