Biographies

Horses in the Sand is a collection of stories that document a queer woman's journey from her sparse beginnings as a child to becoming a tradeswoman, teacher, and artist. With courage, humour, and frank honesty, the stories describe what it was like to grow up as a girl who was starkly different from "normal" and how "coming out" became a lifelong process of self-acceptance and changing identities. The stories also speak to the difficulties in participating in and maintaining healthy adult relationships when childhood beginnings are rooted in violence and trauma, and end with a triumphant account of fulfilling a long-time dream of buying land and building a home with her own hands. Ultimately, the memoir is a celebration of making art, telling stories, and of finding her birth father, a family of half-siblings, and an Indigenous community whose presence she had always felt, but never knew she belonged to.

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260 pages | 5.50" x 8.25" | Paperback

Born at a traditional Inuit camp in what is now Nunavut, Joan Scottie has spent decades protecting the Inuit hunting way of life, most famously with her long battle against the uranium mining industry. Twice, Scottie and her community of Baker Lake successfully stopped a proposed uranium mine. Working with geographer Warren Bernauer and social scientist Jack Hicks, Scottie here tells the history of her community’s decades-long fight against uranium mining.

Scottie's I Will Live for Both of Us is a reflection on recent political and environmental history and a call for a future in which Inuit traditional laws and values are respected and upheld. Drawing on Scottie’s rich and storied life, together with document research by Bernauer and Hicks, their book brings the perspective of a hunter, Elder, grandmother, and community organizer to bear on important political developments and conflicts in the Canadian Arctic since the Second World War.

In addition to telling the story of her community’s struggle against the uranium industry, I Will Live for Both of Us discusses gender relations in traditional Inuit camps, the emotional dimensions of colonial oppression, Inuit experiences with residential schools, the politics of gold mining, and Inuit traditional laws regarding the land and animals. A collaboration between three committed activists, I Will Live for Both of Us provides key insights into Inuit history, Indigenous politics, resource management, and the nuclear industry.

Reviews
“I Will Live for Both of Us is the first-hand account of an incredible woman’s resistance to uranium mining in her region specifically, but it is also a detailed description of the history of colonialism in the Kivalliq region, and the past and present structures that perpetuate colonialism. It shines a light on the critical activism that has been happening in this region over the course of decades.” — Willow Scobie

"I Will Live for Both of Us offers a unique and important contribution to our understanding of the history and contemporary debates around mining in the Canadian North. It foregrounds the voice and activism of an Inuk woman, Joan Scottie, and documents her long struggle against the incursions of uranium mining in the Kivalliq Region of Nunavut. Written accessibly it will appeal to readers interested in the North, Indigenous issues, and industrial development.” — Arn Keeling

Educator Information
Table of Contents
Ch 1: Growing Up on the Land
Ch 2: Qallunaat, Moving to Town, and Going to School
Ch 3: Uranium Exploration, Petitions, and a Court Case
Ch 4: Kiggavik Round One, the Urangesellschaft Proposal
Ch 5: The Nunavut Agreement and Gold Mining Near Baker Lake
Ch 6: Uranium Policy in Nunavut
Ch 7: Kiggavik Round Two, the AREVA Proposal
Ch 8: Protecting the Land and the Caribou
Conclusion

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264 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Index, Bibliography | Paperback 

A celebration of achievement, accomplishments, and courage!

Native American Medal of Honor recipients, Heisman Trophy recipients, U.S. Olympians, a U.S. vice president, Congressional representatives, NASA astronauts, Pulitzer Prize recipients, U.S. poet laureates, Oscar winners, and more. The first Native magician, all-Native comedy show, architects, attorneys, bloggers, chefs, cartoonists, psychologists, religious leaders, filmmakers, educators, physicians, code talkers, and inventors. Luminaries like Jim Thorpe, King Kamehameha, Debra Haaland, and Will Rogers, along with less familiar notables such as Native Hawaiian language professor and radio host Larry Lindsey Kimura and Cree/Mohawk forensic pathologist Dr. Kona Williams. Their stories plus the stories of 2000 people, events and places are presented in Indigenous Firsts: A History of Native American Achievements and Events, including:

• Suzanne Van Cooten, Ph.D., Chickasaw Nation, the first Native female meteorologist in the country
• Caleb Cheeshahteaumuck, Wampanoag from Martha’s Vineyard, graduate of Harvard College in 1665
• Debra Haaland, the Pueblo of Laguna, U.S. Congresswoman and Secretary of the Interior
• Sam Campos, the Native Hawaiian who developed the Hawaiian superhero Pineapple Man
• Thomas L. Sloan, Omaha, was the first Native American to argue a case before the U.S. Supreme Court
• William R. Pogue, Choctaw, astronaut
• Johnston Murray, Chickasaw, the first person of Native American descent to be elected governor in the United States, holding the office in Oklahoma from 1951 to 1955
• The Cherokee Phoenix published its first edition February 21, 1828, making it the first tribal newspaper in North America and the first to be published in an Indigenous language
• The National Native American Honor Society was founded by acclaimed geneticist Dr. Frank C. Dukepoo , the first Hopi to earn a Ph.D.
• Louis Sockalexis, Penobscot, became the first Native American in the National Baseball League in 1897 as an outfielder with the Cleveland Spiders
• Jock Soto, Navajo/Puerto Rican, the youngest-ever man to be the principal dancer with the New York City Ballet
• The Seminole Tribe of Florida was the first Nation to own and operate an airplane manufacturing company
• Warrior's Circle of Honor, the National Native American Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC, on the grounds of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian
• The Iolani Palace, constructed 1879–1882, the home of the Hawaiian royal family in Honolulu
• Loriene Roy, Anishinaabe, White Earth Nation, professor at the University of Texas at Austin’s School of Information, former president of the American Library Association
• Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Northern Cheyenne, U.S. representative and U.S. senator from Colorado
• Hanay Geiogamah, Kiowa /Delaware, founded the American Indian Theatre Ensemble
• Gerald Vizenor, White Earth Nation, writer, literary critic, and journalist for the Minneapolis Tribune
• Ely S. Parker (Hasanoanda, later Donehogawa), Tonawanda Seneca, lieutenant colonel in the Union Army, serving as General Ulysses S. Grant’s military secretary
• Fritz Scholder, Luiseno, painter inducted into the California Hall of Fame
• The Native American Women Warriors, the first all Native American female color guard
• Lori Arviso Alvord, the first Navajo woman to become a board-certified surgeon
• Kay “Kaibah” C. Bennett, Navajo, teacher, author, and the first woman to run for the presidency of the Navajo Nation
• Sandra Sunrising Osawa, Makah Indian Nation, the first Native American to have a series on commercial television
• The Choctaw people’s 1847 donation to aid the Irish people suffering from the great famine
• Otakuye Conroy-Ben, Oglala Lakota, first to earn an environmental engineering Ph.D. at the University of Arizona
• Diane J. Willis, Kiowa, former President of the Society of Pediatric Psychology and founding editor of the Journal of Pediatric Psychology
• Shelly Niro, Mohawk, winner of Canada’s top photography prize, the Scotiabank Photography Award
• Loren Leman, Alutiiq/Russian-Polish, was the first Alaska Native elected lieutenant governor
• Kim TallBear, Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate, the first recipient of the Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Peoples, Technoscience, and Environment
• Carissa Moore, Native Hawaiian, won the Gold Medal in Surfing at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics
• Will Rogers, Cherokee, actor, performer, humorist was named the first honorary mayor of Beverly Hills
  Foods of the Southwest Indian Nations by Lois Ellen Frank, Kiowa, was the first Native American cookbook to win the James Beard Award
• Diane Humetewa, Hopi, nominated by President Barack Obama, became the first Native American woman to serve as a federal judge
• Susie Walking Bear Yellowtail, Crow, the first Native American nurse to be inducted into the American Nursing Association Hall of Fame

Indigenous Firsts honors the ongoing and rich history of personal victories and triumphs, and with more than 200 photos and illustrations, this information-rich book also includes a helpful bibliography and an extensive index, adding to its usefulness. This vital collection will appeal to anyone interested in America’s amazing history and its resilient and skilled Indigenous people.

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496 pages | 7.19" x 9.18" | Paperback

Kent Monkman's art has been described as "stupendous" (New York Times), "sure to alarm and educate" (The Observer), and beating "Western history painting at its own game" (The Globe and Mail). Subversive, bold, and groundbreaking, the work of this Cree artist has transformed contemporary Canadian visual culture. Monkman's art is included in major Canadian and international public institutions and he is the only artist in this country to be commissioned by The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Kent Monkman: Life & Work is the first comprehensive book about the celebrated Monkman (b.1965). It is the only publication to trace the arc of his career, from his early abstract paintings to his rise to fame creating works that re-visit and reinterpret historic paintings to offer a powerful commentary on Indigenous resistance, remembrance, and the re-thinking of history.

Author Shirley Madill chronicles the origins of Miss Chief Eagle Testickle—Monkman's time-travelling, shape-shifting, gender-fluid alter ego, who features prominently in his work—and details his youth in Manitoba growing up as a member of the Fisher River First Nation, where he first became aware of profound social injustice. Madill explores Monkman's provocative interventions into Western European and American art history, and shows how he created a body of work that raises awareness of the critical issues facing Indigenous peoples by fiercely addressing North America's legacy of colonialism, while also critiquing Western art history. Kent Monkman: Life & Work is the definitive publication for anyone passionate about Indigenous issues, art in North America, and contemporary culture.

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144 pages | 8.00" x 11.00" | Hardcover 

Indigenous Voices Award winner Cole Pauls returns with a robust collection of stories that celebrate the cultural practices and experiences of Dene and Arctic peoples. Gathering Pauls's comics from magazines, comic festivals and zine making workshops, these comics are his most personal work yet. You'll learn stories about the author's family, racism and identity, Yukon history, winter activities, Southern Tutchone language lessons and cultural practices. Have you ever wanted to learn how to Knuckle Hop? or to acknowledge and respect the Indigenous land you’re on? Or how to be an ally to Indigenous people? Well, gather around and hear this Kwändǖr! (Story!).

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140 pages | 6.50" x 10.00" Paperback

Brilliant, jubilant insights into the glory and anguish of life from one of the world’s most treasured Indigenous creators.

Trickster is zany, ridiculous. The ultimate, over-the-top, madcap fool. Here to remind us that the reason for existence is to have a blast and to laugh ourselves silly.

Celebrated author and playwright Tomson Highway brings his signature irreverence to an exploration of five themes central to the human condition: language, creation, sex and gender, humour, and death. A comparative analysis of Christian, classical, and Cree mythologies reveals their contributions to Western thought, life, and culture—and how North American Indigenous mythologies provide unique, timeless solutions to our modern problems. Highway also offers generous personal anecdotes, including accounts of his beloved accordion-playing, caribou-hunting father, and plentiful Trickster stories as curatives for the all-out unhappiness caused by today’s patriarchal, colonial systems.

Laugh with the legendary Tomson Highway as he illuminates a healing, hilarious way forward.

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200 pages | 5.00" x 8.00" | Paperback

An electrifying memoir that braids together the urgent issues of Indigenous rights and environmental policy, from a nationally and internationally recognized activist and survivor.

There have been many Clayton Thomas-Mullers: The child who played with toy planes as an escape from domestic and sexual abuse, enduring the intergenerational trauma of Canada's residential school system; the angry youngster who defended himself with fists and sharp wit against racism and violence, at school and on the streets of Winnipeg and small-town British Columbia; the tough teenager who, at 17, managed a drug house run by members of his family, and slipped in and out of juvie, operating in a world of violence and pain.

But behind them all, there was another Clayton: the one who remained immersed in Cree spirituality, and who embraced the rituals and ways of thinking vital to his heritage; the one who reconnected with the land during summer visits to his great-grandparents' trapline in his home territory of Pukatawagan in northern Manitoba.

And it's this version of Clayton that ultimately triumphed, finding healing by directly facing the trauma that he shares with Indigenous peoples around the world. Now a leading organizer and activist on the frontlines of environmental resistance, Clayton brings his warrior spirit to the fight against the ongoing assault on Indigenous peoples' lands by Big Oil.

Tying together personal stories of survival that bring the realities of the First Nations of this land into sharp focus, and lessons learned from a career as a frontline activist committed to addressing environmental injustice at a global scale, Thomas-Muller offers a narrative and vision of healing and responsibility.

Reviews
“Clayton Thomas-Müller—Cree poet and environmental warrior dedicated to decolonization—has crafted an awesome, lyrical memoir that captures the experiences of urban Indigenous youth facing poverty, drugs, alcohol, domestic violence, and juvenile detention. Most, like Clayton, inherited the intergenerational trauma of residential schools. Clayton found a way to escape trauma and poverty in order to fight for his people. This beautifully written book is required reading for everyone who cares about justice for the survivors of genocide who continue to survive in colonized conditions. It offers a path to liberation that may also be the way to saving the earth and humanity itself.” — Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, author of An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

“This book is an adventure story in every way. A life of drug dealers and crackhouses and guns; leaving that behind for a remarkable time of spiritual and personal growth; and there’s the ongoing adventure of working desperately to protect the planet and its sacred places. Clayton Thomas-Müller relates these adventures in ways that will help everyone through unfamiliar terrain—he’s a trustworthy guide and an authentic storyteller. In a moment when Indigenous people around the world are coming to the very fore of the most crucial fights, this volume will broaden your understanding in powerful ways. And you won’t forget its scenes any time soon.”—Bill McKibben, co-founder of 350.org and author of Earth and Oil and Honey

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240 pages | 5.19" x 7.97" | Paperback

A rich visual testament to the practical and cultural power of the dugout canoe, balanced in its description of meaning and method.

Tla-o-qui-aht master canoe maker Joe Martin, in collaboration with former museum curator Alan Hoover, describes the meaning and method behind one of the most vivid and memorable symbols of the Northwest Coast: the dugout canoe. Both artform and technological marvel, the chaputs carries Indigenous cultural knowledge passed down through generations, not only of the practical forestry and woodworking that shape every canoe, but also of the role and responsibilities of the canoe maker.

The text includes both a step-by-step explanation of the canoe-making process from tree selection onward (carefully described and dynamically illustrated) and the personal histories of a number of Joe's canoes, encompassing their planning, creation, cultural significance and role in the process of reconciliation. The teachings Joe received from his father and the expertise he has gained in a lifetime of canoe-making are recorded here in his own words for generations to come.

Reviews
“In Making a Chaputs, Nuu-chah-nulth canoe artist Joe Martin shows how he carves dugout canoes, explaining how and why he makes two full-size canoes from a single cedar log. It is a clever, amazing tradition rooted in deep respect for the forest and a lifetime of Indigenous knowledge—a highly recommended book!”—Kathryn Bernick, archaeologist and author of numerous books including Waterlogged: Examples and Procedures for Northwest Coast Archaeologists and Basketry and Cordage from Hesquiat Harbour

“When tracing ancient basketry styles in the archaeological waterlogged/wet sites of the Salish Sea for thousands of years, we defined our approach as Generationally-Linked Archaeology. As seen at the Makah Ozette Village archaeological wet site from ca. 1700, preserved chaputs canoe models reflect this West Coast tradition a full 16 generations back. Joe Martin, Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation Elder and master canoe carver, best reflects these generationally linked traditions, constructing over 60 full-size chaputs, passing this paramount art on through Native apprentices and, here, in his own words, with esteemed curator and author Alan Hoover.” —Ed Carriere, Suquamish Elder and Master Basketmaker and Coast Salish Canoe Carver, and Dale R. Croes, Ph.D. Northwest Coast wet site archaeologist, Washington State University, co-authors of Re-Awakening Ancient Salish Sea Basketry

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96 pages | 8.97" x 8.97" | Paperback

In September 2015, Sheila North was declared the Grand Chief of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO), the first woman elected to the position. Known as a “bridge builder”, North is a member of Bunibonibee Cree Nation. North’s work in advocacy journalism, communications, and economic development harnessed her passion for drawing focus to systemic racism faced by Indigenous women and girls. She is the creator of the widely used hashtag #MMIW. In her memoir, Sheila North shares the stories of the events that shaped her, and the violence that nearly stood in the way of her achieving her dreams. Through perseverance and resilience, she not only survived, she flourished.

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232 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback

We all share a common humanity. No matter how long or difficult the path ahead, we are all one.

Reconciliation belongs to everyone. In this profound book, Chief Robert Joseph, globally recognized peacebuilder and Hereditary Chief of the Gwawaenuk People, traces his journey from his childhood surviving residential school to his present-day role as a leader who inspires individual hope, collective change, and global transformation.

Before we get to know where we are going, we need to know where we came from. Reconciliation represents a long way forward, but it is a pathway toward our higher humanity, our highest selves, and an understanding that everybody matters. In Namwayut, Chief Joseph teaches us to transform our relationships with ourselves and each other. As we learn about, honour, and respect the truth of the stories we tell, we can also discover how to dismantle the walls of discrimination, hatred, and racism in our society.

Chief Joseph is known as one of the leading voices on peacebuilding in our time, and his dedication to reconciliation has been recognized with multiple honorary degrees and awards. As one of the remaining first-language speakers of Kwak'wala, his wisdom is grounded in Indigenous ways of knowing while making space for something bigger and better for all of us.

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200 pages | 5.25" x 8.00" | Hardcover

Ndè Sii Wet'aà: Northern Indigenous Voices on Land, Life, & Art is a collection of essays, interviews, short stories and poetry written by emerging and established northern Indigenous writers and artists. Centred on land, cultural practice and northern life, this ground-breaking collection shares wealth of Dene (Gwichʼin, Sahtú, Dehcho, Tłı̨chǫ, Saysi, Kaska, Dënesuiné, W?ìl?ìdeh ) Inuit, Alutiiq, Inuvialuit, Métis, Nêhiyawak (Cree), Northern Tutchone, and Tanana Athabascan creative brilliance. Ndè Sii Wet'aà holds up the voices of women and Two Spirit and Queer writers to create a chorus of voices reflecting a deep love of Indigenous cultures, languages, homelands and the north. The book includes a series of pieces and interviews from established northern artists and musicians including Leela Gilday, Randy Baillargeon (lead singer for the W?ìl?ìdeh Drummers), Inuit sisters, song-writers and throat singers Tiffany Ayalik and Inuksuk Mackay of Piqsiq, Two Spirit Vuntut Gwitchin visual artist Jeneen Frei Njootli, Nunavik singer-songwriters Elisapie and Beatrice Deere and visual artist Camille Georgeson-Usher. Ndè Sii Wet'aà also includes writing from well-known northern writers Siku Allooloo, T'áncháy Redvers (Fireweed), Antione Mountain (From Bear Rock Mountain), Glen Coulthard (Red Skin, White Masks), Catherine Lafferty (Northern Wildflower, Land-Water-Sky) and Lianne Marie Leda Charlie, in amongst the best emerging writers in the north.

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264 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback

A first-hand account of a Swampy Cree boy’s experiences growing up in the Saskatchewan River Delta, one of the world’s largest inland deltas and one of North America’s most important ecosystems.

Depicting an Indigenous lifestyle that existed in Northern Saskatchewan way past the Fur Trade era, Ken Carriere shares his first-hand account of experiences as a young boy helping his father trapping, fishing, and hunting in the Saskatchewan River Delta.

Opimōtēwina wīna kapagamawāt Wītigōwa / Journeys of The One to Strike the Wetigo contains interviews with elders, stories, personal photographs, and poetry, along with some original Swampy Cree translations.

Creating a vivid portrait of what it was like to live off the land, Carriere also reveals how hydro-electric dams and other Western endeavours have impacted the livelihoods of so many Northern communities.

Reviews
"Wow! This is an excellent resource for those engaged in, or interested in, land-based education. It gives a wonderful, engaging account of living on the land in the past and, to some extent, in the present day. It's also a good resource for N-dialect speakers." —Solomon Ratt, author of The Way I Remember and Beginning Cree

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328 pages | 5.00" x 8.00" | Paperback

A wildfire of a debut memoir by internationally recognized French/Cree/Iroquois journalist Brandi Morin set to transform the narrative around Indigenous Peoples.

Brandi Morin is known for her clear-eyed and empathetic reporting on Indigenous oppression in North America. She is also a survivor of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls crisis and uses her experience to tell the stories of those who did not survive the rampant violence. From her time as a foster kid and runaway who fell victim to predatory men and an oppressive system to her career as an internationally acclaimed journalist, Our Voice of Fire chronicles Morin’s journey to overcome enormous adversity and find her purpose, and her power, through journalism. This compelling, honest book is full of self-compassion and the purifying fire of a pursuit for justice.

Reviews
"Our Voice Of Fire is a searingly honest, thought-provoking, and ultimately empowering exploration of pain and the quest for justice. By sharing her stories with the world, Brandi Morin makes a beautiful proclamation that there can be a hopeful path through trauma without diminishing the significance of the trauma itself, both personal and intergenerational. These are stories that need to be told and stories that need to be read." — Dan Levy

"Brandi Morin is one of the most important Indigenous journalists and warriors of our time. Her raw, honest, and beautifully written story of her experiences, trauma, reliance, and perseverance is a must-read for all." — Crystal Echo Hawk, founder and executive director, IllumiNative

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224 pages | 5.00" x 7.50" | Paperback

A riveting new biography of America’s greatest all-around athlete by the bestselling author of the classic biography When Pride Still Mattered.

Jim Thorpe rose to world fame as a mythic talent who excelled at every sport. He won gold medals in the decathlon and pentathlon at the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, was an All-American football player at the Carlisle Indian School, the star of the first class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and played major league baseball for John McGraw’s New York Giants. Even in a golden age of sports celebrities, he was one of a kind.

But despite his colossal skills, Thorpe’s life was a struggle against the odds. As a member of the Sac and Fox Nation, he encountered duplicitous authorities who turned away from him when their reputations were at risk. At Carlisle, he dealt with the racist assimilationist philosophy “Kill the Indian, Save the Man.” His gold medals were unfairly rescinded because he had played minor league baseball. His later life was troubled by alcohol, broken marriages, and financial distress. He roamed from state to state and took bit parts in Hollywood, but even the film of his own life failed to improve his fortunes. But for all his travails, Thorpe did not succumb. The man survived, complications and all, and so did the myth.

Path Lit by Lightning is a great American story from a master biographer.

Reviews
“Path Lit By Lightning is a flat-out masterpiece. The story of Jim Thorpe, one of America’s greatest and most misunderstood heroes, is told in riveting detail by David Maraniss, one of our greatest biographers. The result is a portrait as powerful, dazzling, and nuanced as Thorpe himself.” — Jonathan Eig, author Luckiest Man, Opening Day and Ali: A Life

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672 pages | 6.12" x 9.25" | Hardcover