Split Tooth

Ice in lung
Ice in Wind
Life unsung
Milk Death
Split tooth
Sorrow marrow
Whispered truth

On her website, one can see the awesome artistic range that Tanya Tagaq displays – from “Punk Inuit Throat Singer” to painter – and in a further expression of her art, she has now released her fiction debut, Split Tooth. Self-taught at writing as she was at singing, this book is apparently based on journals that Tagaq kept over the years; journals in which she would write poems, ideas, memories, and short fictions. Put together in a loose narrative that I had to keep reminding myself wasn't a straight memoir, Tagaq paints a vivid picture of growing up in Nunavut in the 70's:

We break into abandoned buildings just to keep warm. We climb the oil tanks and run around the tops of them, daring ourselves to jump off (we never do). We challenge the power plant to a yelling match. We collect our friends in gangs and each one of us tells our parents we are sleeping over at someone else's house. We hold 100 metre races and play spin the bottle. We steal hash and beer and potato chips. We talk on the phone. We taunt drunks on the street, knowing they will never remember who bruised their egos when they have killed their own dignity already.

In between snippets of the continuing narrative, there are frequent semi-mystical/philosophical musings that may have been better off left in the journals:

Spirit is already divine. We must feed Divinity with devout intent and Spirit grows stronger, cleansing and returning to reality upon Death. What happens before birth and resumes after death – this is more real than the brief spark of life. Our lives just carry the physical burden of carrying energy forward. We put on suits of meat as training, as a challenge. We all know this is temporary.

And often, a short poem would appear that would perfectly and impactfully capture some details from the narrative:

The Human Sternum is capable of so many things
Protector of Diaphragm
Killer and milk feeder of hope
Marriage of marrow and cartilage
Heaving
Imprisoning the heart
Keeps it alive
Cage for Blood and breath
The Human Sternum is used for so many things
Clavicles like handlebars
Ribs like stairs
The sternum is the shield
Even when impaired
Even when it smothers a little girl's face
As the bedsprings squeak

The book also includes several line drawings by Jaime Hernandez, and as the girl in the story enters puberty, she has an encounter with the natural world that begins a storyline that sounds like it could have been an age-old myth. I liked this scrapbooky feel: it may not give the reading experience of a traditional Western novel, but who says that an Inuit artist needs to follow anyone else's rules for how to tell a story? There is both joy and pain in this story, and throughout, Tagaq writes of her community with warmth and love; my personal tastes may have appreciated some different editorial choices, but I am impressed by the art that Tagaq has created here.

The 2018 Scotiabank Giller Prize Longlist: 

Paige Cooper: Zolitude

Patrick DeWitt: French Exit

Eric Dupont: Songs for the Cold of Heart

Esi Edugyan: Washington Black

Rawi Hage: Beirut Hellfire Society

Sheila Heti: Motherhood

Emma Hooper: Our Homesick Songs

Thea Lim: An Ocean of Minutes

Lisa Moore: Something for Everyone

Tanya Tagaq: Split Tooth

Kim Thúy: Vi

Joshua Whitehead: Jonny Appleseed


*Won by Washington Black (but I would have given it to Songs for the Cold of Heart)