Seven Fallen Feathers

Seven Fallen Feathers: Racism, Death, and Hard Truths in a Northern City is a nonfiction book by Tanya Talaga, published September 30, 2017 by House of Anansi Press.

For various reasons, Indigenous children in Ontario often leave their homes around age 13 or 14 to attend school in a larger city, such as Thunder Bay, where they are likely to " face a myriad of hardships—rampant racism, extreme underage alcohol and substance abuse, along with physical and sexual violence.

"[5] Talaga's book investigates "seven untimely and largely unsolved deaths that have taken place among Native Thunder Bay students"[5] between 2000 and 2011, all of which were "immediately deemed accidental, some noted as such by the local police even before a coroner had a chance to conduct an autopsy.

[6] Courtney Eathorne, writing for Booklist, noted, "Talaga’s incisive research and breathtaking storytelling could bring this community one step closer to the healing it deserves.

[6]Shelf Awareness's Kerry McHugh provided a mixed review, noting that the book "feels imbued with a strange sense of déjà vu, in part because Talaga repeats facts multiple times across as many pages.