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    Him Standing
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    Him Standing
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    Him Standing
    Ebook80 pages1 hour

    Him Standing

    By Richard Wagamese

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook

    When Lucas Smoke learns the Ojibway art of carving from his grandfather, he proves to be a natural. He can literally make people come to life in wood. Then Lucas's growing reputation attracts a mysterious stranger, who offers him a large advance to carve a spirit mask.
    This mask is to represent the master, but Lucas must find its face in his dreams. As his dreams become more and more disturbing, he feels himself changing. And the mask takes control of his life. Then a chance encounter with an old woman introduces him to the identity of the master. He is an ancient sorcerer named Him Standing, a powerful and dark wizard. The more Lucas works on the mask, the closer Him Standing comes to emerging from the dream world to walk the earth again. What follows is a race against time and the forces of evil in this supernatural thriller.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOrca Book Publishers
    Release dateApr 1, 2013
    ISBN9781459801783
    Author

    Richard Wagamese

    Richard Wagamese, an Ojibway from the Wabaseemoong First Nation in northwestern Ontario, was one of Canada's foremost writers. His acclaimed, bestselling novels included Indian Horse, which was a Canada Reads finalist, winner of the inaugural Burt Award for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Literature, and made into a feature film; and Medicine Walk. He was also the author of acclaimed memoirs, including For Joshua; One Native Life; and One Story, One Song, which won the George Ryga Award for Social Awareness in Literature; as well as a collection of personal reflections, Embers, which received the Bill Duthie Booksellers' Choice Award. He won numerous awards and recognition for his writing, including the National Aboriginal Achievement Award for Media and Communications, the Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prize, the Canada Reads People's Choice Award, and the Writers' Trust of Canada's Matt Cohen Award. Wagamese died on March 10, 2017, in Kamloops, BC.

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    Reviews for Him Standing

    3.5/5

    36 ratings15 reviews

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    • 4/5
      A fun, fast paced book pulling First Nations mythology into modern day city life. This book lives up to its 'quick reads' title. While I was able to identify with the main character, I wish I had had more information about both the other characters. An additional few chapters would help to flesh out this book. I did find this a fun read, and a good idea for a travel book. Recommended.
    • 4/5
      This was a fine little book (really a short story). It was suspenseful and interesting, but very simple in plot and writing. It's like an early-reader chapter book for adults. I think it accomplished what it set out to do.
    • 5/5
      “Him Standing” by Richard Wagamese described an Ojibway boy who learned the art of carving from his grandfather. He naturally made people come to life in wood. He carved a spirit mask that came from his dreams for a mysterious stranger. Spirit mask was representative of the dark shaman who called Him Standing. In his dreams, his grandfather told him about a legend that Him Standing has returned. He had to fight him to prevent the dark force of evil from returning. Finally, he came back to real life with a knife to make something in wood.
      Carving a spooky mask made readers curious. It attracts people with interesting details. There is a struggling battle between light and dark, good and evil. In the case of Lucas Smoke, his grandfather helped him to defeat the dark and evil magic of Him Standing. Narrated with rich world-building and storytelling, the book certainly appeals to readers. It transports the readers into the story, the legend. The story made sense to me. I gained a lot of different feelings through the story. I was nervous and anxious through some parts of the story and satisfied with the ending. The story was really a great read!
      I would recommend this book to LINC students or anyone who enjoys a mysterious story. The book is not only so attractive to readers but also easy to read and suitable for LINC learners.
    • 3/5
      Another in Orca's Rapid Reads series, Wagamese delivers a novella drawing from his own rich Ojibwa heritage, this time sketching the story of a wood carver commissioned to carve a mask. The story which unfolds is a classic power-play between dark and light, good and evil, in this case of a dark shaman who wishes to resurrect an evil shaman of old. Guided by an Ojibwa elder, the carver discovers the power of his own ancestors, and a way to defeat the emergence of an ancient and destructive power.Again, a bit naive in its delivery, and with a definite feeling of being rushed through the story, I felt Wagamese was unable to deliver his usual rich world-building and story-telling ability.Still, a good read, and one which would certainly appeal to a younger audience.
    • 4/5
      Him Standing is definitely more of a novella or a fairly long short story as opposed to a novel. It's only 129 pages long and the margins/print are HUGE so the page count is misleading. This, of course, doesn't impact the quality of the work; it's only a statement about the book itself.Simply put, (and without spoilers) this story details the misadventures of a young woodcarver when he is taken advantage of by an evil shaman. Him Standing reads almost like a myth/fable providing a nice (but brief) glimpse into the richness of the folklore and mythology of the Ojibwe people. The writing style is very straightforward and the pacing is quick providing an easy, easy read. However, Wagamase's simple prose should not be mistaken as being stunted or overly-simplistic. His words seem to accurately reflect the gritty/simple lives of his characters and he does still manage to fit some beautiful passages/imagery into this work.Because the time commitment to read this book is so low and because this story provides a window into a culture that has not received the largest of audiences, I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a nice story.
    • 4/5
      A woodcarver finds himself pulled into the world of spirits after being comissioned to bring a legend to life. An intriguing quick read.
    • 4/5
      If you have read and enjoyed anything by Charles DeLint, you'll probably enjoy this story as well. It's short, barely more than a novella, but it's packed with interest.I did have a few quibbles--the dialogue was a little cheesy at times, and I've have loved some more development on the culture. I believe that the author has a deep understanding of Ojibway culture, but not nearly enough was communicated to me.These are surface flaws in an otherwise compelling read. I could easily see it being adapted into a film--the structure and the characters are already there, and lengthwise it would be a perfect fit. I look forward to further stories from this author.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed this book, and will echo the sentiments of other reviewers in that I really wish it was longer. I found the author's style to be engaging, but he didn't allow enough room in some parts for tension to really build, or for me to become more emotionally invested in the characters or scenes. I'd really like to see this as a full-length novel. I would definitely read more by this author.
    • 4/5
      Despite being a "rapid read", this book hits all the fundamental parts of a good story and progresses at the right pace. Him Standing, written in a first person narrative, felt like a story told in a very traditional sense of storytelling, like the kind of tale that would have been passed down around a campfire long ago. I look forward to reading more of Wagamese's work.
    • 5/5
      I was very excited to hear that I had won this book through the Early Reviewers March contest. I read Indian Horse last year and just finished reading One Native Life a few weeks ago. I am a huge fan on Richard Wagamese now. This book came in the mail yesterday. Since I had just finished reading my previous book I picked it up for my bedtime reading last night. It didn't quite keep me awake but I knew I had to finish it when I woke up. Very powerful story about the forces of good and evil.Lucas is an Ojibway living in some unnamed city (either Toronto or Vancouver would be my guess). He makes his living by doing knife tricks. At least that's what he calls it. This is a fuller explanation:"I can look at a perfect stranger for, like, maybe a minute, then turn around and carve his likeness into a hunk of wood."When a man all dressed in black offers him a substantial amount of money to carve a mask Lucas takes on the job. What Lucas doesn't know is that he is opening a portal into the spirit world. The spirits are both good and evil and the man in black represents an evil shaman who wishes to return to the real world.This isn't a long book. In fact Raven Books bills it as a Rapid Read. And it certainly is that but that doesn't mean it lacks depth. This is a pretty powerful story and I'm sure I'll be thinking about it for a while.
    • 4/5
      HIM STANDING is a short, quirky novella that offers a unique take on urban fantasy. Lucas Smoke, a street-side carver, receives a very expensive commission to produce a spirit mask. Little does he know that in doing so he's about to revive a lost ancient power. HIM STANDING may have been written for easy reading but it's not a story to consume quickly; it's a story to read slowly and reflect on. I was sorry it was such a short book because I wanted more! It's written in an accessible "street" voice but loaded with literary and spiritual references, as well some language play. I found it an eerie, chilling reading experience — and one I enjoyed and will likely revisit. I'm also looking forward to reading more from Richard Wagamese.
    • 3/5
      Richard Wagamese is one of those authors I've wanted to get around to sampling for a while, an Ojibway First Nation writer who has won a number awards for his fiction about Native Americans and Native American themes. When Him Standing appeared on the Early Reviewer list, it seemed like the opportunity. It's a story about a talented young wood carver who is asked to carve a spirit mask and, in doing so, is lured into Native American myth.Unfortunately, I was disappointed in the result, but I can't decide if the difficulty lies with Wagamese — that he's simply not entirely to my taste — or whether making a different selection from his works would be more rewarding. I could feel the presence of a good story, but the actual execution was very shallow.Orca's Rapid Reads program is "for a diverse audience, including ESL students, reluctant readers, adults who struggle with literacy and anyone who wants an[sic] high-interest quick read." I think Wagamese's tale suffered at the hands of that format. This was a story that begged to draw the reader slowly into the world of Ojibway mythos, gently letting him or her explore and taste the non-Western mindset. Instead, the story read almost as a synopsis of a real story, leaving you wanting to go find and read that book.The subject is interesting enough to me that I will try another story by Wagamese one day, one of his longer works that gives him more scope to explore his themes. This one I'll leave for ESL students.
    • 3/5
      What we don't know can hurt us.I blew through this short story during lunch hour. The premise of the tale held me until the very end. Although it is a quick read, it is one steeped in Ojibway culture where every detail is priceless. The seemingly never ending nightmare our hero experiences is frightening to anyone that enjoys lucid dreams. Where we understand little but appreciate the subtleties, you have to ask: who is sending the message? Definitely worth the time to discover interesting myths and legends from the “old ones.”
    • 3/5
      “Him Standing” by Richard Wagamese is an interesting story about a young Native American woodcarver and his brush with the mystical. I enjoyed the story, but felt that the “Rapid Reads” format did not do the book justice. This is a story that would have benefitted from a long, slow burn, rather than a quick, bright flash from start to finish. It seemed that Wagamese, in the editing process, had lost a lot of the story he really wanted to tell, and the final version reads a bit like a book report. I would be interested in reading other works by Wagamese in the future, as long as he’s given more room to stretch his legs.
    • 3/5
      Him Standing by Ojibway writer Richard Wagamese, is part of Orca Books' Rapid Reads series. Their Rapid Reads books are “short novels and non-fiction books for adult readers intended for a diverse audience, including ESL students, reluctant readers, adults who struggle with literacy and anyone who wants a high-interest quick read...(focussing) first and foremost on strong writing and storytelling.” They have hit the mark with Him Standing. In some ways, it is more like a short story and I devoured it on a rainy weekend afternoon. In writing the story of Lucas Smoke and his natural talent of bringing life to the wood he carves, Wagamese tells a story both engaging and engaged. He pits light against dark, creates possibility in the mysteries of the spirit world, and has us quickly turning pages to discover what happens next. Read this book. You won't be disappointed.