This book presents insights on how “helping professions” affect Aboriginal peoples. It looks at how helping professions have not done enough to meet the needs of Aboriginal people. This is the outcome of inadequate attempts to include the opinions and traditions of the Indigenous people. The sharing circle is an Aboriginal way of helping that is covered thoroughly in this book. The author outlines the different situations in which this technique could be used to direct practices with people, families, and groups.

I loved how the book was informative, without an information overload, and also included personal anecdotes, stories, and case examples. Each anecdote/story included was significant in its own way. This book was eye-opening and taught me about things that I wasn’t aware of before, including a few Indigenous terms. However, I do wish that a pronunciation guide was included. One thing that the book was especially focused on was sharing circles, a practice often used by many Aboriginal helpers. It went in-depth into how they’re conducted, various people’s experiences with them, and more. I really enjoyed learning more about the sharing circle, its cultural importance, and its power to unite people.

This book was well-written. It seems like there was a lot of effort that went into this book. Other than the sharing and healing circles, the book discussed many other topics such as ontological imperialism, the Medicine Wheel, expropriation, and decolonizing social work. I felt like this book did a fantastic job of bringing attention to important subjects. Many readers can learn from this book.

This was an enlightening book, and I highly recommend this meaningful and informative read. This is the perfect read for those looking to learn more about sharing circles and other Indigenous foundations. Those pursuing “helping professions” such as social work could also benefit by reading this book.