Medicine Walk in Bound Together

Jun 08, 2021 Angela M rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2021-favorites

“It’s all we are in the end. Our stories .”

The prose is beautiful, descriptive but not overly, powerful enough to want to read passages over again. It’s not an easy read, though. So many sad moments, but not enough joyful ones to temper the heartbreak. This is a story of a journey of young man and his alcoholic father he has seen only a few times in his life, who has brought him nothing but disappointment. It’s a journey in the last days of the father’s life when he asks his son to take him to

“It’s all we are in the end. Our stories .”

The prose is beautiful, descriptive but not overly, powerful enough to want to read passages over again. It’s not an easy read, though. So many sad moments, but not enough joyful ones to temper the heartbreak. This is a story of a journey of young man and his alcoholic father he has seen only a few times in his life, who has brought him nothing but disappointment. It’s a journey in the last days of the father’s life when he asks his son to take him to the place of his past to be buried. I wondered what right he had to put this burden on this young man. You might think it’s a journey to manhood for sixteen year old Franklin Starlight, but to me, he was already a man, raised by “the old man” who protected him, taught him to survive, to know something of his Ojibway heritage and cared for him like son. Wise beyond his years, skilled at survival, angry at his father, at a loss for any knowledge of who his mother was, why his father left him with the old man and why the old man took him in. Yet, man enough with a generous spirit of responsibility to his father.

This is not just a story of the journey, but a story filled with stories. On their journey to his resting place, Eldon Starlight tells Franklin about the storytellers in his life, the ones that Franklin has not and will never meet. Eldon is himself a story teller of his childhood, his past . I have to admit that I felt nothing less than animosity towards Eldon for the hurt he caused to Franklin over the years until he tells his story. But the stories that Eldon tells of his life were also heartbreaking and there was love in them. Franklin is moved by them as is the reader. I can’t think of another way to describe this novel, other than to say it’s an achingly beautiful story. I’m sorry that it took me so long to read this, but thankful to my Goodreads friend Phyllis for reminding me that this was a book I needed to read . I definitely will read more by Wagamese, an amazing story teller.
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Nov 14, 2013 Diane S ☔ rated it it was amazing

In this heartbreaking story about redemption, forgiveness and past regrets, Wagamese writes a magnificent story. His descriptions of the lives of Franklin, his father and the old man are poignant, at times heartbreaking but show a deep and abiding love that though not always shown, was always there. There are very few characters in this story but the characters that are there are more than enough to fill these pages.

He uses words in a way that few can, his portrayal of the woods, and the trip F ...more

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Jun 12, 2024 PattyMacDotComma rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: aa, kindle, aa-col, award-win-listed, mystery-crime-thriller, favourites-adult, indigenous-first-nations, audio-while-reading

5★
“ ‘He’s gonna be sick. You know that, don’tcha?’ The old man fixed him with a stern look and pressed the billfold back into the bib of his overalls.

‘I seen him sick before.’

‘Not like this.’

‘I can deal with it.’

‘Gonna have to. Don’t expect it to be pretty.’

‘“Never is. Still, he’s my dad.’

The old man shook his head and bent to retrieve the bucket and when he stood again he looked the kid square. ‘Call him what you like. Just be careful. He lies when he’s sick.’

‘Lies when he ain’t.’ ”

The kid ha ...more

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Mar 24, 2017 Chrissie rated it liked it

Shelves: canada, relationships, audible-uk, hf, life-stages, native-am, 2017-read

This book has some really pretty lines. What happens could happen and the characters could realistically do what they do. While it is pretty darn easy to guess the final resolution, the author throws in other questions that need to be resolved and you cannot put the book down until you have gotten all your answers. Finally, wisdom and human frailties are attributed to both Native Americans as well as those characters not of Native American heritage. This gives a balanced portrayal rather than an This book has some really pretty lines. What happens could happen and the characters could realistically do what they do. While it is pretty darn easy to guess the final resolution, the author throws in other questions that need to be resolved and you cannot put the book down until you have gotten all your answers. Finally, wisdom and human frailties are attributed to both Native Americans as well as those characters not of Native American heritage. This gives a balanced portrayal rather than an idealized view of Native Americans. I very much appreciated all these aspects of the book.

So why not at least four stars? Well, because I liked the book and that is all. If I tried to wax lyrical about a book that simply didn’t knock me over, you would hear I couldn’t get all that excited about it. Each reader has their own personal experiences and personality traits that influence how they react to a book. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to readers who have had to deal with alcoholism in their own family. I haven’t. Secondly, I had difficulty feeling the slightest speck of empathy for Eldon Starlight. He is the alcoholic in this story. Yeah, I do know that the need for drink is all consuming for alcoholics. The book does very well show this, but me being who I am, am not willing to excuse his behavior. Seriously, he aggravated me to no end. That is how I am!

Eldon has contacted his son, Franklin, whom he has ignored his entire life, and asked him to take him to the mountains so he may be buried in the traditional Ojibway manner. His son is sixteen. The only connection he has with his father are sore disappointments and bad memories of broken promises. On the journey together they talk…..finally! The son and father have not lived together. There is another man who has raised Franklin. Who is this man, and how did it end up this way and who is his mother? These are the questions the reader wants answered. You know from the start the son will not deny his father’s last wish, and because of how the son is drawn it seems perfectly logical that he would say yes to his father’s request. I don’t feel empathy for Franklin either; he is so darn strong he quite simply doesn’t need my empathy!

The narration of the audiobook is totally fantastic. Tom Stechschulte is the narrator. He captures mood magnificently and gives perfect intonations for the respective characters. Not too fast and not too slow. I give the narration five stars, and this guy joins my list of favorite narrators.

So you see, I have no complaints about the book. Intellectually I can pinpoint nothing I would want to improve, but neither can I deny my emotional response. I think I have figured out why I did not love it and why I just liked it. I think my lack of personal experience in dealing with alcoholics and my demanding personality prevents me from feeling an emotional bond with the characters…..even if it does have some gorgeous lines mirroring the beauty of nature. ...more

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Jun 11, 2021 ☮Karen rated it it was amazing

Shelves: hoopla, audio, favorites, rural-america, read-in-2021, war-other

Franklin has had to grow up in the home of someone he calls "Old Man" without a father present because he's a drunk, and with no knowledge of a mother because no one has ever talked about her. Frank seems well adjusted, a very mature 16 year old, in spite of his lack of family, as oftentimes family is what you decide it is.

Now Frank's dad thinks he's dying and has called for his son to come be with him in his final moments and take him to where he's chosen his final resting place. Frank is ...more

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Jul 02, 2021 Martha☀ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audiobook, library, canadian, 5-stars, indigenous

"It's all we are in the end. Our stories.”
Wagamese has an amazing ability to address profound issues through a somewhat simple story. In this one, the basic story is that of 16 year old Franklin Starlight who steps up, out of a sense of familial duty, to take his estranged father to his final burial place. In those final days of travel, Eldon reveals his history and attempts to justify the ills that he has done to Frank and others.
But the undercurrents are deep and strong.

With the attrocites a ...more

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Jun 30, 2024 Alena rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Wagamase’s writing speaks directly to my soul. This is the second book I’ve read by him and, once again, I sank right into the tone, pacing and wisdom. So often I stopped to read, and re-read, the ways he describes how we see the world, how we engage, how we learn, how we love. He was writing about mindfulness way before it became trendy. At its heart, this novel is a father & son story, but it’s so much deeper and more eloquent than anything I could write about it.
Although I didn’t discover thi ...more

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Jul 08, 2021 Irene rated it liked it

This is the story of a father and son reconciliation. A tough, womanizing, vulgar alcoholic dying man asks for the help of his estranged son. As they spend time together, the father reveals a softer, gentler side as he tells his son the story of the traumatic events that drove him to the bottle. The son begins to understand and forgive his father as he hears the story. I could not fully reconcile the kind, selfless, generous younger version of the father revealed in his stories with the vulgar, ...more

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