Tim Tingle
Tim Tingle is an enrolled member of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and a frequent speaker at tribal events. His great-great grandfather, John Carnes, walked the Trail of Tears in 1835, and memories of this family epic fuel his writing and telling.
Author of six books, Tingle was a featured speaker at the Native American wing of the Smithsonian Institute in 2006 and 2007. At the 2008 American Library Association Conference in Anaheim, California, he performed on the multi-ethnic concert, “Many Voices, One Nation.” His first book, Walking the Choctaw Road, is a fictional depiction of tribal history covering two centuries, and his upcoming children’s book, Saltypie, is a family tale of 20th century Indian struggles and triumphs. Tingle’s first children’s book, Crossing Bok Chitto, was an Editor’s Choice in the New York Times Book Review and won the 2008 American Indian Youth Literature Award.
Tim has co-authored three books with Doc Moore, Spooky Texas Tales and Texas Ghost Stories: Fifty Favorites for the Telling, both from Texas Tech Press, with More Spooky Texas Tales scheduled for a 2010 release. “The Lady Who Changed,” from Spirits Dark and Light (August House) won 2007 Best Short Story from Storytelling World magazine.
Tingle has also completed eleven speaking tours for the U.S. Department of Defense, performing for children and military personnel in Germany. He currently teaches an onsite summer storytelling course through the university, “Oral Literature of the Southwest.”
Teen Books (6)
Synopsis:
After overcoming years of trouble with his alcoholic father and surviving a near-death car accident, Bobby Byington - for the first time in his life - has a strong family. His parents are reunited, his father has turned away from the bottle, and he is a starter on the basketball team at his high school.
But the door to trouble never stays closed. Bobby's girlfriend, next-door-neighbor Faye, suffers attacks from a bullying classmate, and some of Bobby's basketball teammates are dealing with family problems that are all too familiar to him. Maybe Bobby's old backyard hideout will need to be uncovered again and the door reopened.
Hoping to help his friends, Bobby shares the Choctaw legend of No Name that Coach Robison had told him back when Bobby needed to hide from his father. Who knew Coach's wisdom would become so meaningful to others?
As the playoffs near and the team plays to win, Coach delivers a message that extends well beyond the basketball court: "Your life is carved by the choices you make. You earn your name by your actions."
Educator & Series Information
Reading Level: 2.5
Recommended Ages: 12-16
This is the third book in the No Name series, which is part of the PathFinders series. The PathFinders series of Hi-Lo (high interest, low readability) novels offers the following features:
• Indigenous teen protagonists
• Age appropriate plots
• 2.5 – 4.5 Reading Level
• Contemporary and historical fiction
• Indigenous authors
The PathFinders series is from an American publisher. Therefore, Indigenous terminology in the PathFinders books is not the same as Canadian Indigenous terminology. This prompts a useful teaching moment for educators in discussing appropriate terminology use in Canada. The recommended ages for books in the PathFinders series are 12-16.
Additional Information
160 pages | 4.50" x 7.00"
Synopsis:
Danny Blackgoat is a teenager in 1864 Navajo country when United States soldiers burn down his home, kill his sheep, capture his family, and force them all to walk at gunpoint to an Army fort far from their homeland. This forced exodus of the Navajo people was called the Long Walk of 1864, and during the journey, Danny is labeled a troublemaker and given the name Fire Eye. Refusing to accept captivity, he is sent to Fort Davis, Texas, a Civil War prisoner outpost. There he battles bullying fellow prisoners, rattlesnakes, and abusive soldiers, until he meets Jim Davis. Davis teaches Danny how to hold his anger and starts him on the road to literacy. In a stunning climax, Davis—who builds coffins for the dead—aids Danny in a daring and dangerous escape.
Set in troubled times, Danny Blackgoat, Navajo Prisoner is the story of one boy’s hunger to be free and to be Navajo.
Educator & Series Information
Reading Level: 4.0
This is the first book in the Danny Blackgoat series, which is part of the PathFinders series. The PathFinders series of Hi-Lo (high interest, low readability) novels offers the following features:
• Indigenous teen protagonists
• Age appropriate plots
• 2.5 – 4.5 Reading Level
• Contemporary and historical fiction
• Indigenous authors
The PathFinders series is from an American publisher. Therefore, Indigenous terminology in the PathFinders books is not the same as Canadian Indigenous terminology. This prompts a useful teaching moment for educators in discussing appropriate terminology use in Canada. The recommended ages for books in the PathFinders series are 12-16.
Additional Information
160 pages | 4.50" x 7.00"
Synopsis:
Name Your Mountain continues the exciting No Name Series as the high school basketball team matures and faces new challenges. When the all American Indian team in Trust Your Name enters a national-level tournament, the team travels to big cities and has new experiences, but all is not well. Choctaw Bobby Byington and his new friend, Creek shooting guard Eddie, are torn between struggles on the court and painful episodes back home. With the door of adulthood looming, Coach Robison urges his players to choose the path they want to climb and to "never hesitate--never give up--in your struggle to reach the top."
Reviews
“Refreshingly, the book normalizes male characters’ close friendships and displays of emotion, tying into Tim Tingle’s (Choctaw) mountain metaphor: We encounter challenges every day, but they do not need to be climbed alone. The text uses basketball to emphasize the importance of teamwork both on and off the court. An engaging sports-infused mystery for reluctant readers.”— Kirkus Reviews
“Name Your Mountain continues the story of a Choctaw teenager and his tight-knit basketball team; they help each other through tough games and tougher issues, including parents with alcohol problems and vengeful criminals. Full of action and easy to read, this novel reveals the power of friendships and of careful observations.”— Foreword Reviews
Educator & Series Information
This is the fifth book in the No Name series, which is part of the PathFinders series. The PathFinders series of Hi-Lo (high interest, low readability) novels offers the following features:
• Indigenous teen protagonists
• Age appropriate plots
• 2.5 – 4.5 Reading Level
• Contemporary and historical fiction
• Indigenous authors
The PathFinders series is from an American publisher. Therefore, Indigenous terminology in the PathFinders books is not the same as Canadian Indigenous terminology. This prompts a useful teaching moment for educators in discussing appropriate terminology use in Canada. The recommended ages for books in the PathFinders series are 12-16.
Additional Information
168 pages | 4.50" x 7.00"
Synopsis:
Tim Tingle's first novel in the contemporary No Name series depicts the struggles of Choctaw teen Bobby Byington. A strong-willed and determined high school basketballer, Bobby must carve a path through the dark world of his father's alcoholism and angry nature. In the second book, No More No Name, Bobby's mother returns home, and Bobby's basketball team, galvanized by his impressive shooting skills, begins to win. But trouble looms when his father's cravings resurface "Son, I hope you never fully understand what I'm going through. Every day, every hour, every minute. An owl claws on me from inside my chest. The desire to have one-just one more drink-that is the owl."
Series Information
This is the second book in the No Name series, which is part of the PathFinders series. The PathFinders series of Hi-Lo (high interest, low readability) novels offers the following features:
• Indigenous teen protagonists
• Age appropriate plots
• 2.5 – 4.5 Reading Level
• Contemporary and historical fiction
• Indigenous authors
The PathFinders series is from an American publisher. Therefore, Indigenous terminology in the PathFinders books is not the same as Canadian Indigenous terminology. This prompts a useful teaching moment for educators in discussing appropriate terminology use in Canada. The recommended ages for books in the PathFinders series are 12-16.
Additional Information
168 pages | 4.50" x 7.00"
Synopsis:
Inspired by the traditional Choctaw story "No Name," this modern adaptation features a present-day Choctaw teenager surviving tough family times--his mother splits, leaving him with a mean-spirited, abusive father. The one place the teen can find peace is on the neighborhood basketball court. But after a violent confrontation with his father, the teen runs away, only to return home to find an unexpected hiding spot in his own backyard. His hiding spot becomes his home for weeks, until the help and encouragement of a basketball coach, a Cherokee buddy, and a quiet next-door girlfriend help him to face his father.
Educator & Series Information
Reading Level: 4.0
This is the first book in the No Name series, which is part of the PathFinders series. The PathFinders series of Hi-Lo (high interest, low readability) novels offers the following features:
• Indigenous teen protagonists
• Age appropriate plots
• 2.5 – 4.5 Reading Level
• Contemporary and historical fiction
• Indigenous authors
The PathFinders series is from an American publisher. Therefore, Indigenous terminology in the PathFinders books is not the same as Canadian Indigenous terminology. This prompts a useful teaching moment for educators in discussing appropriate terminology use in Canada. The recommended ages for books in the PathFinders series are 12-16.
Additional Information
168 pages | 4.50" x 7.00"
Synopsis:
After Bobby Byington's unforgettable winning high school season, Coach Robison recruits Choctaw players from several communities to play in a summer league. Coach selects the Panther as the team's mascot, saying, "To many Choctaws, young and old, the Panther is an elder watching over us, helping us when we are in need." As the team gels and they move to the national tournament, they find out they are up against more than other basketball teams. They must deal with racist taunts and unfair sportsmanship on the court. The situation comes to a head when, on the eve of a key game against a bullying opponent, two Choctaw players are arrested for robbery. Never doubting their innocence, Coach Robison asks, "Who can we trust, and how can we find the truth?"
Educator & Series Information
Reading Level: 2.5
Recommended Ages: 12-16
This is the fourth book in the No Name series, which is part of the PathFinders series. The PathFinders series of Hi-Lo (high interest, low readability) novels offers the following features:
• Indigenous teen protagonists
• Age appropriate plots
• 2.5 – 4.5 Reading Level
• Contemporary and historical fiction
• Indigenous authors
The PathFinders series is from an American publisher. Therefore, Indigenous terminology in the PathFinders books is not the same as Canadian Indigenous terminology. This prompts a useful teaching moment for educators in discussing appropriate terminology use in Canada. The recommended ages for books in the PathFinders series are 12-16.
Additional Information
166 pages | 6.00" x 9.00"
Kids Books (4)
Synopsis:
In the 1860s the United States Army forced thousands of Navajos off their land and imprisoned them in unsafe conditions at Fort Sumner. Through the eyes of teenager Danny Blackgoat, readers experience how the Diné people struggled to survive.
In the concluding novel of the Danny Blackgoat trilogy, the major characters appear in a final scene of reckoning. Danny Blackgoat must face the charge of stealing a horse from Fort Davis––or reveal that his old friend, Jim Davis, stole the horse to help Danny escape. The penalty for horse theft in the 1860s? Death by hanging. Only the word of a Navajo woman can save both Danny and Jim Davis, but will she arrive at Fort Sumner before the bugles sound and the hanging begins?
Danny Blackgoat: Dangerous Passage is filled with history-based action, as the Diné people leave their imprisonment and return to Navajo country.
Educator & Series Information
This is the third book in the Danny Blackgoat series, which is part of the PathFinders series. The PathFinders series of Hi-Lo (high interest, low readability) novels offers the following features:
• Indigenous teen protagonists
• Age appropriate plots
• 2.5 – 4.5 Reading Level
• Contemporary and historical fiction
• Indigenous authors
The PathFinders series is from an American publisher. Therefore, Indigenous terminology in the PathFinders books is not the same as Canadian Indigenous terminology. This prompts a useful teaching moment for educators in discussing appropriate terminology use in Canada. The recommended ages for books in the PathFinders series are 12-16.
Additional Information
162 pages | 4.50" x 7.00"
Synopsis:
This second volume of a three-part series continues the dramatic story of Danny Blackgoat, a Navajo teenager who, after being labeled a troublemaker, is taken prisoner during the Long Walk of 1864. Danny escaped from Fort Davis in volume one (Danny Blackgoat, Navajo Prisoner), but he must still face many obstacles in order to rescue his family and find freedom.
Whether it’s soldiers and bandits chasing him or the dangers of the harsh desert climate, Danny ricochets from one bad situation to the next,but his bravery doesn’t falter and he never loses faith.
Educator & Series Information
Like all PathFinders novels for reluctant teen readers, this contemporary story is by a Native American author, features a linear plot, and is written at a 4.0 to 4.5 reading level.
This is the second book in the Danny Blackgoat series, which is part of the PathFinders series. The PathFinders series of Hi-Lo (high interest, low readability) novels offers the following features:
• Indigenous teen protagonists
• Age appropriate plots
• 2.5 – 4.5 Reading Level
• Contemporary and historical fiction
• Indigenous authors
The PathFinders series is from an American publisher. Therefore, Indigenous terminology in the PathFinders books is not the same as Canadian Indigenous terminology. This prompts a useful teaching moment for educators in discussing appropriate terminology use in Canada. The recommended ages for books in the PathFinders series are 12-16.
Additional Information
144 pages | 4.50" x 7.00"
Synopsis:
A Choctaw boy tells the story of his tribe’s removal from its Mississippi homeland, and how its exodus to the American West led him to become a ghost — one able to help those left behind.
Educator & Series Information
This is the first book in the How I Became a Ghost Series by Tim Tingle.
Recommended for ages 9 to 12.
Additional Information
148 pages | 5.50" x 8.50"
Synopsis:
Ten-year-old Isaac, now a ghost, continues with his people as they walk the Choctaw Trail of Tears headed to Indian Territory in what will one day become Oklahoma. There have been surprises aplenty on their trek, but now Isaac and his three Choctaw comrades learn they can time travel. The foursome heads back in time to Washington, D.C., to bear witness for Choctaw Chief Pushmataha who has come to the nation's capital at the invitation of Andrew Jackson.
Educator & Series Information
This is the second book in the How I Became a Ghost series by Tim Tingle.
Recommended for ages 9 to 12.
Additional Information
200 pages | 5.50" x 8.50"
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