The Theatre of Regret: Literature, Art, and the Politics of Reconciliation in Canada is now available in paperback via UBC Press. Some of the chapters were developed out of writing that I first shared on this blog. For instance the post “Reconciliation: ‘Like an Echo Turned Inside Out'” is the basis of the book’s conclusion, where I expand my reading of Dimaline’s The Marrow Thieves. Chapter 2 begins with a reading of Joshua Whitehead’s amzing Full-Metal Indigiqueer, which I first wrote about in this post.
You can buy it here or order it through your local bookseller.
I’ve included a few kind reviews below. More details on the book are available on the UBC Press website.
…Gaertner argues that it is imperative reconciliation centres Indigenous perspective and creates space for Indigenous voices. The Theatre of Regret does just this with depth and flair…
The Theatre of Regret is a timely book that implores Canadian settlers to look at the uncomfortable truth of the narratives we tell ourselves: the truth of residential schools and the truth of ongoing settler colonialism and violence.
The Theatre of Regret makes a vital contribution to discussions about reconciliation in Canada by foregrounding the importance of Indigenous literatures for engaging, troubling, and, most crucially, speaking far beyond reconciliation’s limits. Gaertner listens deeply to how Indigenous artists speak truths that cannot be unheard and give resonant voice to world-altering ways of living in good relation.
Novel Alliances 