MWSA Review

Navajo Strong is a short book, a quick read with a long-lasting emotional impact. Its single plot line details the coming together of three women related by blood ties but separated by time and distance, by misunderstandings and clashing cultures. We know their names, but the author follows Navaho traditions by referring to them primarily as they see themselves—Grandmother, Mother, Daughter.

Each of these women has a lesson to teach us. Grandmother has faced the greatest challenges but found a way to surmount them. Her openness to learning about new cultures and exploring far-off lands makes her a delight. Mother struggles with long-held assumptions, contradicted by new revelations. And Daughter, a sparkling 13-year-old, stands in the doorway to the future, encouraging the reader to look ahead to the benefits of the modern world while giving full recognition to the treasures of the past.

I enjoyed this work, seeing it as almost a parable. I read it quickly, taking some delight in the author’s ability to catch the linguistic phrasings of characters whose first language was Navajo or Chinese. The differences between cultures revealed their underlying similarities and gave me hope for the future.  

Review by Carolyn Schriber (March 2020)

Author's Synopsis

I have always loved reading, and now I say I learned to write from the greats. I began my writing career three years ago at age 77 with a memoir for my family. An interest in my backpacking trip to China resulted in my first fiction story, China Strong. A story of a retired school teacher traveling in China. A year later, my volunteer time in New Mexico, brought about Navajo Strong.

Navajo Strong is a fiction story of three women, and the connection between a grandmother and her Navajo granddaughter. The story of a daughter discovering her mother, and the Navajo man who brought them together.

ISBN/ASIN: soft cover: 9781095190371. B07RY5QFGL
Book Format(s): Soft cover, Kindle
Review Genre: Fiction—Literary Fiction
Number of Pages: 210