Visions From the Fire (Dreams, Book 2)

Written by Wanda John-Kehewin

Illustrated by nicole marie burton

Colour by Rhael McGregor 

Lettering by Kielamel Sibal

HighWater Press (Portage & Main)

978-1-77492-065-7

80 pp.

Ages 12+

Releases February 24, 2026 

 

Visions From the Fire starts with a bang. Damon and his classmates are preparing to graduate from high school. And Damon, his mom, and his friend Journey are then heading out to his mom's reserve, which she hasn't visited for fifteen years, for a powwow. And Damon's classmate and bully, Marcus, who'd taunted the teen relentlessly about his Indigenous heritage, has recently learned this his own mother is Cree, part of the Sixties Scoop, though she shrugs it off as "not a big deal." (pg. 2) If that isn't enough happening in Damon's life, then there is the gifting of a bear claw necklace made by his mom that gives him visions of her abandonment on the reserve. He asks her but she doesn't want to talk about it.

What's there to talk about? When stuff hurts, Indians try to forget about it. They bury it deep inside 'til it stops hurting. Counsellors call it suppression. I call it survival. Still not ready, son. (pg. 13)

From Visions From the Fire, written by Wanda John-Kehewin, illustrated by nicole marie burton

Unfortunately, they do have a blow up when Damon's mom inadvertently learns her son has contacted his dad and intends to meet up with him at the powwow. She's angry at him for not trusting her enough to tell her, and he's angry at her for her reaction and trying to control him. It's not a good way to arrive at the reserve. 

 

Soon after, Damon's mom takes off in his car, and he worries she might be drinking and driving. He goes for a walk and meets an older man who seems almost otherworldly, turning rain off and on, making fire of wet wood, and knowing more than Damon thinks he should. 

From Visions From the Fire, written by Wanda John-Kehewin, illustrated by nicole marie burton

But this man is wise, and he has some choice words for Damon about listening instead of talking, about sitting on the fence, and more. When the man is gone, Damon finds the bear claw necklace in his pocket and is transported by vision to see what his mother experienced, what Journey experienced, and even what his ancestors discussed when faced with starvation or signing a treaty.  

When you don't know who you are, life becomes a tough journey. Same for your mother and your father. (46) 

Still, it's what happens afterwards, meeting family he'd never known but who know him and his gifts, attending a sweat lodge, and learning that he has been chosen, that leads Damon into his next story.

From Visions From the Fire, written by Wanda John-Kehewin, illustrated by nicole marie burton

Road trips are often transformative. They give opportunities for discussions either previously avoided or finally deemed necessary. A little thing, like Damon asking his mother why she hated being called, "Ma," opens up a lot about her mother, about Damon's dad and about his mom's relationship with him and with drink. Unfortunately, with the arrogance of youth, Damon goes after his mother, accusing her of trying to control him, never recognizing she knows more than he does about her situation. But this journey is but one step in Damon's exploration of self: where he comes from, and perhaps where he is going. Wanda John-Kehewin, who introduced Damon and Journey and others in Visions of the Crow is taking Damon slowly to where he needs to find himself. And while he sees himself through his experiences and through those of his mother, of Journey, and of others who interact with him, his visions of what has happened to them and his ancestors give him insight into his own actions and needs. This richness of self is embedded in Damon's Cree heritage, especially once he arrives at the reserve in Saskatchewan. From the language—kindly translated as needed—to the cultural traditions like the sweat and the offering of tobacco, Wanda John-Kehewin lets us know that being Cree is part of Damon, though there is still much for him to learn.

From Visions From the Fire, written by Wanda John-Kehewin, illustrated by nicole marie burton

nicole marie burton, who also illustrated Book 1 in the Dreams series (Visions of the Crow, 2023), blends realism with the intangible. Damon is a contemporary teen who listens to his music, goes to school, argues with his mom, and deals with life. But, he sees into the past and into the lives of others, experiencing surreal episodes that nicole marie burton makes believable. They use darkness and textured iridescence to transport the reader to different places and times, convincing us that Damon's vision has shifted. There are hints in the clothing and the scenery, as well as in Wanda John-Kehewin's words, but nicole marie burton shows us without telling us that Damon is going through something cathartic.

 

There is still story to be told, including Damon meeting his father, Damon and Journey's relationship, and Marcus's identification as Cree. But I know that, like Damon's journey, it will happen in due course, with help from those past and present, and be revealed as necessary. Wanda John-Kehewin cares enough to ensure the story is told in its time, making sure that Damon's self-actualization is real, personal, and complete.

 

• • • • • • •

 

Dreams 

 

Visions of the Crow (2023)

Visions From the Fire (2026)

 

Witchlanders

by Lena Coakley

Atheneum Books for Young Readers/Simon & Schuster

978-1-4424-2005-2

400 pp.

Ages 12+

2011

The border between the Witchlands, the home of the Witchlanders, and the Bitterlands, the home of the Baen, seems inconsequential compared to the hostility between the two peoples.  While the fair-haired people who honour the Goddess and the twin prophets Aata and Aayse pay tithes to the witches of the coven, the Baens (reviled as "blackhairs") honour Ka and revere the black magicians, all male.  And now, regardless of the treaty between the Witchlanders and the Baen, a war is brewing.

In the Witchlands, Mabis, mother of Ryder and his younger sisters Skyla and Pima, is known for throwing the bones and using maiden's woe to assist her with visions.  Though she speaks of an assassin coming from across the border (but tells the coven that a monster would come out of the ground and swallow whole farms), Mabis cannot summon the witches to action.   In fact, when human-like monsters made of dirt destroy their farm, and the witches blame Mabis, Ryder is determined to cross the border and find the Baen who has started the troubles. 

Meanwhile, in the Bitterlands, another young man, Falpian, has been sent away by his father instead of preparing for battle with the other men.  Though he is told to continue his mourning for his twin brother Farien and prepare himself for a mission detailed in a scroll, Falpian suspects it has more to do with Father's disappointment in his inability to work magic with song.  Surprisingly, Falpian locates an ancient stone from which he is able to sing, ostensibly harmonizing with his echo, and make magic.

When Falpian discovers an unconscious Ryder, the two young men attempt to resolve the discrepancy between what they each know of the other's people and their affinity to each other.  This discrepancy continues to spur Falpian and Ryder through assassination attempts, deceptions, attacks by the dirt monsters, capture, rescue and confusion, learning that all is not what it seems or has been portrayed.

Lena Coakley has created a phantasmagorical world of people rife with prejudices and bitterness borne of history and manipulation.  Although magic is created with harmonizing song, their land growing hicca and maiden's woe, and their societies based on unique features, the characters are sadly familiar to our own.  And, even though Falpian finally relents that "There are no sides" (pg. 377), the nature of the conflict in Witchlanders unravels and regenerates both in familiar and unexpected ways.  Though Lena Coakley has not confirmed a sequel to Witchlanders, its final scene serves to achieve a gratifying conclusion while setting up the premise upon which a promising sequel can build.

A great book trailer for Witchlanders uploaded by Lena Coakley to YouTube on July 12, 2011 can be seen on CanLit for LittleCanadians Book Trailers here.