Broken Circle: The Launch of a Commemorative Edition of Theodore Niizhotay Fontaine’s Memoir

Join the friends, family, and community of Theodore Niizhotay Fontaine to launch a new, commemorative edition of Broken Circle: The Dark Legacy of Indian Residential Schools (Heritage House Publishing). Co-presented by McNally Robinson Booksellers.

The launch will be hosted live in the Atrium of McNally Robinson Booksellers, Grant Park and also available as a simultaneous YouTube stream. The video will be available for viewing thereafter. Before arriving, please review details of how to attend physical events here at the store.

In this ground-breaking memoir, first published in 2010, Fontaine chronicles his twelve years of incarceration in two residential schools and infuses his remembrances with insights gained through his long healing process. His heartbreaking honesty, hard-earned wisdom, and unflagging determination has served as a pathway for survivors of Indian Residential Schools to share their experiences and support their own healing journeys.

This expanded, commemorative edition of Broken Circle pays tribute to the remarkable life and spirit of Theodore Niizhotay Fontaine. With a foreword by Andrew Woolford, professor of sociology and criminology at the University of Manitoba, an introduction by Charlene Diehl, director of the Winnipeg International Writers Festival, and dozens of photographs from Fontaine’s life, this important memoir will continue to serve as a powerful testament to survival, self-discovery, and reconciliation.

Join Theodore’s beloved wife Morgan Fontaine, along with Andrew Woolford, Charlene Diehl, and Rosa Walker, president and CEO of the Indigenous Leadership Development Institute, to commemorate Theodore’s lifelong journey of reconciliation and honour his candour, courage, and compassion.

 

Broken Circle – by Theodore Fontaine

A new commemorative edition of Theodore Fontaine’s powerful, groundbreaking memoir of survival and healing after years of residential school abuse.

Originally published in 2010, Broken Circle: The Dark Legacy of Indian Residential Schools chronicles the impact of Theodore Fontaine’s harrowing experiences at Fort Alexander and Assiniboia Indian Residential Schools, including psychological, emotional, and sexual abuse; disconnection from his language and culture; and the loss of his family and community. Told as remembrances infused with insights gained through his long healing process, Fontaine goes beyond the details of the abuse that he suffered to relate a unique understanding of why most residential school survivors have post-traumatic stress disorders and why succeeding generations of Indigenous children suffer from this dark chapter in history. With a new foreword by Andrew Woolford, professor of sociology and criminology at the University of Manitoba, this commemorative edition will continue to serve as a powerful testament to survival, self-discovery, and healing.