I never knew this, but Canada for many, many years, continuing to surprisingly recently, forced its indigenous people to send their children to residential schools, where they would basically be assimilated into the "dominant Canadian culture" (quoting from Wikipedia there). Many of the children were abused and all of them had access to their own cultures taken from them, because speaking their own languages was not allowed, amongst other things. Children frequently died in these schools and often their families were left uninformed. The lasting effects of these experiences have been awful.
A public apology for this practice was not given until 2008. That's just six years ago, people. And the last government-run school closed in just 1996.
Sadly, the book is frustrating. Violet's first appearance in the Dear Canada line was a short story in "A Time for Giving," the most recent of the holiday anthologies. What isn't mentioned anywhere is that you have to read that story FIRST to make sense of a lot of what she says in her own book. I didn't know this, because I avoided reading Violet's story until after her book. All the other holiday stories came afterwards, so I assumed hers did, too. But I found myself very confused during Violet's book when she kept mentioning things without providing background at all. Several names popped up and it seemed like we should know who they were. Well, you do, if you read the short story first. That's where all the backstory is!
Aside from that though, the book is also written very basically. The type is large and it's short. There isn't much to it and you almost feel like it's been written for younger readers, which Dear Canada isn't typically.
There are also many frustrating elements. Violet briefly mentions that she's having trouble in English class in the middle of the book, but from her writing style, you can see no problems with the English language. Later on, she describes some things in particular, but her having even a somewhat weak grasp of English is not shown through her diary whatsoever. Violet has interactions with a lot of people, but she hardly ever names them. She mentions a pair of friends twice, but at no point does she say how these friendships developed, nor do they seem to matter to her. She also very frequently mentions things she doesn't understand and just goes along with, like Canadian holidays, things with the church, and even basic stuff like people in cars could abduct you, and many times, she never learns what they're all about.
There are some thematic elements that are more for older readers, despite the book's very basic writing style. She tells about a lot of girls who have problems and then just suddenly go missing. One who was talking to her friend's boyfriend is beaten by that friend, then she disappears for a couple days with no explanation ever given. Violet is propositioned by both a man in a car and one who runs a shop where she buys candy. A gang of white boys chases her at least twice. An older girl mentions that the doctor touched her in places that didn't fit a basic physical. Violet starts her period and the contraption she has to wear for it is pretty thoroughly described. Violet also has bursts of anger that once culminate in her choking a bigger female student with a broom handle.
The book is very frustrating to me, because it lacks a lot of detail that would make it far more relatable. This is a horrific situation that Violet is in, but just glancing over everything doesn't make it really resonate with readers. After reading her short story, I found that much better written, so it's a shame that wasn't continued for the full book.
I do recommend reading it, because the subject matter is important, but expect to be frustrated. I keep using the same word over and over, but really, that's exactly how it makes me feel.
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