I Heard a Crow Before I Was Born

Longlisted, First Nation Communities READ

i heard a crow before i was born.
          i heard tsó :ka’ we before i was born.

i heard a crow before i was born opens with a dream-memory that transforms into a stark, poetic reflection on the generational trauma faced by many Indigenous families. Jules Delorme was born to resentful and abusive parents, in a world in which he never felt he belonged. Yet, buoyed by the love shown to him by his tó ta (grandmother) and his many animal protectors, Delorme gained the strength to reckon with his brutal childhood and create this transformative and evocative memoir.

Across chapters that tell of his troubled relationships, Delorme unwraps the pain at the centre of his own story: the residential schools and the aftershocks that continue to reverberate.

In this stunning testament to the power of storytelling — to help us grieve and help us survive — Delorme tells the story of his spirit walk as he embraces the contradictions of his identity. As he writes, “ i heard a crow before i was born is a man looking back, and dreaming back, and seeing that life, in whatever form it takes, however harsh it might seem, is beautiful.”

Jules Delorme is a neurodivergent Kanien’ kehá :ka (Mohawk) author who grew up on the Akwesasne Reserve near Cornwall, Ontario. He is of Kanien’ kehá :ka and French heritage. When Delorme was twelve, his abusive parents moved the family to Toronto, where he continued to suffer bullying and abuse at home and at school.

He is also the author of faller and Ahshiá :ton (You Should Write It), a collection of stories based on Mohawk oral traditions and teachings. i heard a crow before i was born is Delorme’ s third book. He lives in Toronto.