I really enjoyed this book, I found it to be engaging and profound. In both examples the colonial patrilineal norms are clearly ingrained in these men, causing them to believe that men should only ever act very masculine. Another when Roger beats Jonny when he finds out Jonny danced with a boy, “‘Boys don’t’ – smack – ‘dance with’ – smack – ‘boys’ – smack.

One of the instances is when Tias’ dad violently cuts his fingernail when he sees that they are painted. The idea of the necessity of hyper masculinity is often featured in the book.

Another theme in this book is the issue of gender roles. The pattern of colonialism and the Christian beliefs can be seen in the strong negative attitude in Jonny’s community towards people who aren’t obviously straight. This dream represents the fact that Jonny, despite his identity, is just as capable as anyone else, that he isn’t less of a person. But when they let Jonny try to catch a fish, he succeeds. When Jonny approaches them, they say its only for men. She dreamed that she and Jonny happened upon native men spearfishing, none of them able to catch anything. Jonny’s mother tells him about a dream she had. Water is also a metaphor for Jonny’s fluid, two-spirit identity. Jonny saw water as something to look up to that could help him, a mentor. When thinking back to the streams on his reserve Jonny reflects, “Water was a mentor to me, a playmate” (Whitehead, 2018, p. Jonny and Tias spent hours at the beach in the water, messing around and having fun.Īgain, being at the beach was a time for Jonny to forget about the other things in life and just enjoy his time, a time to heal his spirit with happiness. Water is again brought into the story when Jonny recalls going camping with Tias’ parents. The baths with his mother was a time for cleansing where Jonny wouldn’t have to think about other worries in his life, he could just focus on spending time with his mom.

It was the shampoo that never burned my eyes, my mom assured me of that. Jonny recalls the baths he used to take with his mother when he was little, “My mother would wash us both with L’Oreal kids shampoo. First it is a metaphor for cleansing and healing. One of the themes in Jonny Appleseed that is revisited many times is the significance of water. It’s a story of, love, perseverance, Indigenous life and teaching that all shape this raw genuine narrative. Weaved into the story are memories of Jonny’s past, from his childhood to his life in Winnipeg. Jonny has one week to return to the reserve for his step-father’s funeral, where he’ll revisit his old life. As a young Indigenous person Jonny leaves his reservation and moves to Winnipeg, working as a webcam boy to make a living. The novel, Jonny Appleseed brings to life the two-spirit/Indigiqueer Jonny.

Jonny Appleseed by Joshua Whitehead