Manitowapow: Aboriginal Writings from the Land of Water (Debwe)

In the middle of the continent, where waterways and rivers gather in immense lakes, many different peoples have met, lived, and thrived. Travel back through the millennia and forward to the present day to gain a dynamic picture of a territory interconnected through words, ideas, and experiences.

From one page to the next, readers will discover writings from historically significant figures, literary works by well-known writers, nonfiction and political pieces by Indigenous leaders, contributions by storytellers and Knowledge Keepers from far-reaching Manitoba communities, as well as new and vibrant voices that express contemporary Indigenous experiences.

Beginning with traditional writing systems, Manitowapow shares diverse Indigenous perspectives and histories, from the late 1700s through to the present day in what is now Manitoba.

Created in the spirit of the Anishinaabe concept debwe―to speak the truth―The Debwe Series is a collection of exceptional Indigenous writing from across Canada. Manitowapow, a one-of-a-kind anthology, is the first book in The Debwe Series.

Niigaan Sinclair is Anishinaabe from Peguis First Nation. He is an award-winning writer, editor and professor of Indigenous Studies at the University of Manitoba who was named by Maclean’s in 2022 as one of the most influential people in Canada. Niigaan is a multiple nominee of Canadian Columnist of the Year (winning in 2018), and his commentary appears weekly on multiple platforms across Canada – from the pages of The Winnipeg Free Press to TV shows on CBC, APTN and on his co-hosted podcast Niigaan and the Lone Ranger. His first book, Wînipêk: Visions of Canada from an Indigenous Centre (McClelland & Stewart, 2024), was a national bestseller that won the 2024 Governor General Award for Non-fiction. He is a former secondary school teacher who won the 2019 Peace Educator of the Year award from the Peace and Justice Studies Association based at Georgetown University in Washington, DC.

Warren Cariou is a writer and Associate Professor of English at the University of Manitoba. He received a BA(Hons) from the University of Saskatchewan and an MA and PhD from the University of Toronto (1998). In 1999 he published a book of short stories: The Exalted Company of Roadside Martyrs with Coteau Books. This was followed up in 2002 with his memoir Lake of the Prairies, which gained him a wider audience. It won the 2002 Drainie-Taylor Prize for Biography and was shortlisted for the Charles Taylor Prize. In 2005 he served on the jury for the prestigious Scotiabank Giller Prize. He is currently working on a novel titled Exhaust.

www.warrencariou.com

Born in St. Boniface, Manitoba, Beatrice Mosionier is a Métis writer best known for her novel In Search of April Raintree, first published in 1983. A school edition, April Raintree, followed in 1984.

The youngest of four children, Beatrice was three years old when the Children’s Aid Society of Winnipeg took her from her family. Losing both of her sisters to suicide―Vivian in 1964 and Katherine in 1980―compelled Beatrice to use her experiences growing up in foster homes to write In Search of April Raintree. Since then, it has become a beloved classic, read by generations of Canadians.

Most recently, she wrote the foreword for Overcome, Stories of Women Who Grew Up in the Child Welfare System, by Anne Mahon. She has written several other books, including a play and a short film, and she is the former publisher of Pemmican Publications. She now lives in Enderby, British Columbia.