This Town Sleeps

Grit, beauty, magic, and mystery combine

Ojibwe author Dennis Staples explores the ways culture, family, and location have shaped generations of residents of an Ojibwe reservation in Northern Minnesota. Marion Lafournier, finds himself back home in a small town and in a relationship with a closeted white man. He’s also somehow tied to a spirit dog who points him in the direction of the grave of Kayden Kelliher—a high school basketball star he barely knew before the young man was murdered twelve years before. The mystery and relationship allow Staples to explore the complexities of the community—through storytelling, flashbacks, and more. He packs this short novel with so much to think about.