121 pages 4 hours read

The Night Watchman

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2020

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Chapters 41-50

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 41 Summary: “The Star Powwow”

Patrice, Zhaanat, and the baby go to Thomas’s house. He has been writing letters to congressmen and the American Legion. Thomas has also scheduled a meeting with the superintendent of the school district about taking on the funding for the reservation school.

Seeking Thomas’s advice, Patrice tells him about the dog and her search for Vera in Minneapolis, though she leaves out her experience as the waterjack. Shocked, he says that they should go to the police. Patrice and Zhaanat are equally surprised by his answer, because:

[t]o seek police assistance for an Indian woman was almost sure to put her in the wrong. No matter what happened, she would be the one blamed and punished. It was for that reason unthinkable to approach the police, and it was disappointing because Thomas trusted their enemies (221-22).

Patrice replies that they need to find another way, and Thomas tells them he will sleep on it, though, after listening, he is not sure he will ever sleep again.

That night, at work, he doesn’t take his briefcase because he knows he will not be able to concentrate on the bill. He feels dread. He cannot fathom the evil that Patrice described at the house in Minneapolis.

Related Titles

By Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

Antelope Woman

Louise Erdrich

Antelope Woman

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

Future Home of the Living God

Louise Erdrich

Future Home of the Living God

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

Love Medicine

Louise Erdrich

Love Medicine

Louise Erdrich

Plot Summary

logo

Shadow Tag

Louise Erdrich

Shadow Tag

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

The Beet Queen

Louise Erdrich

The Beet Queen

Louise Erdrich

Plot Summary

logo

The Bingo Palace

Louise Erdrich

The Bingo Palace

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

The Game of Silence

Louise Erdrich

The Game of Silence

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

The Leap

Louise Erdrich

The Leap

Louise Erdrich

Plot Summary

logo

The Master Butchers Singing Club

Louise Erdrich

The Master Butchers Singing Club

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

The Painted Drum

Louise Erdrich

The Painted Drum

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

The Plague Of Doves

Louise Erdrich

The Plague Of Doves

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

The Red Convertible

Louise Erdrich

The Red Convertible

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

The Round House

Louise Erdrich

The Round House

Louise Erdrich

Study Guide

logo

The Shawl

Louise Erdrich

The Shawl

Louise Erdrich