Dennis E. Staples: Passing Through a Prairie Country

Join us as we welcome author Dennis E. Staples to discuss and read from his new novel, Passing Through A Prairie Country.

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ABOUT PASSING THROUGH A PRAIRIE COUNTRY

A darkly humorous thriller about the ghosts that haunt the temples of excess we call casinos, and the people caught in their high-stakes, low-odds web.
For decades, a dark force has terrorized the Languille Lake reservation. Spoken of only in whispers as “the sandman,” he lurks in the Hidden Atlantis Lake Resort and Casino, the reservation’s main attraction and source of revenue, leeching its patrons’ dreams and preventing the ghosts that linger there from moving on. Fleeing a breakup, Marion Lafournier, a midtwenties Ojibwe, seeks solace in the slot machine’s siren song. Here he falls afoul of the sandman, an encounter he barely escapes through the timely intervention of his cousins Alana and Cherie, who both work at the casino and are intimately aware of the sandman’s power. Meanwhile, Glenn Nielan, recently out of the closet and an aspiring documentarian, hopes to capture the faces of the Ojibwe land while experiencing the casino’s thrills. But he will learn that all who choose to play the sandman’s games are in danger of falling into his grasp.
Marion and Alana are members of the Bullhead clan, a family with ties to a sacred past and a fierce determination to ensure their future. Alana, with her sevenfire sight, is the only person to fully understand the danger the sandman poses. Aware of Marion’s occasional ability to navigate the spirit world, she enlists his aid in defeating this wraith. But the power and reach of the sandman go far beyond Alana’s worst fears. Soon she and Marion find themselves in a battle for their lives and for the souls of the reservation’s residents, both the living and the dead.

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“Ojibwe writer Dennis E. Staples’ blend of suspense, comedy and thrills is perfect for fans of Reservation Dogs and Stephen Graham Jones.” — Lizz Schumer, People
“Illuminates how a community attempts to cope with ancestral trauma. This is worth a look.” —Publishers Weekly
“The sense of timelessness and multiple points of view add to the novel’s chaotic suspense, giving readers the impression they’re trapped in an episode of Twin Peaks. This is a quick and unique read sure to appeal to thriller fans who also enjoy gothic horror.” —Booklist
“Taking readers on a journey through the lavish Hidden Atlantis Casino, where no clocks hang on the walls, to the timeless realm of mysterious and death-dealing spirits, Dennis E. Staples delivers an otherworldly story that’s haunting, darkly humorous, and chock full of fascinating Native lore.” —Nick Medina, author of Indian Burial Ground

Host or Publisher Birchbark Books and Native Arts