I recently revisited Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, a book I first read nearly twenty years ago when I had just moved to a new city for graduate school. It’s a philosophical novel—a type I don’t typically gravitate to—structured as a conversation between a student and teacher who happen to be a man and a gorilla. At the time, I was navigating life on my own, meeting new people, and was immersed in the curiosity and learning of that phase of life. The book introduced innovate ideas that I had never thought about before, been exposed to, or taught: the modernization of civilization, colonization, and white supremacy. It challenged the myth that humanity is inherently superior to all species. It helped me better understand human’s connection to nature, and our destructive environmental impacts. The ideas shifted and broadened my thinking about our place in the world.
Reading it again now, the book didn’t strike me with the same force. At first, I thought it was because it was different than how I remembered it, but I realized that I am different. My conceptualization has grown and evolved beyond some of the simplified ideas in the book and has become more nuanced. I’ve expanded my understanding of white settler colonialism, gained new knowledge about Indigenous history and culture, and deepened my reverence for the natural world.
My daughters are seven and nine, and I talk openly about these ideas and concepts with them. My oldest daughter is the first to correct anyone who doesn’t classify humans as an animal species just like any other. My youngest can explain the conflicts of celebrating Canada Day because of our country’s colonial history and the impacts of residential schools. The shift that Ishmael once started for me is becoming the foundation in how my children are beginning to see the world. To me, this is the enduring power and influence of words and storytelling.
— Lina Lau is a green tea drinker and writer from Toronto, Canada. Her creative nonfiction has been published in Prairie Fire, carte blanche, River Teeth, Hippocampus, and elsewhere. She writes in the margins of work and parenting, currently focused on a memoir-in-essays exploring themes of identity, motherhood, and intergenerational connection.
You can read Lina Lau's story "Are There Bad Guys in Real Life?" in Issue 304 (Summer Creative Nonfiction 2025). Order the issue now:
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