Firekeeper's Daughter

For fans of Angie Thomas and Tommy Orange, Angeline Boulley's debut novel, Firekeeper's Daughter, is a groundbreaking YA thriller about a Native teen who must root out the corruption in her community.

Eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. She dreams of a fresh start at college, but when family tragedy strikes, Daunis puts her future on hold to look after her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team.

Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into an FBI investigation of a lethal new drug.

Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover, drawing on her knowledge of chemistry and Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down the source. But the search for truth is more complicated than Daunis imagined, exposing secrets and old scars. At the same time, she grows concerned with an investigation that seems more focused on punishing the offenders than protecting the victims.

Now, as the deceptions - and deaths - keep growing, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she’ll go for her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.

These discussion questions were created by the team at We Are Bookish, an editorially independent division of NetGalley LLC and sponsored by Macmillan Children's Publishing Group. A full book club kit can be found here.

Book club questions for Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley

Use these discussion questions to guide your next book club meeting.

Daunis begins every day with a prayer and a morning run. What is the significance of this ritual? What other rituals- both formal and personal does she engage in, and why are they important to her?

How do you think Daunis views her Firekeeper side versus her Fontaine side? Do you think she feels a stronger connection to one side of her family than to the other, and why? Does that change over the course of the novel?

Daunis talks about keeping her various “worlds” separate with clear rules, saying, “My life goes more smoothly when Hockey World and Real World don’t overlap. Same as with my Fontaine and Firekeeper worlds.” What do you think she means by this? What are the ways in which we see Daunis acting to keep her worlds separate? Have you ever felt like you belonged to different worlds? Do you agree it’s easier to keep worlds separate?

Daunis often seeks wisdom and guidance from the Elders. Can you describe the role of the Elders in the Ojibwe community? How does this compare to the role of senior citizens in your community?

Both Daunis and Jamie struggle with their identities Daunis feels pulled between multiple identities, whereas Jamie doesn’t have any sense of where he comes from. What similarities and differences do they have in how they consider their identities?

Aunt Teddie describes a Blanket Party as “Nish kwe justice.” What do you think of this form of justice? What do you think led to the creation of Blanket Parties? How do you think this might influence Daunis’s understanding of justice?

Daunis has many facets to her identity: hockey superstar, science geek, Nish Kwe, Fontaine, and eventually confidential informant. How does each aspect of her identity come into play during her investigation?

Teddie tells Daunis, “Not every Elder is a cultural teacher and not all cultural teachers are Elders. It’s okay to listen to what people say and only hold on to the parts that resonate with you. It’s okay to leave the rest behind. Trust yourself to know the difference.” What do you think Teddie means by this? How does she define the difference between a cultural teacher and an Elder? What does Daunis choose to hold on to from her culture and what does she choose to leave behind?

Describe Daunis’s feelings after she learns that her testimony can’t be used in the court. Why do you believe the author made this choice?

Why did the author choose to end the story on a powwow scene? How does this speak to the themes of the book?

Daunis references the Seven Grandfather teachings, which are Love, Humility, Respect, Honesty, Bravery, Wisdom, and Truth. Can you name specific moments where Daunis is able to embody these teachings? Are there certain characters or moments that help Daunis learn these teachings?

List some of the book’s themes, including identity, community, grief, and justice. What themes stood out most to you, and why? Which theme or themes strike you as being most important to the author? Why?

How is Firekeeper’s Daughter different from other coming-of-age novels? How is it similar?

Why do you think the author called the book Firekeeper’s Daughter? How does it connect to the novel’s themes of legacy and inheritance?

Firekeeper's Daughter Book Club Questions PDF

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