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The Chief
Nam Williams is a young Two-Spirit Indigenous person living with their uncle, the Chief, in a decrepit house in the Canadian wilderness. Nam is the only member of the household who is upfront with Rose about the Chief and his Wives and their communal madness. The Chief frequently steals Nam’s dreams and touts them as visions for his followers, and he has abused Nam in the past. Nam enjoys comic books and longs for true community, which they find with Rose. Nam helps Rose and Derrick escape by drugging the Wives and killing the Chief before their departure. Nam worries Derrick and Rose will learn what they have done and reject them.
Nam Williams Quotes in Hunting by Stars
The Hunting by Stars quotes below are all either spoken by Nam Williams or refer to Nam Williams. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Chapter 21 Quotes
“It’s about hope.”
“Hope?”
They placed the cup on the floor and sat on the edge of the mattress. “People can’t dream because their way of life is gone and they can’t accept it. They lived through pandemics, but they didn’t not really. He wants to give them hope that there is a different way.”
“What does that have to do with us?”
“We are the different way.”
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Chapter 28 Quotes
“He brought in a family. The day before yesterday. Two people. A woman and a little girl.”
“No. No!” Rose was shouting. “He wouldn’t. He couldn’t!”
Derrick ran to grab her, squeezing her tight, trying to get her to shut up. “Come on, Rose, be quiet. You’re going to get us all taken in.”
“I’m sorry, but it’s true. Seven years old. They’re going through processing now,” Alice finished.
Now Rose was crying for real. She thrashed in Derrick’s grip and broke free.
“He would not, he just—”
“Rose.” Derrick was as gentle as he could be while trying to shush her. “What would you do? What would any of us do, really?”
“Not that!” she screamed. The sound of her own voice echoing in the shadows shocked her to quiet and then to action. She gathered herself and took off into the trees before another word could be spoken.
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Chapter 40 Quotes
“Doesn’t it kind of feel like they won? They chased us out of the country, for god’s sake. And now we’re down here.”
“That isn’t our border.” Miig gestured north. “That’s an imaginary line drawn by politicians and land prospectors. The only thing we have to worry about is who the original people are so we can honor the lands we are on. And if we do that, remember to keep doing that, they don’t win. They never win when we remember.”
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Nam Williams Character Timeline in Hunting by Stars
The timeline below shows where the character Nam Williams appears in Hunting by Stars. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 16
...she ducks down. One of them coughs. Peeking again, she sees a young Native person (Nam) and a shirtless Native man (the Chief). Rose knows that being Indigenous doesn’t necessarily mean...
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...thanks the man (the Chief) for providing for them. She also thanks her sisters and Nam (the young Indigenous person). Owl appeals to Grandmother Moon and hopes she will soon become...
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The young Indigenous person (Nam) helps Rose carry Derrick into the house. The Chief pulls Rose’s curly hair and asks...
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Chapter 18
...his own gifts as a spiritual healer. The women—his “Wives”—mostly lounge around. Left alone with Nam, the Indigenous teen, Rose questions them, introducing herself with she/her pronouns. The Chief is Nam’s...
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According to Nam, the Chief really does have antibiotics he stole from the reservation’s health center. Derrick only...
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Chapter 21
...were caught talking, the Chief and his Wives knocked Rose unconscious. She calls out for Nam, who brings her water, looking ashamed. Rose tries to win them to her side, saying...
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Nam comes every day to siphon Rose’s blood. The Wives and the Chief tried doing it,...
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...long-term supply of blood. While the Chief and the Wives are consuming blood one evening, Nam hears the Chief planning to impregnate Rose, since Cardinal has miscarried again. When a Wife...
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Chapter 22
The narrative shifts to Nam’s perspective as they and Rose make their way through the quiet house. The Wives are...
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Nam recalls how the Chief (who they called “Uncle Bear”) used to sneak into their bedroom...
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Chapter 28
Rose, Derrick, and Nam make their way toward the school. Derrick is still healing, which slows their progress, and...
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...black-clad figures jump out of the bush, grabbing Derrick’s gun and holding a knife to Nam’s throat. Urging everyone to stay calm, the figures—two women—ask who they are. Exhausted, Rose admits...
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...seven-year-old girl (Sunny). Upset, Rose accuses her of lying and then runs away. Derrick and Nam thank the women and follow Rose, eventually catching up, though she won’t speak to them....
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Chapter 30
...daughter. Rose remembers her parents being taken by Recruiters—the last time she was anyone’s daughter. Nam implies they will go where Rose goes: she is their family.
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Chapter 38
...Rose leaves Derrick brokenhearted, needing to find her family. She gathers supplies and sets out. Nam follows, despite Rose’s protests: they want to stay with her. Rose and Nam walk south...
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That night, Nam is frustrated with Rose for deciding the boy wasn’t worth the risk without consulting them....
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In the morning, Donovan loads Rose and Nam into his truck’s false bottom, piling crates of produce on top. At one point during...
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Chapter 39
...by what she almost had to do to save her baby from a brutal fate. Nam has stolen a truck from the house and picks them up. The family piles in....
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Chapter 40
...use up the truck’s spare gas can, then walk. The landscape is flat and open. Nam feels like the Recruiters have won by chasing them out of Canada. Miig disagrees, saying...
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...her eyes off the baby. Frenchie takes first watch while the others set up camp. Nam shares a packet of dry noodles with everyone. Frenchie watches Rose, cherishing her movements. He...
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