Waubgeshig Rice - Moon of the Crusted Snow

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Moon of the Crusted Snow: краткое содержание, описание и аннотация

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A daring post-apocalyptic novel from a powerful rising literary voice
With winter looming, a small northern Anishinaabe community goes dark. Cut off, people become passive and confused. Panic builds as the food supply dwindles. While the band council and a pocket of community members struggle to maintain order, an unexpected visitor arrives, escaping the crumbling society to the south. Soon after, others follow.
The community leadearship loses its grip on power as the visitors manipulate the tired and hungry to take control of the reserve. Tensions rise and, as the months pass, so does the death toll due to sickness and despair. Frustrated by the building chaos, a group of young friends and their families turn to the land and Anishinaabe tradition in hopes of helping their community thrive again. Guided through the chaos by an unlikely leader named Evan Whitesky, they endeavor to restore order while grappling with a grave decision.
Blending action and allegory, Moon of the Crusted Snow upends our expectations. Out of catastrophe comes resilience. And as one society collapses, another is reborn.

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Evan gathered the empty plates and dropped them neatly into cold water in the sink. The council had asked everyone to shut off their hot water heaters the week before, and Evan had loyally heeded the request. Water for cooking or bathing was once again heated on the stovetop. Showers were gone, and a bath had become a twice-weekly routine. They’d likely have to reduce that even more if the rez wasn’t going to run out of diesel before winter was over.

He cleared the pots and bowls of food, then put the leftovers into plastic containers and stacked them neatly in the fridge. He promised to wash the dishes when he got home later. He was off to check in on his brother to make sure he and his family had enough wood. Evan knew his little brother could easily become vulnerable and desperate.

He stood at the top of his steps in the dark of the early evening and let out a breath just to see the vapour billow from his mouth. He had done this since he was a kid to gauge the cold.

Thick clouds blocked the bright moon and the stars. The roads were blanketed in a darkness so heavy it was almost tangible. Evan drove along the white road he had recently ploughed. Most homes he passed were dark, save for one light in one window. It appeared the conservation message had finally sunk in: people were now complying — although, Evan felt not enough people understood the extent of their crisis. Perhaps the council should not have protected people so much at first. In recent weeks, he had silently begun to second-guess Terry’s strategies and leadership. People weren’t exactly rallying behind their chief, although most complied with his orders.

Evan pulled up to his brother’s duplex. He noticed more lights on than usual. Smoke swirled out of the chimney. At least he’s burning wood and not using electric heat , Evan thought. He walked up to the front door and knocked, although he usually just walked in. The crisis had put many people on edge, and he didn’t want to alarm his brother. He was already at odds with Cam over his inactivity and lack of initiative. No need to make it worse.

No one came to the door. He heard muffled voices inside but couldn’t tell who it was. He knocked again and waited. Still no one arrived to let him in, so he decided just to open the door and walk in after all.

A thick haze of cigarette smoke assaulted him. He had run out of smokes a few days earlier, and the smoke stung his eyes though the longing remained. He heard loud chatter, the shouts and laughter of a small party. Bass-heavy music thumped from tiny speakers.

Evan was immediately annoyed, knowing that there would be more lights on and more toilet flushes than there should be. He took a deep breath and tried to contain his bubbling anger before walking into the kitchen.

Cam sat at the kitchen table with Nick Jones and his friend Jacob McCloud. Evan was surprised to see Nick, slightly younger than the other two and not generally a partier. “Hey bro!” Cam shouted, rising with arms outstretched. Greasy hair peeked out from under a toque, and his stained white T-shirt hung loosely off his skinny arms. He stumbled as he came towards Evan.

Evan let his younger brother wrap him in a drunken hug and squeezed him back before nudging him away. “How’s it going, brother? Looks like you’re nice and relaxed tonight,” Evan said, barely containing his fury at his brother’s fecklessness.

Cam stumbled back to his chair and shrugged. “Just survivin’, bro,” he said, cracking a wide, toothy smile.

A plastic bottle of rye was the table’s centrepiece, an overflowing ashtray nestled up against it. Evan didn’t recognize the brand of rye. It looked like it had been bought wholesale somewhere. He scanned the table and noticed the young men were drinking it straight. His jaw clenched, but he didn’t want to alienate his brother’s friends, so he moved to shake each of their hands.

“This is the fuckin’ guy that saved my life!” slurred Nick. “These guys found us!”

Evan corrected him: “You guys found us.”

“No way, man. I was so happy when I saw you guys there.”

Evan didn’t want to fall down this soggy, inebriated rabbit hole. “I just came by to check on you guys,” Evan said. He didn’t see Sydney, but he heard more voices in the living room to his left. “You got enough wood?”

“Yep, for the whole winter,” his brother replied, nodding his heavy, drunk head.

“What about food?”

“We just got our box for the week yesterday.”

Evan had prepared it himself. He, Tyler, Isaiah, and a rotation of councillors delivered the food to prevent a pickup point from descending into mayhem as people got hungrier.

“Where’s Jordan?”

“At Syd’s mom’s. We needed a night off. So I invited some people over.”

“I see that. Where’s Syd?”

Cam lifted his chin in the direction of the other room, pointing with his lips.

“Alright, I’ll go in and say hi. Just remember to keep it down, and don’t have too many lights on,” he reminded the table. He knew he was in no position to cast stones about the drinking. He felt like indulging himself, but the sloppiness bothered him tonight, so he walked into the next room instead.

Light from a single lamp in the far corner illuminated the whole space. A tiny boom box beneath it played hip hop music. “Hey, Evan! Come over and have a drink!” shouted Sydney. That was the last thing he heard before blood rushed into his face and ears, drowning out sound.

Sitting in the opposite corner with Sydney’s cousin Jenna on his lap was Scott. He raised his cup to Evan to salute his arrival. “Welcome, friend. Will you join us?”

Somehow Evan had known that the cigarettes and free-flowing booze would lead back to Scott. Scott hadn’t been in the community long, but rumour had it that he was the man to go to if you’d run out of smokes or alcohol. He had somehow concealed a decent supply of vices in those hard cases he towed from the South. Desperate to keep his cool, Evan scanned the room. Sydney sat on the love seat to his left, leaning over the coffee table to knock the ash of her smoke into one of the empty red cups. Her younger sister Tara leaned back on the dark couch on the opposite side of the room closest to the light.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” he demanded through gritted teeth.

“Well, nice to see you too, friend,” Scott replied sarcastically.

“I don’t have time for your bullshit, Scott. What are you doing in my brother’s house?”

“Your brother welcomed me in. I saw Nick by the band office the other day. He said they were having drinks here tonight. I figured I deserved to cut loose.”

“Get your hands off the girl. She’s too young for you.”

“Evan, just chill out,” Sydney muttered, rolling her glassy eyes.

Sensing the tension, Jenna stood up. “I gotta go pee,” she said and made her way across the room. She flicked up her long black hair as she passed Evan. It smelled faintly sweet.

“Happy now?” Scott asked, his free hand clenched in a fist on his thigh. “I’m just here to make friends, Ev.”

“I don’t give a shit. You’re too old for this crowd.”

“Seriously, chill out, Evan,” Sydney commanded.

“I’m not gonna chill out. This visitor has to respect our ways.”

Scott’s head snapped back in a fit of laughter, his big teeth catching the lamplight. “Your ways? You talk a big game about your so-called ways, Ev, but your brother tells me you enjoy the old firewater too.”

Evan lurched towards Scott, his anger making him clumsy enough to knock cups off the coffee table. The bald man shot up to square up against him. They faced each other inches apart, staring each other down.

Scott leered into Evan’s eyes and gritted his teeth, whispering, “Try it, tough guy” so that only Evan could hear. Even in the dim light Evan could see fading scars on the big man’s forehead and cheek. He knew he was no match. These useless fucks are all too drunk to back me up , he thought as he took a step back.

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