Review by Booklist Review
Adapted from King's 1993 short story from the collection One Good Story, That One, this pithy graphic novel showcases the preposterousness of border bureaucracy. The unnamed narrator recounts the story of traveling from Canada to Salt Lake City to visit his sister, who left their home on the reserve against their mother's wishes. When they arrive at the border and the guard asks for their citizenship, the narrator's stoic mother says "Blackfoot." The guard won't let them cross without knowing whether they're American or Canadian, so he sends them back to the Canada side, and those guards won't let them back in based on the same question. For days, the narrator and his mother are stuck in the limbo area of the border, spending their days in the guard offices and their nights watching the stars from the hood of their car, and all the while, his mother will only say she's Blackfoot. Donovan's distinctive faces and expressive body language add plenty of depth to this subdued, tightly written story, and her warm, expansive scenes of the prairie in sunset colors are engrossing. King deftly balances tension and absurdity, and in the process, he wryly points to not only the arbitrariness of the border in general but the divisions that it imposes. Subtle and smart, this laconic graphic novel will linger with readers.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
In this sparsely worded, moving graphic novel adaptation of King's 1993 short story of the same name, the team adeptly captures the dilemma of Native Nations whose homelands were split by political borders. "For the Blackfoot," King (who is of Cherokee/Greek descent) writes in the dedication, "who understand that the border is a figment of someone else's imagination." An unnamed Blackfoot boy from a Canadian reserve recalls his 17-year-old sister, Laetitia's, move to Salt Lake City. Because Laetitia's father is affiliated with Rocky Boy, a Chippewa-Cree tribe in the U.S., Laetitia is free to live in the States. After several years, the boy and his mother drive to visit Laetitia, only to be asked their citizenship at the American border. "Blackfoot," the mother repeats to various guards in the hours they are detained, until they are sent back to Canada--only to face the same tribulations at the Canadian border, thus beginning a days-long loop. Simple pen-and-wash illustrations by Donovan (who is Métis) capture the child's distress as the likelihood of his reunion with Laetitia dwindles. This sobering yet inspiring tale effectively spotlights a Native woman who quietly demands that her voice be heard and her identity recognized. Ages 8--12. (Sept.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 6 Up--Laetitia, a young Blackfoot woman living north of the Canadian border, moves to Salt Lake City after growing bored with her life, which is filled with tension between her and her mother. After some time has passed, Laetitia's mother and her little brother, who narrates the story, decide to take a road trip to visit, and so must pass through two border checkpoints: one for the United States and one for Canada. At each checkpoint, Laetitia's mother is asked her citizenship, and at each, she claims her Blackfoot nationality. Barred from entering the United States, Laetitia's mother is sent back to the Canadian border and isn't allowed to pass; she and her son find themselves stuck in the space in between, recognized as citizens of nowhere. King (Cherokee) and Donovan (Métis) create a simple yet powerful story of Indigenous endurance at the convergence of identity, culture, survival, history, and modern politics. Although Laetitia is named, her mother and brother are not, signifying the difference in recognition paid to those who readily accept colonial practices and those who do not. White characters are also identified by their given names. Donovan's steadfast style is easily and immediately recognizable. A natural palette of beige, gold, and similar earthy colors is used alongside a variety of blues depicting the daytime sky and the darkness of night. Strong lines and minimal backgrounds keep the focus on the characters' wide-eyed and expressive faces, working well with the character-driven narrative. Characters identify as white Americans or Canadians, and Blackfoot. VERDICT An important and accessible modern tale about the ongoing lack of recognition by colonizers for the Indigenous communities who continue to exist on their ancestral lands.--Alea Perez, Elmhurst P.L., IL
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Review by Horn Book Review
Originally a short story in King's adult collection One Good Story, That One, this comics version retains its complexity, dry humor, and sharp political edge. A boy (the narrator) from a Blackfoot reservation in Alberta drives with his mother to visit his sister, who has moved to Salt Lake City. At the tiny border crossing in Sweetgrass, Montana, a border guard asks the mother to state her citizenship. "Blackfoot," she says. She's denied entry to the United States ("It would have been easier if my mother had just said 'Canadian' and been done with it, but I could see she wasn't going to do that") and sent back to Canada -- to the tiny border crossing in Coutts, a hundred yards away. "Your citizenship?" the Canadian border guard asks. "Blackfoot," the boy's mother replies, and is denied re-entry to Canada. Stuck between borders, mother and son spend several nights sleeping in the car, near the duty-free shop, until they are allowed to cross into the U.S. as a result of media attention. The thematic and literary richness of this story is exhilarating, unsettling the insistent binary of American/Canadian nationalities for the lived reality of Indigenous nationhood. But the story is textured, too: the unspoken reasons for the mother's resistance to her daughter's departure; the daughter's own motives in going. The geography, accurately and evocatively rendered by Donovan, is yet another multi-layered presence, raising a multitude of insights and questions about borders, identity, and the passing on of culture. All this is delivered with a light touch by the narrator, whose perpetual quest for food is realistic and funny. Deirdre F. Baker November/December 2021 p.103(c) Copyright 2021. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A family tries to overcome all borders. Laetitia has moved from her reserve in Alberta to Salt Lake City in Utah. When her mother and younger brother try to visit, they run into a problem at the border. The agents at the U.S. booth ask them their citizenship, and the mother answers only "Blackfoot." The agents will accept only either "Canadian" or "American." Turned away, they proceed back past the duty-free store to the Canadian booth, where the same thing happens--again and again. Mother and son are marooned between the borders for days. Readers see this from the unnamed brother's perspective, which flashes back and forth between the past when Laetitia decides to move away and the attempted visit. King, of Cherokee and Greek descent, adapts his text from a previously published short story, laconic text expanded by artwork that captures the vastness of the Albertan prairie sky, with multiple panels showcasing the sky above buildings and natural backdrops. The story highlights both the universal feelings of a family moving apart and a very specific Indigenous experience: The Blackfoot have existed since before the border, and now they are artificially split into two sides, an absurdity captured here with trenchant, cutting wryness. Métis illustrator Donovan's depictions of Blackfoot people are slightly varied, showing those who live on a reserve as well as urban Indigenous who live in cities. Brilliant. (Graphic fiction. 8-adult) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
