Compared to Americans, Canadians are often more gentle in their approach to things. They're much more apologetic. There's less room for conflict.

I'm fascinated by the magic realism used by many writers. I think it goes hand-in-hand with the Indian experience. It's a very different way of viewing the world.

I'm intrigued by the classic Greek tragedies, as well as by the idea of the Greek chorus.

When I die, nieces, I want to be cremated, my ashes taken up in a bush plane and sprinkled onto the people in town below. Let them think my body is snowflakes, sticking in their hair and on their shoulders like dandruff.

The history needs to serve the story, not the story the history. But at the same time you can't stray too far.

Canada and America are very, very different. It's true that we share a language and many customs. But Americans have a very different view of the world.

Fascinating, often hilarious, always devastatingly truthful, The Inconvenient Indian is destined to become a classic of historical narrative. For those who wish to better understand Native peoples, it is a must read. For those who don't wish to understand, it is even more so.