Who is Ned Begay? Where does his name come from? Why is Begay a common sir name for many students of the type of boarding school Ned attended? What was one of the most common first names? Why did Ned go to boarding school? What was he to learn? What does Ned learn?

What are the boarding schools, such as the one described in this book? What are their purpose? Why do they discourage the children from speaking their native language? What did they do to ensure these children did not speak their native language? For what reason? How did many of the children react to these rules? What happened to them?

Why did white people have such a poor opinion of the Indians during the time period in which this novel is set? What might have led to this opinion? Was this opinion...