Hidden Roots

Set in western New York State during the 1950s, Hidden Roots opens with eleven-year-old Sonny's reflection that he had always known there was something different about his mother, and by extension, his whole family. His mother's heartbreaking advice, that he should always be careful, and never let himself be "crept up on," is as apt an introduction to this short novel about a family's secrets, as it is possible to achieve.

Sonny struggles to understand the relationships between his perpetually angry and abusive father, Jake; his gentle mother, who is frequently sad and withdrawn; and Uncle Louis, the family's old French-Canadian hired hand. With his father making cryptic remarks about his not getting "foolish notions" from Uncle Louis, show more and his mother's stern response that he is "too young to understand" certain things, Sonny lives in a world consumed by unanswered questions. Why did any mention of the war (WWII) make his father so angry? What were the bad things that had happened to Uncle Louis in Vermont? Why had Sonny never met any of his cousins?

A quietly powerful story, utterly lacking in pretension or melodrama, Joseph Bruchac's Hidden Roots is a novel that focuses more on the narrator's perceptions than actual events, and is a lyrically-written exploration of how hidden and unmentionable realities somehow manage to touch and shape everything around them. The terrible long-term trauma inflicted upon the Abenaki people - forced to hide their identities in order to escape the involuntary sterilization and confiscation of their children that went along with Vermont's Eugenics Program - are encapsulated in one family's painful journey.

Joseph Bruchac is a gifted author, and this novel packs a real emotional punch - all the more so given the understated way that this sensitive topic is handled. Highly, highly recommended... I came away with a desire to learn more about this shameful and under-explored chapter of American history, and have decided to read an adult, non-fiction treatment of the topic: Nancy Gallagher's Breeding Better Vermonters: The Eugenics Project in the Green Mountain State. show less

I loved Joseph Bruchac's "Hidden Roots." It resonated with me due to my family's history, inclduing a a history of passing and denial of heritage a few generations back on my mom's side, and not knowing until I was a teenager that I had a paternal grandfather still alive.

Bruchac writes about the hard lives people had in the days when many towns were factory towns, workplace safety and environmental concerns were an afterthought and racism was out in the open. He tackles the very real history of eugenics that is still within our country's living memory and should never be forgotten. He also writes about the importance of continuing tradition in the face of racism and our country's pressure to homogenize its people or erase those it deems show more undesirable. show less

With skill and grace, Bruchac shows us a dark side of American history: its sterilization programs. Because of these state-sanctioned programs, many--like the family at the heart of HIDDEN ROOTS--hid their identity to protect themselves. Highly recommended!

This book actually disturbed me because the story is loosely based on what really happened to Native Americans in Vermont, the Vermont Eugenics Project. I guess Natives were being secretly sterilized to 'cleanse' the human race. After that program, some Natives tried to hide their origins and pretend they were white. This upsets me. I would use this book in a classroom setting to show that even those in America are not averse to horrid measures to 'cleanse' the human race.

Notes:
Story of Sonny who lives with abusive father and mother. The only break in his hesitant existance is the time spent with Uncle Louis. He learns about Native Americans despite the Vermont Eugenics program and ultimately learns about his ancestors.

A story of a boy named Sonny who escapes the abuse of his father by befriending the librarian.