i heard a crow before i was born.
i heard tsó:ka'we before i was born.

i heard a crow before i was born opens with a dream-memory that transforms into a stark, poetic reflection on the generational trauma faced by many Indigenous families. Jules Delorme was born to resentful and abusive parents, in a world in which he never felt he belonged. Yet, buoyed by the love shown to him by his tóta (grandmother) and his many animal protectors, Delorme gained the strength to reckon with his brutal childhood, which he recounts in this transformative and evocative memoir.

Across chapters that tell of his troubled relationships, Delorme unwraps the pain at the centre of his own story: the residential schools and the aftershocks that continue to reverberate.

In a stunning testament to the power of storytelling — to help us grieve and to help us survive — Delorme tells the story of his spirit walk as he honestly and fearlessly embraces his painful past, the abuse he endured, and the contradictions of his identity. Writes Delorme, "i heard a crow before i was born is a man looking back, and dreaming back, and seeing that, life, in whatever form it takes, however harsh it might seem, is beautiful." (From Goose Lane Editions)

Jules Delorme is a neurodivergent Kanien'kehá:ka writer who grew up on the Akwesasne Reserve near Cornwall, Ontario. His other books are faller and Ahshiá:ton (You Should Write It). He is based in Toronto.