The Education of Augie Merasty

Summary

Named the fourth most important “Book of the Year” by the National Post in 2015 and voted “One Book/One Province” in Saskatchewan for 2017, The Education of Augie Merasty launched on the front page of The Globe and Mail to become a national bestseller and an instant classic.

A courageous and intimate memoir, The Education of Augie Merasty is the story of a child who faced the dark heart of humanity, let loose by the cruel policies of a bigoted nation.

A retired fisherman and trapper who sometimes lived rough on the streets, Augie Merasty was one of an estimated 150,000 First Nations, Inuit, and Metis children who were taken from their families and sent to government-funded, church-run schools, where they were subjected to a policy of aggressive assimilation.

As Augie recounts, these schools did more than attempt to mould children in the ways of white society. They were taught to be ashamed of their heritage and, as he experienced, often suffered physical and sexual abuse.

But even as he looks back on this painful part of his childhood, Merasty's sense of humour and warm voice shine through.

“In this book I have seen horror through eyes of a child.” — James Daschuk, author of Clearing the Plains

“A story in which our entire nation has an obscure and dark complicity.” — David Carpenter, co-author of The Education of Augie Merasty and author of The Gold and other books

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