Louise Erdich has written poetry and children's books, as well as a number of novels. She is also the owner of an independent bookstore in Minnesota. The Plague of Doves is about the people who live in and around he small town of Pluto on the edge of an Ojibwe reservation.

Evelina tells part of the story. The title of the book comes from a tale about the time in 1896 when numbers of doves descended and ate the crops. During this "plague," Evelina's grandfather, then a young boy, is struck by one of the birds and falls. A girl, having fallen behind the others who were trying to drive the doves away, kneels to wipe the blood from his face. They "escape" together, and it is years before they return to their people.

Evelina weaves the stories that her grandfather, Mooshum, tells with her own experiences. She and her brother grow up among a group of eccentric and delightful family members. Mooshum and her great uncle enjoy their alcohol, and bait the local priest with practical jokes. Evelina decides that she is in love with Corwin until he kisses her and then she feels betrayed when he talks about it.

She is not the only narrator. Judge Antone Bazil Coutts also takes a turn. He visits Shamengwa, an old man who plays the fiddle in a magical way. The Judge reports a little on the Ojibwe customs and language. When the fiddle is stolen, the Judge hears that Corwin is the culprit. He sentences the young man to serve Shamenga and to learn to play the precious violin.

Meanwhile, Evelina is growing up, and the stories entangle. The Judge has been having an affair with an older woman. The people are still remembering the terrible time when five members of a white family were murdered, and a lynch mob hanged three Indians and a boy who happened to be nearby. The real murderer goes unpunished. A baby survives, as does another Indian boy. As the novel comes to a close, some of the long-held secrets are revealed.

The Plague of Doves is available at the Mary Willis Library.