From the #1 bestselling author of Moon of the Turning Leaves comes a funny and heartfelt story of community, family and tradition set over the course of one day at Miskwaawaakong First Nation.
On a cold morning less than two weeks away from Christmas, Dottie frets over how she’s going to afford gifts for all eight of her grandchildren. She’s fantasizing about winning the big one at the Red Cedar Bingo Palace when she hears on the rez’s radio station that the beloved bingo hall is closing after tonight. Dottie worries about what the loss might mean for their community, including her dear friend Frankie, the bingo hall’s long-time MC, who found purpose in the work following a low point in his life.
Later that same day at Dottie’s granddaughter Waase’s baby shower, rumours and theories swirl about what the hall will become and whose pockets are being lined with the impending redevelopment of the land where the Red Cedar Bingo Palace sits. Some question the credibility of the source and wonder whether the bingo hall is truly closing. Meanwhile, Waase and her cousin Dakota notice their grandmothers, Dottie and Kittie, are yet again avoiding each other at the shower, and the cousins hatch a plan to end their feud for the sake of their family—and just in time for the birth of Waase’s baby.
As speculation and tension spread throughout the rez and Frankie becomes inundated with messages demanding an explanation, a blizzard begins brewing. With the largest crowd the hall has seen in years all piled in for the big holiday jackpot, a misunderstanding between snowplow drivers—one of whom has a life-changing question to pose to his girlfriend tonight—leads them far from where they’re needed . . .
Warm and endearing, Early Bird is an intimate and amusing novel showcasing an eclectic cast of characters in a modern First Nation and exploring the lighter side of life on the rez.
