"
Wagamese has written one of the rarest sorts of books: a novel which is both important and a heart-in-throat pleasure." (Robert Wiersema
Edmonton Journal 20120421)
"...
Wagamese alternates between horror and
Hockey Night in Canada, like he's an all-star centre flawlessly firing backhand shots." (
Telegraph Journal 20120225)
"
Richard Wagamese's writing is exceptional not only for its sensitivity but for a warmth that extends beyond the page. With a finely calibrated hand, he explores heritage, identity, nature, salvation, and gratitude in works that quietly celebrate storytellingís vitality and power to transcend." (David Chau
Georgia Straight 20120222)
"
Wagamese writes with brutal clarity... [and] finds alleviating balance through magical legend." (
Globe & Mail 20111130)
"
Wagamese is capable of true grace on the page." (
Winnipeg Free Press 20111130)
"
Richard Wagamese is a born storyteller." (Louise Erdrich, author of
Shadow Tag 20111130)
"
Richard Wagamese is a national treasure." (Joseph Boyden, author of
Through Black Spruce 20111130)
"
Richard Wagamese's writing is sweet medicine for the soul." (Richard Van Camp, author of
The Lesser Blessed 20111130)
"
Wagamese captures the beauty of hockey as few sportswriters could hope to match." (Rob Kirbyson
Winnipeg Free Press 20120211)
"This book is so many things; it is a mystical tale; it is an ode to the good old hockey game and its power to lift players above their situations; it is a story of a system that fails and fails its children in horrifying ways; it is a story of healing...This is ultimately a hopeful and beautiful book and I recommend it heartily." (Susan Fish
Guelph Mercury 20120601)
"Wagamese's compelling novel harnesses two quintessentially Canadian themes, hockey and colonialism, to create an exhilarating and heart-breaking story.
Indian Horse reads like 'powerful medicine, allowing vital teachings to be shared.'" (Yutaka Dirks
Briar Patch Magazine 20120815)
Evaluated and Approved (
BC ERAC 20121127)
"
Indian Horse finds the granite solidity of
Wagamese's prose polished to a lustrous sheen; brisk, brief, sharp chapters propel the reader forward. He seamlessly braids together his two traditions: English literary and aboriginal oral. So audible is Saul's voice, that I heard him stop speaking whenever I closed the book...
Wagamese crafts an unforgettable work of art." (Donna Bailey Nurse
National Post 20120309)
"
Wagamese pulls off a fine balancing act: exposing the horrors of the country's residential schools while also celebrating Canada's national game." (James Grainger
Quill & Quire 20120115)
"
Indian Horse distills much of what
Wagamese has been writing about for his whole career into a clearer and sharper liquor, both more bitter and more moving than he has managed in the past. He is such a master of empathy -- of delineating the experience of time passing, of lessons being learned, of tragedies being endured -- that what Saul discovers becomes something the reader learns, as well, shocking and alien, valuable and true. " (Jane Smiley
Globe & Mail 20120217)
"...raw and authentic." (
Vancouver Weekly 20120229)
"
Richard Wagamese is a master storyteller, who blends the throb of life with spiritual links to the land, hard work, and culture to find success, his words take you into the soul of Indian Horse, to experience his pain, his growing resentments, his depression, and his fear which has to be faced if he is to regain the joy of life. This book is meant for youth, adults, and elders, to be shared, to be lived, and to be treasured for the clear message of hope and the need to go the distance." (
Wawatey News 20120301)
"Saul Indian Horse is a tough Ojibway boy whose life seems doomed until he discovers hockey and becomes a brilliant skater with a killer wrist shot. But the star of the northern Ontario Indian tournament circuit -- even scouted by the Toronto Maple Leafs -- is goaded by racism into violence and booze and has to come to terms with the painful facts of his childhood.
Indian Horse is a taut, closely observed character study with fabulous writing about our beloved sport. " (Marian Botsford Fraser
More Magazine 20120322)
"...The hockey chapters are compelling; they evoke Sherman Alexie's fiction that examines contemporary life on American Indian reservations through the lens of basketball. But it is as a story of reconciliation that this novel reveals Wagamese's masterful subtly...In a single image, Wagamese complicates in blinding ways the entire narrative; in a single page,
Indian Horse deepens from an enjoyable read to a gripping critique of Canada." (Kyle Carsten Wyatt
The Walrus 20120601)
"
Indian Horse is a force for healing in our beautiful, broken world." (Kathleen Winter, author of "Annabel" 20111208)
