By: Alex Bloom
Written by acclaimed Indigenous-Canadian writer Tomson Highway, Kiss of the Fur Queen is a powerful read that deals with the themes of identity, colonization, abuse, sexuality, and post-traumatic stress. It is a heavy novel, so be aware of that going in. The novel follows two Cree boys from Eemanipiteepitat, Manitoba. It shows a glimpse of their early childhood before making a transition from the idyllic to the sombre as they are forced into residential schools. It is loosely based off of the lived experiences of Highway and his brother.
The book deals extensively with the aftermath of residential schools and also mentions the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. As well, it focuses on the theme of sexuality. One brother is struggling with his attraction to men and has a hard time accepting that he is gay. This isn’t helped by the fact that, at the time, being gay was widely and actively scorned in Canadian society (although that is not to say there isn’t discrimination today). The other of the two brothers rejects sexuality after facing sexual abuse in residential school. Both suffer from painful flashbacks of this abuse. Kiss of the Fur Queen can be a hard read, especially for survivors of abuse, but it is a moving, honest exploration of Canada’s past through both the lenses of identity and sexuality.
