Council Of Dolls by Mona Susan Power

 When we are unable to use our original language, it is difficult not to feel as though we have lost something very special. Sissy talks about this with her father along with her doll, Ethel. Mona Susan Power writes in a simple way. So, their pain is easy to understand. pain is easy to feel. It drifts through us and we join our pain to Sissy's. Sissy remembers her grandmother always used her ethnic language. 

These families are Dakota and Lakota Native Americans. Once, Abraham Lincoln's name comes up. Perhaps, it is a part of his presidency the reader has never heard about in History class. Many of us can relate to the dolls. Whether new or used they act as a type of friend.  They are wonderful to have when you feel as though you are different. Ethel is a' honest' friend. She is able to cope with uncomfortable moments as Sissy experiences them.

In"Council Of Dolls,"  the author writes exquisitely about the lives of children who lived at Indian Boarding Schools and lived to see or hear about the Bureau of Indian Affairs. It is impossible to believe these places were completely perfect. Always there are people fighting their personal battles to fight.  Their struggles can spill on to the children who only have a doll or book to identify with during their days away from their culture.

This is not a lighthearted novel. It is about the rough road these girls  and boys traveled. Since we have read this book, maybe Native American History will not repeat itself in another location at a different time and in a different way.