Contests of Strength
Melissa Slager
Truth & Story (2025)
ISBN: 979-8991543514
Reviewed by Jennifer Bishop for Reader Views (12/2025)
What would you do if your family were all killed and you had to pretend to be a slave? What if you were trained to be a warrior, but your family asked you to be something else? How would you respond to the expected order of your tribe and people? Contests of Strength by Melissa Slager dives into the history of the Makah people while creating her own story of what might have happened in 1699. She takes facts and ties them into a fictional story about Amuun’axsum and Dushuuw and the struggles they face trying to be who they’re meant to be in a very rigid society.
Slager did an amazing job with this story! Not only did I feel like I was there with the characters, but I felt their anger and pain as well. The descriptions of the types of homes they lived in, as well as the layout of the different settlements, were so interesting. Also, while she did an amazing job at describing everything, it never felt like too much detail. I also really appreciated her trying to add in the actual language throughout the story as well.
It always fascinates me how well native stories are passed down from generation to generation. To hear the way the people remembered the stories of their ancestors and how it tied into life lessons is always so intriguing in its diversity from other cultures. It was also interesting to learn how they would have caught whales back then, as they would not have had our common methods. The teamwork of not just the one crew, but of other groups as well, is something to be admired.
Now, of course, there are darker parts to this story. This was a time when women were very much property to be traded amongst leaders. Also, the way the slaves were taken and treated is also hard. They were very much the lowest members and would be given the worst food, if any, and the worst places to sleep. Also, many times they were the ones accused of things and punished accordingly. There is quite a bit of tragedy woven into this story as well. Not just between potential lovers, but also between family members and friends.
Contests of Strength by Melissa Slager is a well-written, beautiful story based on the Makah Tribe. There is love, loss, war, tragedy, and sheer survival mixed into this story. I would recommend it for a more adult audience as the story can be a bit intense, especially with the violence. However, I only recall minor cursing in the very end of the book, and only kissing is described for romantic scenes. If you love historical fiction and reading about other cultures, I highly recommend picking this book up!