Nooroongji Book Club: The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Join us for an intimate evening with fellow readers. The theme of our books will vary by month, always with a mind to forwarding uncommon international works that will nourish and enrich our understanding of the world and each other.

In honour of the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation we will be discussing The Serviceberry, by Robin Wall Kimmerer.

This book club will take place once again inside our bookstore after hours, located inside the Net Loft building on Granville Island.

A situatated history of Granville Island:

There are more than 630 First Nation communities in Canada, which represent more than 50 Nations and 50 Indigenous languages.

The xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) peoples are indigenous to the area around Vancouver and have lived on these lands for thousands of years.

The Salish, the Indigenous people of the area, used a large sand bar (later filled in to become an Industrial Island, then Granville Island), and the surrounding areas for traditional purposes such as hunting, gathering, travel, and everyday living and cultural activities.

The area around Granville Island historically provided a plentiful harvest of wild game, such as deer, elk, bear and beaver, along with waterfowl such as duck. The waters were said to haveteemed with flounder, perch, and salmon. The Salish people harvested clams, oysters, urchin, herring and cod, and hunted deer. Berries and a variety of wild plants such as cabbage and mushrooms were nurtured and harvested from the surrounding area by all three local Nations for medicinal and early technology. Shellfish harvesting in the area was closed in 1972.

In 2002, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of the Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) that they could reclaim the area of their traditional village Sen̓áḵw beside Granville Island. The land behind theformer Molson Brewery and under the Burrard Street Bridge was handed back to the nation byCP Rail in this important court case.

Today, industry on Granville Island has changed with the times and there are several Indigenous-owned galleries and stores. What hasn’t changed is that Granville Island residents are still proud to work and play on territories that are the ancestral lands for all three nations, the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh).

Past Nooroongji Book Club Picks:

Nov 2023: The Guest Cat, by Takashi Hiraide

Dec 2023: The Wall, by Marlen Haushofer

Jan 2024: Difficult Loves, by Italo Calvino

Feb 2024: All Your Children, Scattered, by Beata Umubyeyi Mairesse

Mar 2024: Kim Ji Young Born 1982, by Cho Nam Joo

Apr 2024: The Inhumans and Other Stories, Edited by Bodhisattva Chattopadhyay

May 2024: Her Body and Other Parties, by Carmen Maria Machado

Jun 2024: How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia, by Mohsin Hamid

Jul 2024: Victory City, by Salman Rushdie

Aug 2024: An Apprenticeship, Or The Book of Pleasures, by Clarice Lispector

Sept 2024: The Love of Singular Men, by Victor Heringer

Oct 2024: Coexistence, by Billy-Ray Belcourt

Nov 2024: Ryder, by Djuna Barnes

Dec 2024: Welcome to the Hyunam-Dong Bookshop, by Hwang Bo-reum

Feb 2025: Assembly, by Natasha Brown

April 2025: The Brothers Karamazov, by Fyodor Dostoevsky

July 2025: The Last Supper, by Rachel Cusk

Aug 2025: The Houseguest, by Amparo Dávila

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

After hours entrance to the Net Loft is through the EAST(Alimentaria) side door only., 1666 Johnston Street, Vancouver, Canada