Wenjack (novella)

Wenjack

Author	Joseph Boyden
Illustrator	Kent Monkman
Country	Canada
Language	English
Genre	Historical Fiction
Publisher	Hamish Hamilton
Publication date	2016
Pages	112
ISBN

Wenjack is a historical fiction novella based on the story of Chanie "Charlie" Wenjack by Canadian author Joseph Boyden. It was published by Hamish Hamilton of Penguin Books in 2016 and features illustrations by Cree artist Kent Monkman. It was part of a collaborative effort to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Chanie's death. The book follows Chanie Wenjack, a 12-year-old Ojibwe boy, as he escapes from a Northern Ontario residential school in the futile hopes of returning home to his family and two dogs. It alternates between Chanie’s perspective and the perspectives of Manitous, who take on different animal forms to keep a silent watch on Chanie as he walks on foot to a home he does not know is hundreds of kilometres away.

The story begins with Chanie describing his experiences of abuse from residential school teachers, who he and his friends (two brothers) call “Fish Bellies” or “Sucker Bellies” for their pale skin. On an October afternoon, Chanie and the two brothers decide to run away. Because of a lung infection, Chanie struggles to keep up with his friends. Eventually the three boys reach a river, where they run into the two brothers’ uncle. They are given a meager meal of freshly-caught fish in the cabin where the uncle, his wife, and his daughter are staying. That night, Chanie sleeps on the floor by the wood stove.

In the morning, the uncle tells his wife to send Chanie away, while he takes his two nephews to the trapline to look for food. When Chanie gets up to join them, the uncle tells him that it would be dangerous to have four people in his canoe. The mother sends Chanie on his way with dried moose meat and tells him to turn right at the tracks to head back to the school. The girl gives him a glass jar that holds seven matches. Chanie leaves the cabin, resolved to find his two friends and their uncle. However, when he reunites with them, the uncle tells him he cannot stay and that he must return to the school. He tells Chanie he can beat the impending bad weather if he travels quickly.