Non-Fiction

A New Vision Guiding Aboriginal Literacy is the follow-up to Vision Guiding Native Literacy that was published over a dozen years ago. This book will explore themes and criteria for best practices that many have found contribute to success in literacy for Aboriginal learners across Canada. It highlights some unique definitions of Aboriginal literacy that have been developed by different groups and projects across Canada.

By providing examples of successful literacy initiatives and factors that have contributed to their success, other literacy workers can use this information to start a new literacy program in their own community or try new tactics within an existing program.

Both a tribute to the unique experiences of individual Native Americans and a celebration of the values that draw American Indians together, All Indians Do Not Live in Teepees (or Casinos) explores contemporary Native life.

Based on personal experience and grounded in journalism, this story begins with the repatriation of ancestral remains to the Pueblo peoples of New Mexico. The 1999 return to Pecos of the skeletal remains of two thousand bodies excavated during an archaeological expedition nearly a century earlier was the largest repatriation in American history. In a united, purposeful, and energizing quest, the Pecos and Jemez Indians brought their ancestors home. This event, along with subsequent repatriations, has accelerated similar momentum across much of Native America.

In All Indians Do Not Live in Teepees (or Casinos), Catherine C. Robbins traces this restorative effect in areas such as economic development, urbanization, the arts, science, and health care. Through dozens of interviews, Robbins draws out the voices of Indian people, some well-known and many at the grassroots level, working quietly to advance their communities. These voices speak against the background of the narrative’s historical context. The result is a rich account of Native American life in contemporary America, revealing not a monolithic “Indian” experience of teepees or casinos, but rather a mosaic of diverse peoples existing on a continuum that marks both their distinctions and their shared realities.

In every walk of Canadian lifefrom business to education to the everydaythe reality is that increasingly you will be in contact with Anishnaabe World. Knowing something about Aboriginal people and their reality not only gives you an advantage over those who dont, its just plain polite in this country now called Canada.

In the spirit of Thomas King, Drew Hayden Taylor and Tomson Highway, Roger Spielmanns Anishnaabe World is an irreverent, teasing, hilarious, yet cross-culturally astute Survival Guide for Canadians increasingly aware of our countrys chequered past relations between Natives and non-Natives. Chief Ovide Mercredi says I challenge the reader to really listen to what Roger Spielmanns saying.

Early in his career, Judge John Reilly did everything by the book. His jurisdiction included a First Nations community plagued by suicide, addiction, poverty, violence and corruption. He steadily handed out prison sentences with little regard for long-term consequences and even less knowledge as to why crime was so rampant on the reserve in the first place.

In an unprecedented move that pitted him against his superiors, the legal system he was part of, and one of Canada's best-known Indian chiefs, the Reverend Dr. Chief John Snow, Judge Reilly ordered an investigation into the tragic and corrupt conditions on the reserve. A flurry of media attention ensued. Some labelled him a racist; others thought he should be removed from his post, claiming he had lost his objectivity. But many on the Stoney Reserve hailed him a hero as he attempted to uncover the dark challenges and difficult history many First Nations communities face.

At a time when government is proposing new tough on crime legislation, Judge Reilly provides an enlightening and timely perspective. He shows us why harsher punishments for offenders don't necessarily make our societies safer, why the white justice system is failing First Nations communities, why jail time is not the cure-all answer some think it to be, and how corruption continues to plague tribal leadership.

Behind Closed Doors features written testimonials from 32 individuals who attended the Kamloops Indian Residential School. The school was one of many infamous residential schools that operated from 1893 to 1979. The storytellers remember and share with us their stolen time at the school; many stories are told through courageous tears.

Northwest Coast peoples were maritime engineers who mastered the art of building dugout canoes from gigantic red cedars, using only tools made from bone, stone, and wood. Ubiquitous, these elegant craft were used for everyday and ceremonial purposes, for fishing, hunting and trading, for feasting and potlatching, and in warfare—they were the keys that unlocked the treasure chest of the North Pacific.

Bill Reid and the Haida Canoe tells the story of the Northwest Canoe from its zenith in pre-contact times, through its decline in the late nineteenth century, to its revival in Lootaas (Wave Eater) which Bill Reid built for Expo '86, to its culmination with the Tribal Canoe Journeys of the twenty-first century and The Spirit of Haida Gwaii sculptures. Bill Reid expressed awe for the traditional Haida canoe and what it represents visually, symbolically, and culturally. In his words, "Western art starts with the figure—West Coast Indian art starts with the canoe."

The successive journeys of Lootaas were significant stages in Bill Reid's work, which culminated with the iconic sculpture The Spirit of Haida Gwaii, a monumental bronze canoe filled to overflowing with creatures of Haida mythology (currently featured on the Canadian twenty-dollar bill). As a final creative act Bill Reid requested that, at the end of his life, his ashes be transported in Lootaas paddled by a crew of his Haida friends and relatives to Tanu, his grandmother's village in Gwaii Haanas.

The story is told through writings and artworks by Bill Reid, vivid photographs by Phillip Hersee, Ulli Steltzer, Robert Semeniuk and others, texts by James Raffan, Martine J. Reid, and Mike Robinson and first-hand accounts by First Nations paddlers.

Bill Reid and the Haida Canoe is a companion book to the Bill Reid and the Haida Canoe exhibition mounted by the Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art and touring to the Canadian Canoe Museum in Peterborough, Ontario.

B.C. Science Supplementary Resource: Gr.3- Physical Science

This well-illustrated guidebook includes the history of totem-pole carving and its West Coast native traditions, techniques and patterns. It examines the historic and modern tools involved. And it also presents great ideas for carving a totem pole, whether with traditional designs or more personal motifs.

From the giant cedar of the rainforest came a wealth of raw materials vital to the way of life, art and culture of the early First Nations people of the Northwest Coast.

All parts of the cedar tree had many uses. From the wood, skilled men made ocean-going canoes, massive post-and-beam houses, monumental carved poles that declared history, rights and lineage, and powerful dance masks. Women dexterously wove the inner bark into mats and baskets, plied it into cordage and netting or processed it into soft, warm, water-repellent clothing. They also made the strong withes into heavy-duty rope and wove the roots into watertight baskets.

Hilary Stewart explains, through her vivid descriptions, 550 detailed drawings and 50 photographs, the tools and techniques used, as well as the superbly crafted objects and their uses, all in the context of daily and ceremonial life. Anecdotes, oral history and the accounts of early explorers, traders, missionaries and native elders highlight the text.

For many years, archaeologists were unaware of the ancient clam terraces at Waiatt Bay, on Quadra Island. Author Judith Williams knew no differently until she was advised of their existence by a Klahoose elder named Elizabeth Harry (Keekus). By liaising with other observers of clam gardens in the Broughton Archipelago and conducting her own survey of Waiatt Bay and Gorge Harbour on Cortes Island, Williams has amassed evidence that the rock structures seen only at the lowest tides were used by native peoples for the purpose of cultivating butter clams.

Her research does much to challenge the notion of pre–contact West Coast indigenous peoples and hunters–gatherers alone. The clam gardens whose existence she reveals here might also be unique in the world.

Written by a marine biologist and illustrated in colour by a prizewinning underwater photographer, Coastal Fishes of the Pacific Northwest identifies each fish by its common name and is illustrated with full-colour photographs and labelled sketches.

Special sections present catching tips for anglers and commercial fishermen; location hints for divers, beachcombers and pleasure boaters; and cooking ideas for seafood gourmets. The information included in these sections provides a brief but detailed description of each fish’s habitat, physical characteristics and behaviour—everything that a fisherman or an amateur naturalist needs to know!

Creations from the Heart provides interesting and straightforward “how-to” learning activities. It is designed for Ontario’s Literacy and Basic Skills (LBS) Level 3, though many of the activities can be modified to suit any level. They encourage growth by providing opportunities to observe, think and practice.

You can complete any of the exercises that pertain to your training plan. In addition, the crafts and the Learning Challenges can be a springboard for many other questions, research and literacy learning that practitioners and students may want to develop.

Creations from the Heart is divided into two books—The Crafts, Learning Challenges and Exercises and a separate Educator’s Guide.

The crafts can be done by one individual student or any size group.

Craft activities have always been a good way to encourage interactive learning, and this book provides helpful ways to incorporate the learner’s familiarity into practical everyday use.

Sessions derived from this work may be altered to suit group or individual needs. This publication addresses the needs of learners who express a desire to pursue cultural awareness as a goal.

This educator’s guide provides the answers to the craft based learning activities found in the accompanying Creations from the Heart workbook. The guide also includes the literacy learning demonstrations for the exercises.

The first of a series, this book contains the three full-size colour cross-stitch patterns from the West, Mid, and North Coast shown on the front cover. Patterns are full size and are approximately 37 cm x 27 cm (14" x 11") with each based on accurate, tradional designs. Also included is a First Nations area map, Aboriginal art within a cultural context, Aboriginal designs used in cross stitch explanation, illustrated cross stitch instructions.
Soft cover, 8 1/2" x 11", 36 pages.

10 Abbildungen von Bekanten Gebrauchsgegenstaenden und 19 Wappen-Zeichnungen der Pazifischen Nordwestkuesten-Indianer mit Erklaerungen zu ihren Bedeutungen und ueberlieferten Legenden. Beschreibungen von 7 traditionellen Musterteilen und ihren verschiedenen Variationen. 112 farbige Abbildungen und photos. 16.5 cm x 21.5 cm, 64 Seiten.

From popular author Jamie Cloud Eakin comes a fantastic all-around bead-embroidery guidebook. Modeled on Eakin's acclaimed Beading with Cabochons, Dimensional Bead Embroidery shows beaders how to use old stitches in new ways and lays out boundary-breaking techniques for embroidering beads onto a base fabric with beaded bezels. Focusing especially on cabochons and large, eye-catching focal beads, the book covers decorative stitches such as fringes, picots, and rope edging. Nine illustrated projects include bracelets, necklaces, earrings, a brooch, and a purse. The book includes a gallery of bead-embroidered jewelry from a variety of artists.