History in Schools

Since Bound was published last August, I have been struck by how similar Islanders’ comments on the novel have been. Many have said they didn’t know anything about this period of the Island’s history and wished this was how history was taught in school. They wanted to know less about the dates of British kings and more about the people here and how they lived in the colony’s early years. Many have said that few history courses in school or university paid much attention to the Mi’kmaq or even mentioned that there were enslaved persons on the Island for a time. Maybe in a small way, this is about to change. This summer, the PEI Ministry of Education contacted me to say they are recommending Bound for school libraries and are considering it for the curriculum. But I am especially pleased with a message I received last week from a UPEI professor who let me know that he was having his 3rd year PEI History students read Bound and prepare a book review as many of the novel’s themes mirrored those being explored in his course.
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I am honoured that Bound is seen as making a contribution and hopefully it will inspire readers to dig a bit deeper and learn more about our Island and its interesting and eventful past.