22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
‘Big Chief' is a sly debut about drama in Native American politics
My digital review copy of 'Big Chief,' Jon Hickey's ambitious debut novel, came with a letter attached. In it, Hickey introduces himself as an enrolled citizen of the Lac du Flambeau Band of Chippewa Indians who grew up away from his ancestral homeland in northern Wisconsin after his grandparents were forcibly relocated to Chicago. The novel emerged from the experience of feeling estranged from his roots, as well as his observations of Indigenous politics. The letter was earnest and direct, neatly unspooling the author's ties to his material.
