Samí journalist and author
Ann-Helén Laestadius offers readers a glimpse into the government-backed school system for the Indigenous children of Sweden that has parallels with the U.S. Indian Boarding School Era. Her novel,
Punished, follows five Sami children forced to attend a nomad school in the 1950s. The story stays with them into adulthood, where each copes with the physical, mental, and cultural abuse scars just below the surface. Originally published in Swedish, the English translation of
Punished is now available. Laestadius joins us for this month’s Native Bookshelf discussion.
Native America Calling