Lessons from the Land of Enchantment

Carolyn is growing up in an upper-middle class, suburban school district, with very little diversity. With her father being a teacher, she does not need to worry about being uprooted like her friends who have engineers as fathers and can easily be relocated. Her world is rocked one night when her parents announce that her father is taking a sabbatical and the family is moving to New Mexico for a school year. They will live on the campus of a Navajo boarding school run by the Methodist Church. in a town nicknamed "Selma of the Southwest". While there, Carolyn's life is changed in ways she could never imagine. She learns about the history of Native American boarding schools, the racism in town, and is immersed in the early stages of positive changes and develops friendships that will last a lifetime.

This historical fiction book is based on situations that really did occur. Some people asked that names be changed, others asked that their real names be used. Over the last few years, many of the atrocities related to Native American boarding schools have made headlines both in the United States and in Canada. This story takes place in the late 1970s at a school that taught Navajo language, had Navajo teachers, brought in Navajo guest speakers, and required all students go home every weekend to maintain family ties and cultural identities. Students were encouraged to embrace their culture and share it with the staff of the school.