Power by Linda Hogan was a bit hard for me to get into at first, I just didn't find it to be as engaging as the books we've previously read. However, it did get better and better as it went on. I thought this novel was a good look into Native Americans and the power of spirituality and the conflicts that the main character, Omishto goes through. I really liked the character of Omishto, she was just so different than what I think most 16 year old girls were, with her Americanized, western mother and family--yet she wanted to spend all of her time with her interesting and old school Aunt Ama.
Hogan said a lot through the weather, the storms, and animals, the endangered panthers, etc. and also with what these animals mean to the Native American people; the Taiga's believing they are related to the panther and how animals are connected to dreams and so on.
I think this could be a very good read for a high school classroom. Omishto could definitely be a relatable character to someone in that age category and I think it covers a lot of great topics and could open students up to Native American traditions
I thought this book was tough going, too, for the first 90 pages or so.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing that kept me going were the great descriptions and that I could relate to, or root for, the narrator, Omishto.
I was thinking that Linda Hogan is, in some ways, an existentialist. Omishto doesn't take on either the Western ways or believe completely in the traditional culture for much of the novel. She only believes once she's been pushed into it by the expectations of people like her mother and the sheriff and the brutality or banishment shown in her stepfather, the kids at school and the boys who come to throw rocks at Ama's house.