Hearts Unbroken

Readers first meet Louise at the end of her junior year of high school. The story follows her experiences through Thanksgiving Day of her senior year. Louise attends East Hannesburg High School. She lives with her parents and younger brother Hughie in a suburban subdivision-style neighborhood. Her family moved to East Hannesburg, Kansas in the middle of her junior year from Cedar Park, Texas. Her father’s retirement from the U.S. Army prompted the move. Louise and her immediate family members are Muscogee (Creek) Nation citizens. Louise appreciates and enjoys her high school, her town, and Kansas in general, but she feels strong ties to Oklahoma; she enjoys family trips to Oklahoma to visit extended relatives and attend heritage celebrations.

Louise mentions that though her parents once lived in the Muscogee “tribal community,” she has not: “I’m an urban—make that suburban—Indian” 15). She refers to Oklahoma as “home,” however, and notices how that setting and its surroundings, experiences, and family influence her: “There, I could speak my mind and be understood” (18). Louise’s internal conflict throughout the story centers on learning how to allow her truest personality and identity in everyday experiences and relationships in Kansas. The reader infers that these lessons will prepare Louise for the future.