Book review: Surviving the City Vol. 1

Reviewed by Karl Hele

Surviving the City Volume 1 is a graphic novel that follows a couple of days in the lives of two young girls, Miikwan and Dez, in Winnipeg. Miikwan lost her mother and Dez lives with her kokum. Kokum is in ill health and as a result, a social worker threatens to send Dez to a group home. This forces Dez to run away causing Miikwan to become frantic for her friend’s safety.

The storyline also includes lessons about Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls (MMIWG). This theme is amplified by Miikwan’s worries about Dez as well as the fact that Miikwan’s mother was murdered.

We also learn of the importance of the berry fast for teens. There are several ironic passages about Indigenous life in Canada within the novel’s pages, such as Miikwan telling Dez she has not visited the Human Rights Museum because “My Dad says there’s enough to learn about human rights violations all around us” (p. 22). The dialogue is wonderfully crafted giving the reader a sense of almost eavesdropping on the story.

The graphics are very well done; they add a great deal of substance to the silences or empty spaces in conversation. The illustrations also provide a powerful backdrop to the colonial experience when needed, acting as a form of graphic footnoting. Particularly fascinating are the human-like Indigenous Manitou everywhere you look, from the murdered and missing to ancestors who passed long ago. Likewise, the authors present non-Indigenous people with spirits following them, but these are shaded darkly and look like formless beings. The bright blue Indigenous Manitou are shown with the ability to support, protect, and engage with Indigenous people and repel intrusive foreign spirits.

The story of Dez and Miikwan is a well written and wonderfully illustrated introduction to the life of two Indigenous teen girls living in Winnipeg. It provides an accessible way to enter into the lives of two teens while learning about MMIWG and how ‘residence stability’ is easily threatened by illness and the state. They are presented in a manner that is both engaging and raises reader interest. This desire to raise interest and awareness is seen on last pages of the book where materials for a brief backgrounder and further readings on MMIWG are found. This is an excellent starting point for students in Grade 6 and up as well as a useful discussion piece for university age learners.

Tasha Spillett and Natasha Donovan, Surviving the City Vol. 1 (Winnipeg: Highwater Press, 2018).

ISBN: 9781553797562