Finishing this book my first and strongest thought concerns the blurred contrast between fact and fiction, between real and imaginary. At first through the stories it would appear that the mythical beings are not real, but then through glimpses and other incidents they slowly begin to emerge as an idea that is a combination of real and unreal.

The other thing that really struck me about this book was amount of detail that went into the writing. The descriptive detail provides the reader with invaluable insight and paints an amazing picture of the scene taking place. This detail makes the writing much more poignant, effective and really drives the authors point home.

I found that the tension that Lisamarie felt for experiencing her gift from her family and from her community was the most intense layer of the story. Clearly this was what drove the book, and the face that her brother and herself both possessed gifts that seemed to have some relation to the land that they came from, and were both used in such vastly different ways was such a brilliant way to subtly describe the disconnect that modern natives feel in society today. Something else that was perhaps easily overlooked was the way in which so many people in this community had taken the traditionally sacred herb of tobacco and learned to abuse it after the model of western society. I find it interesting that lisamarie seems to respect the spirits in so many ways, but seems to take the aspect of gift giving to the spirit world for granted

I really enjoyed reading this book. It jumped around a lot and yet all fit together. I didn't lose interest once because the stories each had a different sense to them. The part I really enjoyed, though it was brief, was when Ma-ma-oo brought Lisa into the woods and they lit a fire and threw things into it for Ba-ba-oo. I just thought it was neat and soothing the way they reconnected with their lost ones. I almost wanted to start a fire and watch the smoke rise up into the air. I could imagine those who have left this world coming back and joining in the celebration. It was almost like Ma-ma-oo had taught me a lesson.

While reading Monkey Beach, I couldn't help but compare the sibling relationship between LisaMarie and Jimmy to the sibling relationships in Kiss of the Fur Queen and Ravensong. Each novel that we have read to far centers around the trials and tribulations of siblings. In Kiss of the Fur Queen, two brothers struggled to maintain a relationship with each other and with their traditions. Each brother found a different way to assimilate and keep a grasp on their past. In Ravensong, two sisters are also struggle to keep a relationship when one sister wishes to be white and the other is fighting for her Native cultures.

However in MonKey Beach, the relationship is between a brother and sister. That in itself is a different dynamic. Being told from the perspective of LisaMarie, we find that there is strands of jealousy towards her brother. LisaMarie is not the "favored" sibling in the family. Jimmy has swimming and his parents have him up on a pedestal for all his achievements. LisaMarie on the other hand- is the sibling that is holding on to her ancestral traditions.

I think that the family tensions toward LisaMarie and her gift is the best part of the novel. I think that exploring these relationships is the most interesting part of Monkey Beach (especially the tension between LisaMarie and her mother).

This was, by far, my favorite assigned reading of the semester. As mentioned in class, it is the type of book you can definitely read regardless of your background in Native American literature. The most striking part is the end when all the of the pieces of the puzzle fit together. Everything involving Kareoke, from the first time we see her come into the picture as a young girl, and we see Jimmy's attraction to her, really ties together a lot of the other aspects of the story. One of the loose ends that is easily overlooked until it is resolved in the end of the story is the scene with Lisa and her friends and the Ouija game. The spelling out of Josh, Bed, and Meat completely come together in the end to further tie up the lose ends regarding Jimmy and his disappearance. It is almost overwhelming the amount of information that is thrown the reader's way in the last part of the book, but I was unable to put the book down until I had finished that last chapter.

After finishing the novel I was struck by the amount of detail that Eden Robinson gave the characters. Uncle Mick was certainly an intriguing character for me and one who I wanted to keep reading about. Personally I would like to discuss his death in class and the murder of his wife Cookie, both of which I failed to get a firm grasp on from the reading. I thoroughly enjoyed the mixture of the mystical events and realistic elements. Robinson portrayed Lisamarie as a strong figure who struggles with her own special gifts. I think that the detail provided in scenes such as at the psychiatrist’s office and the little red man’s appearances helped the reader understand what she was going through. The result is a likeable character who the reader enjoys following. One thing I would really like us to touch upon in class is the ending because I had some trouble understanding what exactly was going on in the last section, with so much going on. Other than that I really enjoyed the novel and think that it is one of the best we have read this semester.

I am interested in a sort of Marxist reading of this text, where Jimmy stands as the self-interested Capitalist. From very early on, Jimmy is interested in profit as he gets his family to travel to Monkey Beach so that he can take pictures of the B'gwus and use the money to better his family situation. Robinson sets up this character as representative of the "newer" generation that has lost touch with the community values so obviously associated with Haisla culture. Jimmy's self interest continues throughout his early life as he pursues glory in swimming, a particularly individual sport. He is so cut off from his native culture that he asks Lisa what she even likes about Mick and Ma Ma Oo, two representations of a very strong tie to Haisla roots. There is a moment when Jimmy begins to step outside his self interest, as he decides to toss out the swimming medals and get on with his life; "I am free," he declares. But his love interest in Karaoke (what is Karaoke? It is impersonation of the authentic) leads him not to the dynasty (any wonder why Ma Ma Oo loves this show and tries to "intereact" with it?) of Haisla culture, but instead to the ugly face of residential school and substance abuse as represented in Josh. In the end, Jimmy chooses self interest by carrying out a personal vendetta instead of community values, which would involve fixing the problem peacefully (he comes close to understanding how to interact at moments, such as swimming with the whales and this is why Lisa prefers to remember him that way). Jimmy's death suggests that his self interest must die in order for him to join the spiritual COMMUNITY seen by Lisa in her visions. He cannot live as a member of any community so long as he only pursues self interest because it inevitably leads to exploitation.

I really enjoyed Monkey Beach. I found that this novel explored the divisions between newer generations' beliefs, decisions, and interests and the older generations'. This is different from what we've seen in other books which explore the division between First Nation people and the White Canadian people. I really enjoyed that Lisamarie has the gift to see or communicate with the dead. This part of the storyline allowed the reader to see and understand more of the Haisla culture and beliefs. Even though the story focused on Lisamarie and her life while growing up, the reader is able to see what is going on in the community. The amount of drinking and smoking, the issues of income, getting a full education, and finding a job. This book had its dark sides, but only through those problems in life that we all have in some way or other.

I enjoyed the book very much during most of the time that I read it. However, the end of the book was revealed to me before I had actually read it, and thus, I think the story's wrap-up didn't affect me the way it should have. When I first finished the book I was trying to figure out what point Robinson was explicitly trying to make. I was very aware of the themes in the story: sibling and family relationships, fact vs. fiction, race, etc.

I must have missed something though, because the themes were not complete to me. In terms of race, for example, we learn a lot about Lisamarie's culture and traditions through ma-ma-oo and others, but there was not a heavy presence of native vs. white clashes. The one thing I specifically remember is when Lisamarie almost gets herself killed by talking back to a bunch of skinheads in the parking lot of the mall. Her aunt Trudy tells her that nobody would have helped her had she gotten in trouble. Also, there was the tension with Trudy and Mick getting sent to residential school, but even that was not mentioned in very much detail.

Another thing I had trouble with was the relationship between Jimmy and Lisamarie. The whole book consists of flashbacks which help readers understand Lisamarie's experiences and memories, but the whole idea is that in the present, Jimmy is missing, and Lisamarie is joining her parents in hopes of finding him. Yet a larger majority of Lisamarie's flashbacks have nothing to do with Jimmy, but rather, have to do with Frank and the gang, uncle Mick, Ma-ma-oo, the little man with the red hair, etc. So what is the connection?

All in all, the book was great - I thought it was very fast-paced when it came to the little mini-stories. The only thing I tended to skim over were the random factual tidbits, such as how the heart works or where Kitimat Bay is, etc.

I really enjoyed this book. I enjoyed the contrast between reality and spirituality in Lisamarie's case. My favorite character was uncle Mick who seemed to be rebelling for the wrong reasons. Elvis was the most important entity to him and he took to heart all of the ideals in his music. His actions did not really follow a 'native pattern' but his character really examined the question of, "what even is a native way of life?" He had a lot of contemporary non-native ideals, but still left his mark by saying, "red power!" whenever he left the scene.

Part of the reason I enjoyed the book so much, was that Robinson was able to rope me in especially to the spiritual parts of the book, even though I have no connection to that. It was just very vivid and biting. Robinson's ability to make the characters so lifelike was amazing

I thought Monkey Beach was one of the easiest books to get into out of many of the books we have read throughout the semester. I thought it was even a nice change from Green Grass Running Water, which had a lot of overarching extremely fictional scenes, and had a lot of the culture mixed in to the point where it was almost overwhelming. I think Monkey Beach was more of a relaxing read because there weren't too many things going on. I feel like I missed a couple things in reading it and then going over it in class made me realize how well Eden Robinson strung her story line together.

I thought the whole book was extremely interesting and the ambiguity of the ending is especially haunting. But, what I found to be a personal note to the reader or to myself in particular was when Lisa was driving back with Frank and Karaoke and a B'gwus ran in front of the car and she "felt deeply comforted knowing that magical things were still living in the world" (316). This is interesting because she has this strange connection with her culture and the land that won't leave her, and it's something that is comforting. It makes me think of certain things like Santa Claus, and in a way for a lot of people it must be sad to realize that the magic has left their lives after such a young age when fairy tale creatures no longer exist. That's why I think having such a strong bond with one's culture possibly keeps that magic alive whether you really believe in it or not.

Compared to the other novels that we have studied thus far, I thought that this one presented the most relatable characters while still upholding the native elements. Though the other novels we read this year were all very poignant, I found myself more emotionally invested, and intellectually interested in what became of Lisa. Jimmy, and the other peripheral characters. Robinson manages to take Lisa's main conflict (that being her unusal gift) and apply to a broader human experience that is not alien to the average reader. It was never distracting to me that one of the main premisses of the novel required a certain amount of suspension of disbelief.

Finishing Monkey Beach for the second time I realized a lot of things that I missed the first time around, like a lot of the foreshadowing that Eden uses. What I find most interesting about the book is the gap between traditional and non-traditional characters. The generations are so different that they can have trouble understanding each other. You see characters, such as LisaMarie, struggling with different things that may be myths or may very well be real, depending on if you looked at it through a traditional point of view or a non-traditional one.

I really got into Robinson's writing style. I especially liked the realistic way in which the lines are blurred between the real and the unreal, the supernatural and the everyday. The pseudo-dream sequences are really great -- where it's unclear who even is speaking, like the ones about the heart, and about the corpse in the kelp bed before Uncle Mick's death is discovered, and of course the land of the dead, all the voices Lisa hears. I think what I most identified with was her struggle to decide what to believe in and what to reject. How do you accept your own perceptions if no one else validates them? When you see things other people don't, it's lonely, and it's a little like going crazy. This was very realistic.

I liked, too, that being Ha'isla was not the focus of Lisa's life, just one of many themes. In all the other novels we've read -- Kiss of the Fur Queen, In Search of April Raintree, and Ravensong -- this fact of ethnicity and its impacts on the characters has been THE dominant theme, the shadow underscoring every single event, no matter how small. Those books were ABOUT race and ethnicity. Which is an important thing to think about... But I found this book more realistic in that Lisa does spend time thinking about it, but she doesn't obsess the way Stacy of Ravensong, for example, does. It made her more human to me, I think, because she had other concerns. She defined herself not just in terms of her culture, but also in terms of her family, her location, her peers at school, et cetera.

I was a little disappointed, though, by the ending: all we learn is what happened to her brother. Lisa goes to the land of the dead, but is sent back without learning anything about herself. I was hoping the ending would have larger implications for this internal journey she's been on; I was hoping she would learn something about herself, too. But nothing new is said, and Ma-ma-oo just rehashes all that she said before about Lisa's gift and how she needs to be careful with it. I closed the book feeling nonplussed.

Overall, I thought that Monkey Beach was a fantastic novel. The way Eden Robinson interspersed flashbacks within the text was fascinating, and at the same time, a pleasure to read. At first, I thought the flashbacks would detract from the narrative flow, but after finishing the book actually found that they, in fact, enhanced the intensity of the narrative, especially at the end of the novel. The scene that stands out to me the most is the scene where Robinson switches to the second person tense on p 366. This scene truly does pull readers in. This may not be the most important scene in the novel, but I’d have to say it is one of the most powerful. In terms of the ending, it didn’t bother me because I wasn’t looking for a neat and concise answer to what actually happened to Lisamarie. If I was to choose the most interesting part of the novel I’d be hard pressed to pick just one, so with that in mind, I’d have to say I enjoyed the gothic undertones Eden Robinson infused throughout the novel. It is definitely apparent that she is influenced by Stephen King, and I think that is a good thing because that dimension makes her novel seem almost surreal, at times, for the reader, especially during the more intense flashback sequences, such as when Lisamarie is raped or during the scene I mentioned above.

This was my second time reading this book and again it has been one of my favorite of the semester. Although I was still, at times, frustrated by the way the book will jump back and forth between time with no real notice or clarifications, I love the language of the book and the feeling that I get while reading. Lisa Marie is a character that pulls you into the book through her struggles and perseverance. I read this book from start to finish in one sitting and was captivated the entire time. While most of the books we have read deal at least somewhat with the legends of native people, the ones in this story just seem more present and believable to me in the way that Robinson presents them.

I thought that Edan Robinson's novel was a good read. i was a little disappointed in the fact that they never really saw the Big foot. Although then again if they did actually see the Big Foot it would have made this story more of a fairy tail than a realistic novel that you can understand and associate with yourself. the story of jimmy is gripping til the end when we are left making our own assumptions weather or not he is alive or dead. this was a great way to end the novel. there are many twists and turns along the way when reading the novel. one thing that i thought didnt add up to the rest of the novel is when Lisa dies but comes back. she sees jimmy in the land of the dead, but they do not say anything to each other, secondly she is the same person after this near death experience.

associate with yourself. the story of jimmy is gripping til the end when we are left making our own assumptions weather or not he is alive or dead. this was a great way to end the novel. there are many twists and turns along the way when reading the novel. one thing that i thought didnt add up to the rest of the novel is when Lisa dies but comes back. she sees jimmy in the land of the dead, but they do not say anything to each other, secondly she is the same person after this near death experience.

I found Monkey Beach to be an interesting change from our previous novels. In some ways it is like ravensong, with the lucid images and the way the lines between the spirtual world and physical world are blurred. This is most evident at the end of the novel when we cannot tell if Lisa dies or lives. It is the first of our novels that doesnt give the reader a moral or virtous end point. Instead it is simply a story, a wonderful rendering of native life being combined with the modern world. However i do wish that she would have flushed out the characters lives and personality a bit more. The novel is also sometimes hard to follow because of the constant relations to the spiritual world. Although this is not my favorite of the novels we have read so far, it was a nice transition from Green Grass, Running Water.

I found this book very different than the others we have read this semester. Robinson gives us a window into the native world, but doesn't focus entirely on collisions between the native and white worlds. THe reader can learn about Native culture without constantly being bombarded with negatives and tragedy. My favorite scene is when Lisa and Ma-ma-oo are relaxing on the couch and Lisa says, "I don't want you to leave," and Ma-ma-oo comforts her and calmly explains, "when it's time to go, you go. . . . The place I'm going, nobody's hungry and nobody's in pain. Sunny all day. People I love everywhere, waiting for me." (285) It's a charming, special moment, and when I was reading it I didn't want it to end.

This is my favorite book we have read in class so far. I loved all the stories that are told throughout the novel that somehow seem to bring the book together. One of the stories I particularly loved is the story of when Lisa and Frank get into a fist fight. For some reason I just felt that this scene really demonstrated the type of character and person Lisa is--the tough tom-boy like girl--who is very different from Jimmy. Also, my other favorite scene that stuck out a lot to me is when Lisa and Mick go on the fishing trip and then meet up with Lisa's aunt and uncle and her mom. I just thought this really demonstrated the family as a whole, and I found Lisa's mom's relationship with Mick really interesting as well. Finally, my last favorite part is when Ma-ma-oo is dying and she tells Lisa that when your time comes, it's time to go.

I really loved this novel because I found it to be very real but very accepting at the same time. Lisa showed me that although the truth can be difficult or weird, you can still be accepting of it.

I was really impressed by Robinson’s ability to move through time in Monkey Beach; the transitions between scenes of Lisa at various ages could easily have become confusing to the reader, but I didn’t really find myself confused at all, nor did I tend to immediately notice when a transition had taken place, which is a testament to Robinson’s abilities as a writer. She does an excellent job of developing her characters and that aids greatly in bringing to life very different scenes: from Lisa moving through the forest with Ma-ma-oo as a young girl to Lisa as a teenager watching Kareoke physically assault a local girl at her own party; all these scenes are realistic and exist beside one another seamlessly because of the care Robinson has taken in developing the personalities/behavioral tendencies of the characters. She brings to light the experience of the frustrations and rewards in discovering one’s place between traditional ways (emphasized by Lisa’s grandmother) and the challenges of facing adulthood in contemporary society. We see in Lisa’s parents and uncle how they have come to deal with these often ‘opposing forces,’ and in Lisa this opposition is magnified; not only does she appreciate tradition and her heritage (is it she who, like Cheryl, declares in class that the depiction of Natives in history is based on lies?), she possesses the “gift” that we can infer her mother has either suppressed or lost entirely. I think that as a coming-of-age story in which the protagonist deals with both traditional and newly-developing cultures, and who at the same time is able to see how others have dealt and are dealing with similar issues, Monkey Beach is particularly appealing to individuals of an age group that often find themselves in a similar position.

I also thoroughly enjoyed Monkey Beach. What interested me at first was the writing itself. Stylistically this novel differed from the other books we have read and Robinson's writing crafts flashbacks and Haisla stories into a narrative that reads like one of the magical stories Lisamarie tells. My favorite character was also uncle Mick. He fascinated me as a character because of his complexity. Unlike many other characters from books we have read, uncle Mick is not running from his Haisla identity. Though he has many troubles, weight on his shoulders, and sadnesses uncle Mick is a powerful and dynamic character. Robinson crafts Mick's character in a manner that paints him not as a trapped, whimpering, or broken man but instead as a warrior. Though Mick comes and goes in order to gain control of his tumultuous life, he never denies his heritage or identity and instead reveres and respects it. Mick's strength as a Haisla man sets him apart from many of the other characters we have read about who found it easier to deny their heritage rather than be a part of it, its stories, and its customs.

I suppose what I liked best about the book was the parallel of a modern setting coupled with the mystical elements of Native tradition. I loved how Robinson included the fantastical tree spirits and the little man with red hair. I liked the spirit world into which Lisa is able to submerge, and i liked the idea of such a power being hereditary and passed down from her mother.

The use of this magical element within the modern setting of "Monkey Beach" works to divide the native and white worlds. From Ma-moo's sacrifice's to her late husband, to Lisa and her mother's own spiritual experiences, they show that the native family is connected to something lager than contemporary society. The magic brings a natural element into the story. It is representative of the traditional native ways and the power such traditions hold. The magic displays how such traditions were not merely stories and dances but there was a real power behind many traditions and they served a purpose. Whether to contact the dead or to act as a warning, the magical elements of Lisa's family history help to show the unique and wonderful qualities of native people.

I absolutely love this book; it is the reason that I wanted to enroll in this class to begin with. I love that there is an element of humor throughout the entire story, even in parts that we would not traditionally find funny at all. I've read it now at least 3 times and every time I've found some new connection or hint that Robinson had dropped. One of my favorite parts is how Robinson incorporates all of these lessons such as how to cook oolichan grease, or exactly how to find Kitamaat village on map. It reinforces how important oral traditions are in Native cultures and how the only way to keep them alive is to teach people.

I would definitely recommend that everyone read 'Queen of the North' because it sheds a lot of light on the relationship between Josh and Karaoke. It's especialy interesting to know that this short story was written before Monkey Beach and that originally Robinson had planned on writing MB from the perspective of Jimmy, not Lisa.

I enjoyed the book a lot. It was interesting to see the paralles between native culture and the modern. Also I liked the fact that Lisa had this power, she clould predict things, yet she didn't really know how to use it, and ma-ma-oo told her to be careful with it, but her own mother just told her that it was nothing. There are so many memorable moments in the book, but he one line that just stands out to me is when ma-ma-oo says "When it's time to go you go". I have thinking about this line evers ince we read the book, and the friends I have lost, and it is such a powerful statement to make. It is okay to be okay with death, and that may not have been the main theme of the book, but I feel as though that is what I got out of the book, and it is okay to believe in sigs, and "magic" in a way. Overall, I thought is was an awesome book, and I just wish taht I would have seen Eden when she was here , last year, because she is such an interesting character, that it would ahve been awesoem to meet her.

In Eden Robinson’s Monkey Beach, I found the process of Jimmy understanding and using his gift for swimming the most interesting aspect of the book because through it he desires, experiences, and struggles with the capitalist craving for monetary, individual success. While class discussion brought up many good points about Jimmy’s case, I feel that his development leads readers to question where those wants for individual gain come from and whether or not they are a natural part of society. When we are initially introduced to Jimmy, he wants to take a picture of a sasquatch in order to receive $30,000 and states, “We’ll be rich!" (10). Although this event happens before we learn of Jimmy’s gift for swimming, he is clearly consumed by the idea of acquiring money, illustrating that he prefers material gain (going to Disneyland, a new car, and a new house (10)), to keeping a belief in his culture (the sasquatch) sacred. Jimmy’s concern for profiting off of gifts given to him by his culture is repeated in his goal to “get a gold [medal]” in the Olympics through swimming (48). Besides the fact that gold has a unique place as a universal material for exchange (which connects it back to his previous desire for money), Jimmy’s goal, although achieved through representing Canada, recognizes the individual. This notion is furthered by the fact that it is not until later (and due to his parents’ input) that Jimmy considers what effect his winning has on his own community. Moreover, as brought to light in class, swimming is a traditional skill and Jimmy’s choice to perform this gift in an unnatural body of water (a pool with chlorine) further suggests that he exploits his culture. Not until much later in the book and after Jimmy’s accident where he hurts his arm and looses his place as a competitor do we see him become more aware of how his gift fits in with his community. He mentions that “everyone tried so hard” and he cannot believe the amount of money that they spent on him (349). During this scene he also becomes one with his culture and his gift by swimming with the whales, commenting that the “water looked so much more magical” (354). In the end, he appears to realize not only the value of his gift, but of its connection to his community. After coming to this realization, the missing piece appears to be the responsibility that one has to use their gift to improve one’s community. In this way, Jimmy’s development suggests that in order to have social growth, one must be primarily concerned with the community; and his failure to succeed seems to show that individual success does not benefit in the long-run.

My favorite part of the novel, Monkey Beach was the relationship between Lisa Marie and her uncle Mick. In my mind's eye, I am certain that MIck is her real father. Or I like the idea that he is. Mick appears to have somewhat found a niche between being Native and living in a white influenced world. Although he is by no means perfect, Mick is a great role model to Lisa Marie. Mick is obviously tainted by his residential school experience and has had some run-ins with the law however, his strong Native fervor, spirit, and consciousness are things Lisa Marie can look up to and emanate. The scene in which Lisa Marie gets in trouble for correcting her teacher and speaking out in class in an effort to set the records straight about her Haisla people is by far, my favorite. The pride Mick has for Lisa Marie after this scene is so paternal and loving; it really is touching.
I really enjoyed this book. So unlike the others we read, I found that I could identify with this novel on a personal level infinitely more so than the others. I believe this is largely due to the manner in which Robinson portrays Haisla culture and living. Robinson is able to make the Haisla culture and traditions relatable without losing its mystery. Reading Monkey Beach I was reminded of my family, my home, my traditions. Robinson's inclusion of Haisla recipes for homemade ice cream reminded me of back home and the peach and blueberry ice creams we make from the peach trees and blueberry bushes which flourish in North Carolina.

This was my favorite book of the semester. It was full of interesting scenes. It was hard to decipher between reality and fiction. Is LisaMarie hearing things or does she really have this great power. LisaMarie is going through a lot and it is very interesting to watch her voyage through everyday life. I think it is interesting that Jimmy was the favorite son because he was a swimmer and could be more easily adapted to white society because of his talent versus LisaMaries which involves her culture. It is interesting that the son is more valued for having a gift that the white community valued. I found the foreshadowing to be interesting as well. Looking back everything fits well together. For example the Ouija game spells out different names that come together at the end. Everything that made no sense comes together at some point. It made you read for the deeper meaning on every little detail. It was extremely difficult to put down the book. I would have liked to see more of Karaoke because her story is very interesting. I always wondered why she was not included more when the original short story was about her.

At first, I was unsure about how I felt about Monkey Beach. I think the writing style is different, even though it was in first person. But as I kept reading, I became invested in the characters, and their lives. I think the novel is quite tragic; Lisa sees both her Uncle and grandmother die extremely violent deaths. However, the novel isn't so much a story of suffering, as it is remembering the traditions Uncle Mick and especially Ma-ma-oo taught her. Perhaps my favorite scene is when Lisa takes Jimmy to Monkey Beach. I felt that at this point she had matured, and was trying to help her brother in a way that he hadn't helped her.

“Monkey Beach”, by Eden Robinson, was my favorite book we read. I found the most interesting parts of the book were when Lisa would see the little red man. Every time she would see him, something bad would happen. The one time that the little red man didn’t show up to warn her is when Ma-ma-oo died in the fire. Lisa could never forgive herself, because she felt she could have saved her. I think the little red man didn’t show up because, the last time Lisa yelled at him to go away, because he didn’t do anything to stop cheese from raping her. I think that Eden Robinson put in some much detail in the stories between when Lisa was in the boat on her way to monkey beach and the flashbacks of the stories when she was younger. The scenes she described you could almost picture them in your head what they really looked like.

I thought monkey beach was a very interesting book. I liked it but it wasn't my favorite story of the bunch. I just don't like when books skip around.

That being said i did enjoy the level of detail that Eden Robinson put into her novel. You have to commend her for that because most people wont work as hard as she did to make a great book.

I was a little perplexed by the end of the novel with Lisa dying and seeing Jimmy in the land of the dead i wasnt quite sure what was going on there so i would like to see that cleared up a little in class.

I liked Monkey Beach very much. It was different from other novels we've read in that it was really not so concerned with the tension between the white world and the native world. Really, there were only a few scenes where white characters were present. Instead, this book was concerned with the effect the white colonization has had on the community and the subtle ways the natives hold onto their spirituality. We see Lisa's mother, who is by all accounts a very modern woman, still using traditional cooking methods and making oolichan grease. We also see Ma-ma-oo showing Lisa how to honor the dead by burning gifts at their graves.

The most interesting parts of the book for me, though, were the parts where the spiritual world and the real world overlapped for Lisa. In these parts we get to see how damaging the white colonization is because it stripped the natives of their way of understanding the world. While Lisa is firmly connected to this spiritual world, she has no guidance and no support, leading her to often make poor choices.

While the story in this book was undoubtedly full of lots of different things that you don't really find in a lot of other stories and was overall quite interesting, I think the one thing that I truly enjoyed in this book more than others was the way that it was written, a lot like a puzzle with many mythological aspects that make it more and more interesting along the way. A lot of the time it was almost like something out of a David Lynch film, in no way simple to understand but at the same time, you don't reject it because it's too foolish or too out of the ordinary.

On top of that, Eden Robinson creates a lot of very likable characters that are very well developed, especially Ma-ma-oo and Lisamarie. My favorite parts of the book were when they were together talking and Ma-ma-oo was teaching Lisamarie about the spirit world in order to better help her use her gift. The theme of magic in this book, in my opinion, really brought Monkey Beach to life. I imagine when Eden Robinson went there with her father to visit and she was disappointed because it wasn't what she remembered it used to be, she realized that she felt there was a loss of magic, that same kind of magic that's there when you're a child. I think that as Lisamarie grows in this book, she learns that it's important to embrace your childhood and the magic that comes along with it and I really like that idea.

Lisamarie reminds me very much of myself and the experiences I went through. I am half native and spiritual and therfore I could relate very much to this book.

N Cramer's comments resonate with me on a high level. Great blog