Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese

A heartbreaking story about a young Canadian Indian, Saul Indian Horse who is "kidnapped" from his birthplace and his family and placed in a boarding school run by mostly cruel nuns and priests. One priest is kind and introduces hockey with the older boys at the school. Saul tends the ice because he is too young to be on the team so he teaches himself to play the game. He loves the game and plays with skill and great joy. Soon enough, he becomes a team member later moving on to a higher level traveling team. However, when he is recruited for a white team, he is continually exposed to the cruelty of the White World that taunts him and cheers the opposition players who attack him regularly on the ice. Tragically, with time, his joy in the game disappears. This particular story reveals in poignant detail, the horrific racism that Indians have endured from the European conquerors that populated Canada, but it is a tragedy that has occurred repeatedly all over the Americas and despite some talented authors describing the horrific treatment has largely been ignored. Young people could really benefit from reading this story, perhaps it would elicit some empathy. Powerful!