Three Day Road
| Three Day Road | |
|---|---|
| Author(s) | Joseph Boyden |
| Country | Canada |
| Genre(s) | Historical Fiction, Canadian Literature, World War I, First Nations |
| Publisher | Penguin Canada |
| Publication date | March 17, 2005, February 23, 2006 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 400 p. (Penguin Group Canada trade paperback edition) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0143017861(Penguin Group Canada) |
| Followed by | Through Black Spruce |
Three Day Road is the first novel from Canadian writer Joseph Boyden. Joseph’s maternal grandfather, as well as an uncle on his father’s side, served as soldiers during the First World War, and Boyden draws upon a wealth of family narratives. This novel follows the journey of two young Cree men, Xavier and Elijah, who volunteer for that war and become snipers during the conflict.[1]
Set in 1919, following the end of World War I, the novel takes place in the wilderness of Northern Ontario and on the battlefields of France and Belgium. Niska, an Oji-Cree medicine woman, is the remnant of her native relatives who refused to assimilate in the 19th century. She rejected European beliefs and culture and continues to thrive in the bush in a manner befitting her and her traditions. Niska’s voice is one of two narratives that complete the novel. After getting word that her closest thing to living family, Elijah, is coming back from the war she paddles the three-day journey to meet him in town. She finds, however, that it is not Elijah but her nephew Xavier who has returned from battle. In an attempt to heal her only relative, who has clearly been sucked dry of his soul and has hardened with slaughter and turned hollow from morphine, she begins to recount the stories of her past. She believes that perhaps this will revive Xavier and the Three Day Road will not be one to his demise. Similarly, Xavier attempts to stumble over his story for his aunt and unearths ghosts of his bullet-riddled past.
The novel was inspired in part by real-life aboriginal World War I heroes Francis Pegahmagabow and John Shiwak.
Contents |
[edit] Characters
Xavier Bird - Xavier is Elijah’s intuitive and reserved counterpart. He is surprisingly socially attuned for a man who doesn’t take to languages well. Unlike his best friend Elijah, Xavier was raised in the bush near Moose Factory in Northern Ontario by his aunt Niska. Traditional and respectful, Xavier still grasps devotedly to the customs of his native beliefs; according to the way he has been raised. He lacks the bloodthirsty drive that Elijah exudes and is hesitant to take any lives, although he is an excellent sniper because of his flawless hunting skills. The way Xavier deals with death is especially contrasted with the depersonalization of war. There is a charming innocence in Xavier’s simplistic narrative that is characterized well in his almost loving burial of his comrades. He thanks his companions for the strength they provide during battle and whispers that they continue to “help strengthen the trench line” even in death. This act in itself epitomizes Xavier’s strong relationship to his way of life and his reluctance to succumb to European society. Rather than become one of them as Elijah increasingly seems to idealize, Xavier wishes to make a name for him as he is. The reader follows Xavier’s haunting and yet unsophisticated recounts of battle terrors and soon becomes aware that it is a story of innocence and quiet intellect that is being squashed by a dreadfully brash and squalid new world.
Elijah Weesageechak (anglicized as Elijah Whiskeyjack within the novel) - Elijah is Xavier’s confident and eloquent equivalent. Unlike Xavier, orphan Elijah was raised in a residential school by nuns in Moose Factory and possesses what would promptly be described as a silver tongue. Brash though he is Elijah harbors impeccable hunting skills which are further refined by a striking thirst for blood. A primary difference between Elijah and his childhood friend Xavier is Elijah’s eagerness to conform to European conventions. Almost as if a direct illustration of this trait, Elijah adopts an English accent and is quickly nicknamed “Whiskeyjack” by his white military comrades who can’t pronounce his name. Although the reader does not directly hear Elijah’s first person narrative, Elijah’s nature is always portrayed along with Xavier’s extensive and intuitive analysis. It becomes clear that although Elijah is the bolder of the two friends he still must confide in Xavier. In a peculiar way this is an outlet for Elijah; a way to clear his conscience and his mind. As the battle rages on Elijah becomes murderous and succumbs to the Morphine that is riddled up and down the lines. Elijah’s vicious descent into lunacy echoes that of the native Windigo or cannibal.
Niska - Niska is an elderly Oji-Cree medicine woman who tells her story in an attempt to restore the life force of her dying nephew, Xavier. She is the other familiar voice of the novel. Her personal recollection tells stories of the pain of war, loss of native culture, and addiction on a journey that is unfair and unjust. As she paddles back home with her nephew she tells stories of how much and how fast things have changed since the British and their residential school system took over their home in Northern Ontario. Her father was convicted and killed just when she was on the verge of becoming a woman. He was executed because he got rid of a windigo family, those who practiced cannibalism, which in the eyes of the white society would be deemed murder. Since then, Niska inherited her father's skills as a shaman and windigo-killer. The voice of Niska throughout the novel speaks in a dark, sad tone as she tries to keep her Native culture strong as it slowly disappears in front of her eyes.
[edit] The significance of the title
As Xavier, one of the protagonists reflects in the novel, the number three is especially relevant not only to Native culture but Europeans alike. It would appear to Xavier that the number three can be found everywhere. There’s the front line, the support line, and the reserve line, for starters. There’s the infantry, the cavalry, and the artillery. In moments off battle, there’s food, then rest, then women. In church, there’s the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. There is even superstition about lighting three cigarettes with one match. Xavier remembers specifically though, about what his aunt Niska told him about those ready for death having to walk the Three Day Road. In the novel we accompany Xavier on what would seem to be his Three Day Road; his journey back to his home with Niska and her stories trying to heal him.
[edit] Awards and recognition
- Nominee for the 2005 Governor General's Awards.
- Winner of the McNally Robinson Aboriginal Book of the Year Award.
- Winner of the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize for 2005.
- Selected for inclusion in Canada Reads 2006, where it was championed by filmmaker Nelofer Pazira.
- Winner, 2006 Amazon/Books in Canada First Novel Award
[edit] References
- http://www.quillandquire.com/reviews/review.cfm?review_id=4321
- http://www.penguin.ca/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780670063628,00.html
- http://www.goodreports.net/reviews/threedayroad.htm
