That we can learn from them and live in harmony without forcing them to become more like us. I feel like I’m digressing a lot here and should probably get back on track, but I guess what I’m trying to say is that sometimes books and even, yes, Disney movies can teach us much about acceptance of other cultures and people. There is no glory in the ‘finding’ or the ‘conquering’ of America. To watch, or read about people, my own ancestors somewhere down the line who attacked and killed people, stole their land and possessions, built towns on their burial grounds, desecrated their sacred places, and had the affront to call them the savages, makes me ashamed to be a white British person. But what we must remember is that before Hitler’s horrific attacks against the Jewish people, the English were just as bad. Shame.Ī lot is said about the bad people of history. Yes it’s romanticised but we all know animals and trees do not speak and raccoons do not braid hair.īut It is a children’s film and what I took from it most of all, is what I took from Celia Rees’ acclaimed novels Witch Child & Sorceress. The natural way of living, the interaction with animals and plants, the culture, laws and customs. But it is my favourite because of the beauty of life it shows.

It is criticised for its historical inaccuracy and its romanticising of the terrible wrongs done to the indigenous people of Native America. Pocahontas, was, and remains one of my favourite Disney movies. The adventure of the child Mary Newbury escaping across the country, hounded as a witch in both England and America, followed by ancestors who could turn into animals and rescued by the Native Indian people who took her in as their own. I’m really glad I did.Īs a 12 year old girl my fascination was with the magic the books enthralled me with. They remain among some of my favourite books from my childhood and a recent bout of nostalgia convinced me to read them again 15 years later. I first read these two books when I was about 12-13 years old.

Sorceress by celia rees