Thank you for your questions. They have really made me think.

  1. On page 233, Tastea is once again faced with Redcoat.  She catches a glimpse of him with his frostbitten black skin covering his face.  Then he raises his musket to fire at her and it blows up in his hands.  I guess basically what we want to know is did he live?  Also if possible can you share a little more detail surrounding his survival.

         No, Redcoat didn't live with the injuries he sustained. However, the fact that he shows up might make a reader wonder if he is a cat with nine lives. On page 130 Tatsea notices that the thunderstick that had been stuck between two rocks is gone and she wonders for a moment whether Blueleg or Redcoat might have taken it. This is meant to lend credibility to Redcoat's appearance later. The water damage would likely make the musket more dangerous, although early muskets had a reputation for blowing up in shooters' hands; thus aboriginal people were not totally impressed with such weapons.

2.  We also went into discussion regarding the theme of this novel.  The themes seem to flow through the whole novel, could you please give us some insight as to what you consider to be the predominent theme.  We will be willing to share our take once we hear what you have to say.

Themes are not uppermost in my mind when I'm writing a novel. Once a novel is published I become just another reader who notices patterns, themes, and such things. So if readers see themes in the novel and these themes can be supported with evidence from the novel, then the readers are right, even though the author may never have thought about it that way. A professor friend of mine wrote a book about Alice Munro's fiction. When she had finished the bulk of the book she was able to have lunch with Alice Munro and was struck by how inarticulate Alice was in talking about her own work. The process of writing fiction is different from the process of analyzing it, and analyzing is not a game of guessing the author's intentions, but rather reading what the author wrote, knowingly or not. An author may not be the most reliable reader of his own novels and besides, fiction writers are liars and rascals. How's that for trying to avoid the question of themes?

One theme I think is there in Tatsea is the theme of the mystical, spiritual, telepathic power of love--the connection or bond between people that can survive over long separations and long distances. The bonds between Tatsea and Ikotsali and Tatsea and her baby seemed to me to be very natural, very human. Other themes or motifs in the novel could include mirrors or reflections, dangerous water, and survival through imagination and ingenuity. A friend of mine pointed out a theme of stories.

I'd be interested in hearing about the themes you found.

3.  Through many Aboriginal cultures, the bear represents safety and protection towards the people, throughout this novel there is great reference to the bear being a figure to be feared, and often symbolizing negativity.  Why?

In the Dogrib community I lived in bears were certainly something to be cautious about. Mothers got very anxious if a teacher took children into the bush, especially in late summer and early fall. I asked a trapper what the most frightening animal was and his unhesitating reply was, "Bear." Bears are certainly respected and in the Dogrib myths at times represent negative forces. The times a bear wandered into the settlement it was quickly shot and the resulting bear meat shared with all. One modern legend involved a bear shot in the community which was discovered to have a stomach full of Pampers.

One thing to remember is that the Native people of North America are not a generic, homogeneous group. For example, sweetgrass smudges, sweat lodges and pow wows are to my knowledge not part of the traditional practices of the Dene people. That's not to say your questioning of my portrayal of the bear isn't valid. I could be very wrong.

4.  We are in the process of having some wonderful in depth discussions about the novel, can you offer some topics as to which we can discuss.  We can email you our results.

I forwarded a reading guide earlier today. Some of the questions at the back of the package may interest you. Your questions about themes made me think of other possibilities.

Show how the theme of reflection or mirrors operates in the novel.

What is the relationship between Tatsea and Ikotsali and animals?

Have fun,

Armin