Why
I wrote Hannah’s Journey.
I moved to the Colville Reservation with my Native
husband in 1988 and studied the Sinyekst (Sinixt) language with an elder. I fell
in love with the people and customs of the tight-knit community. But couldn’t
stop there. An idea for a story persisted in my head so I decided to write what
came to be, Change of Heart.
I wrote for our 4 sons, my future grandchildren, and
my nieces and nephews. Because I worked in the school system at that time, it
seemed natural to create teen main characters. On the reservation the extended
family is of major importance when raising children so I included the love and
protection of the extended family and continue to do so in my books and short
stories.
The adage is true: It takes a village to raise a
child, which is the heartbeat of a reservation.
Several years ago, I wrote Heart of Passion, Book 3 in a trilogy about Spupaleena, a young
Native American girl, coming of age and racing horses in the mid-1800s, a time
when girls would not think of behaving in such a manner. Hannah Gardner was five then, a young girl in
love with her adopted Aunt Spupaleena and having a strong desire to emulate the
young woman. In Hannah’s Journey,
Hannah is sixteen and has to decide if her future is to include horses, racing,
a husband, or returning home to enjoy her young life within the strength and
protection of the family unit.
Hannah’s
Journey
In the mountains of northeast
Washington, sixteen-year-old Hannah Gardner fights for her childhood dream––to
race horses with her adopted Indian Aunt Spupaleena. Her mother fears
Hannah will get hurt. Frustrated with her daughter’s rebellious spirit,
she threatens to send her away to Montana to live with an aunt Hannah’s
never met.
To escape this perceived
punishment, Hannah runs away to the Sinyekst village along the Columbia
River to train with Spupaleena. After Hannah’s first race, an Indian boy pulls
her off her horse and spews threats. When Running Elk comes to her rescue,
Hannah plans their life together and possible marriage. Will this be the
pathway to her freedom?
Excerpt
Falling Rain hugged me and
boosted me up on my leggy mare, Moonie.
I nodded at her. “Reckon it’s
time to give these boys a respectable lickin’ they’ll never forget.”
“Be careful.” She stepped
back.
I spun my horse around and
found my way to the other racers.
Buy
Links:
Barns
and Noble
Carmen Peone lives on the Colville Confederated Indian
Reservation with her Native husband, Joe.
She had worked with elder, Marguerite Ensminger, for three years
learning the Arrow Lakes-Sinyekst- Language and various cultural traditions and
legends. With a degree in psychology, the thought of writing never entered her
mind, until she married her husband and they moved to the reservation after
college. She came to love the people and their heritage and wanted to create a
legacy for her family.
Social
Media
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1 comment:
Carmen, your books look to be wonderful reads on so many levels. Sharing an insight into the lives and legacy of the Colville Reservation families is a gift to us all.
Thank you Paty for introducing me to another new author!
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