In this groundbreaking collection, Ruth DyckFehderau and twenty-seven storytellers offer a rich and timely accounting of contemporary life in Eeyou Istchee, the territory of the James Bay Cree of Northern Quebec. The stories are connected by diabetes, but they are not records of illness as much as they are deeply personal accounts of life in the North: the fine, swayingbalances of living both in town and on the land, of family and work and studies, of healing from relocations and residential school histories while building communities of safety and challenge and joy, of hunting and hockey, and much more.Sweet Bloods is essential reading for anyone who knows anyone with diabetes, and for anyone interested in a contemporary rendering of one of Canada's vibrant, thriving, and highly adaptive Indigenous communities.

Although Ruth DyckFehderau is the writer, this is a community project, owned and controlled by the James Bay Cree health dept (because stories are medicine) The James Bay Cree hired outside writers because "our own writers have enough to carry." Each story was difficult to retell to the writer. Most residential school stories are still passed on in traditional ways - there are many healing projects going on, this is just one project to deliver the stories to a wider audience people whose stories are in the book are people who want their stories in a book (not a traditional Cree art form), want their stories shared outside eeyou istchee, want to tell their stories anonymously because they hold a position of prominence in the community and feel they can't speak freely otherwise, they want to control how children and grandchildren discover their stories, sometimes protecting perpetrators (whom they might love) just for other privacy reasons methodology: hearing the story, sometimes multiple times, going away to write it up, then returning for approval, as many times as that took. Resources were offered for healing throughout the process, themes heard throughout: healing does not mean justice has been done; sometimes this is the first time these stories have been told; storytellers worried about telling the stories of others; the intent of these stories is to help others although the book contains difficult content the stories are often uplifting - no need to be afraid of what is on the page. Each story, each person, each healing process, is different. first book will be followed by 2 or 3 more in the coming years.

When Jack is 18, he's diagnosed with diabetes but isn't told he can do anything about it, so he doesn't. He falls into comas, he loses vision and needs eye surgery, his leg is amputated and then amputated again further up, and then his kidneys give right out. Finally, someone at an organ transplant clinic teaches him about diet, substance abuse, and diabetes. A story about bullshit and helping yourself. In Northern East Cree, French, Southern East Cree, and English.

When Rose was in high school, she saw a girl in the bathroom injecting a needle into her leg. A heroin addict, she thought, right here in my school!. But then she learned about a new disease, creeping into her community. A retrospective on diabetes in Eeyou Istchee. In Northern East Cree, French, Southern East Cree, and English.

Emily's mom, the most important person in her life, has diabetes and she's getting sicker by the day. She needs a kidney transplant. Emily wants to donate her kidney but the doctor refuses to take it because Emily has diabetes too. A story about birth, loss, and especially love. In Northern East Cree, French, Southern East Cree, and English.

Fifteen-year-old Jonathan Linton is an elite hockey player, headed for the big leagues, when he gets a diabetes diagnosis. If people find out about it, everything changes. He has to keep it secret. A story about sports, hunting, and difference. In Northern East Cree, French, Southern East Cree, and English.

Jennifer's life is falling apart and she escapes into booze, cocaine, and junk food. When they're not numbing enough, she slits a vein and tries to die but that doesn't work either. She has to try something else. A remarkable story about addiction recovery. In Northern East Cree, French, Southern East Cree, and English.