Review of The Bingo Palace by Louise Erdrich, Part 2, Summary

The novel “The Bingo Palace” takes place on a Chippewa reservation in North Dakota in the present time. It was written in 1994 by Louise Erdrich.

The book is the end of a series of four and it combines many issues already mentioned in the three other novels.

Lipsha Morrisey, a young Chippewa returns to the reservation and falls in love with a woman, Shawnee Ray Toose, who is said to get married to another man, his uncle Lyman Lamartine. While both men fight for her, the only thing she wants to do is to study at a university.

Beside the aspect of love, gambling or game of chance is very important. Lyman Lamartine, an owner of a game room, wants to build a bingo palace on the traditional land of Fleur Pillager, Lipsha’s great-grandmother.

As the title already says the main issue regarding the novel is the game of chance, especially bingo.

Gambling is an often discussed matter all over the world and illegal in the United States of America. But Indian (Native American) reservations are separate and under U.S. law independent nations and that is why they are untouchable from regulations under the law. This also includes playing for money.

In 1988, the United States congress passed the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act which means that the Indian tribes are allowed to establish gambling on their reservation as long as the state in which they are located has some form of legalized game of chance.

So gambling is a very secure income for Native Americans and one can understand that they make use of it. You just have to look at Las Vegas or Reno and you see that you can make much money in this trade.

No question that Lyman Lamartine, the owner of a gambling room on the Chippewa reservation is “an island of have in a sea of have-nots”.

His gambling room is a connection for the Chippewa Indians.

For example Lulu Lamartine, Lipsha’s grandmother, plays bingo in Lyman’s bar on a regular basis, while Zelda Kashpaw, Lipsha’s aunt, only comes there if she gets annoyed in life just to sit and disapprove of her surroundings. It is the place to meet, talk, play and drink.

But this includes only the tribe and does not go much beyond the border. So Lyman wants to open a bingo palace on traditional land which belongs to Fleur Pillager and is linked to the past. He wants to lure tourists and Americans and earn more money for himself and the tribe that way.

That leads to the conflict of trying to secure traditions but to also survive financially. On the one hand, the reservation needs the money but on the other hand, tradition is very important for the Chippewa.

“Land is the only thing that lasts to life. Money burns like tinder, flows off like water, and as the government’s promises, the wind is steadier.” Fleur Pillager

For Lyman money makes pleasant but Lipsha thinks “money’s dead stuff”. Another reason for him not to want the bingo hall being built is that he is related to Fleur Pillager who owns the land.

Since Fleur Pillager leaves her place at the end of the novel the Bingo Palace is opened on her former land.

The game of chance is not the prettiest or the nicest way to make money, but it is the easiest and the one available right now.

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Review of The Bingo Palace by Louise Erdrich, Part 1, Introduction

Review of The Bingo Palace by Louise Erdrich, Part 3, Job Situation

Review of The Bingo Palace by Louise Erdrich, Part 4, Situation of Women in The Tribe

Review of The Bingo Palace by Louise Erdrich, Part 5, Marriages