How I Became a Ghost: A Choctaw Trail of Tears Story by Tim Tingle

This story follows Isaac, a ten-year-old, and his family, who are Choctaw Native Americans that live in Mississippi in 1830. In quick time, the family learns that they must leave their land and become homeless due to soldiers pushing them off their land. Isaac has visions of his village burning down, his eventual death, and ghosts of other dead Choctaws. Soon, Isaac dies, but he learns he can communicate with others and goes on a rescue mission to save Naomi, a Choctaw girl whom white soldiers took. A unique story that uses supernatural elements and recounts "a historical tragedy" of the Trail of Tears with "an immersive Choctaw perspective." ("A ten-year-old," 2013)

Critical Analysis

How I Became a Ghost is a fictional novel with a plot that is easy to follow. The main character, Isaac, is brave and intelligent. Themes include genocide, bravery, and determination. Cultural details are prominent within the story, including language, customs, Native American food like pashofa, and societal importance for elders. Tim Tingle won the American Indian Youth Literature Award (AIYLA) 2014 award for best writing by Native Americans and Indigenous peoples of North America.

The strength of this book is its ability to recount a historical atrocity by the U.S. Government toward Native Americans. Its weakness is that the story may have been stronger without the supernatural perspective. Readers may enjoy the picture book Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard and illustrator Juana Martinez-Neal with similar cultural elements.

References

"A ten-year-old". (2013, June 18). How I Became a Ghost. Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved July 27, 2022, from https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/tim-tingle/how-i-became-ghost/

Tingle, T. (2013). How I Became a Ghost: A Choctaw Trail of Tears Story. The Road Runner Press.