Paper Plains Literary Festival: Angeline Boulley, "Firekeeper's Daughter"

Angeline Boulley, an enrolled member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians, is a storyteller who writes about her Ojibwe community in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. She is a former Director of the Office of Indian Education at the U.S. Department of Education. Angeline lives in southwest Michigan, but her home will always be on Sugar Island. Firekeeper’s Daughter is her debut novel, and was an instant #1 NYT Bestseller.

In this riveting novel, a biracial, unenrolled tribal member and the product of a scandal, Daunis Fontaine, has never quite fit in—both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. When her family is struck by tragedy, Daunis puts her dreams on hold to care for her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother’s hockey team. Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into an FBI investigation of a lethal new drug.

Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover, drawing on her knowledge of chemistry and Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down the source. But the search for truth is more complicated than Daunis imagined, exposing secrets and old scars. At the same time, she grows concerned with an investigation that seems more focused on punishing the offenders than protecting the victims. Now, as the deceptions - and deaths - keep growing, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she will go for her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.

Paper Plains is a collaborative, cross-media, diverse and inclusive literary festival celebrating authors and artists from the Plains and beyond. This annual event nurtures and showcases the literary landscapes of Lawrence, Kansas and the surrounding region through a variety of free programs for all ages. More information available at: www.paperplains.org