The Morning Bell Brings the Broken Hearted

A description of the book from Ms. Manuel’s publisher, Douglas & McIntyre, states, “In The Morning Bell Brings the Broken Hearted, a new teacher, Molleigh Royston, moves to Tawakin — a remote Nuu-chah-nulth community in the Pacific Northwest — bringing good intentions. However, as she struggles to understand and help her students, doubts begin to accumulate — including doubts about her own motivations. Things escalate when three students start behaving strangely and Molleigh makes a serious cultural transgression, triggering a series of disturbing events in the village. Giant boulders are placed in front of Molleigh’s house, furniture moves mysteriously, and flowers erupt in flame. This story about the complexity of hope and the limits of good intent, offers a grave look at how the education system fails remote Indigenous communities, leaving Indigenous students, with all their brilliance and resilience, in the hands of transient educators.”

 

Ms. Manuel was joined for the book launch by Darrel McLeod, a Cree writer from Alberta, whose memoir, Mamaskatch, won the 2018 Governor General’s Award for English-language non-fiction. Mr. McLeod is preparing to release his first novel, A Season in Chezgh’un, this fall. Ms. Manuel said she chose to include Mr. McLeod in the event because both of them had worked as educators in extremely isolated communities, and they both happened to write books about educators in remote communities, addressing the same topic through the eyes of an Indigenous man and a non-Indigenous woman. At the book launch, they discussed the lack of resources in those communities, the importance of culture, and the effects when someone becomes disconnected from their cultural origins. Ms. Manuel also shared readings from her book that reflect on those challenges.

 

Ms. Manuel, who joined the staff at Shawnigan last August, said she finds the School to be “incredibly supportive.”

 

“I’ve been blown away by the level of skill, talent and commitment of the teachers here,” Ms. Manuel enthuses.

 

The students, she adds, are “exceptional” to work with.

 

“As a writer, the talent level and the passion for creative writing in this school are staggering,” she says.

 

As a self-described “sports nut,” Ms. Manuel notes that being able to coach basketball and tennis have also been highlights of her time at Shawnigan so far.

 

In addition to her two adult novels, Ms. Manuel has also published two middle-grade sports novels: Dressed to Play and Head to Head, and a young adult novel, Open Secrets, that addresses grooming in the music industry.

Ms. Manuel is already hard at work on her next novel, The Impossible Flight of the Less Divine. She says Shawnigan inspires her to write.

 

“The beauty of the buildings alone reminds me of how much I love literature and the history of literature, and how much I want to add to that body of literature,” she declares.

 

The Morning Bell Brings the Broken Hearted has already climbed the BC Bestseller list (which includes all genres, from children’s books and hiking guides to true crime and mystery novels). If you want to purchase The Morning Bell Brings the Broken Hearted, Ms. Manuel recommends supporting your local independent bookstore. The book is available in Duncan at Volume One, and in Victoria at Munro’s Books.