Historical Fiction

In the Road Allowance Era, Echo’s story picks up again when she travels back in time to 1885.

The Manitoba Act’s promise of land for the Métis has gone unfulfilled, and many Métis flee to the Northwest. As part of the fallout from the Northwest Resistance, their advocate and champion Louis Riel is executed. As new legislation corrodes Métis land rights, and unscrupulous land speculators and swindlers take advantage, many Métis settle on road allowances and railway land, often on the fringes of urban centres.

For Echo, the plight of her family is apparent. Burnt out of their home in Ste. Madeleine when their land is cleared for pasture, they make their way to Rooster Town, settling on the southwest edges of Winnipeg. In this final installment of her story, Echo is reminded of the strength and resilience of her people, forged through the loss and pain of the past, as she faces a triumphant future.

Educator & Series Information
Recommended for ages  12+.

A Girl Called Echo is a graphic novel series by Governor General Award-winning writer and author of The Seven Teaching Stories Katherena Vermette. This graphic novel series explores the life of a Métis teenager through illustrated storytelling. Each book follows Echo Desjardins and her travels back through time, which illuminates important periods and events Métis history in an engaging, visually stimulating way for teenage audiences.

This is Vol. 4 in the A Girl Called Echo series.

This book is available in French: Elle s'appelle Echo Tome 4: L'ère des réserves routières 

Additional Information
48 pages | 6.50" x 10.00"

A young girl struggles to survive residential school in this timeless graphic novel from the bestselling author of The Barren Grounds—a story of strength, family, and culture, inspired by true events, that shares the awe-inspiring resilience of Betty Ross.

Abandoned as a young child, Betsy was soon adopted into a loving family. A few short years later, at the age of 8, everything changed. Betsy was taken away to a residential school. There she was forced to endure abuse and indignity, but Betsy recalled the words her father spoke to her at Sugar Falls—words that gave her the resilience, strength, and determination to survive.

Sugar Falls is based on the true story of Betty Ross, Elder from Cross Lake First Nation. We wish to acknowledge, with the utmost gratitude, Betty’s generosity in sharing her story. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of Sugar Falls goes to support the bursary program for The Helen Betty Osborne Memorial Foundation.

Educator Information
Recommended for grades 9 to 12.

This 10th-anniversary edition brings David A. Robertson’s national bestseller to life in full colour, with a foreword by Senator Murray Sinclair, Chairman of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, and a touching afterword from Elder Betty Ross herself.

A Teacher Guide is available for this work: Teacher Guide for Sugar Falls: Learning About the History and Legacy of Residential Schools in Grades 9-12 

Additional Information
48 pages | 6.50" x 10.00" | full colour throughout

Louise Erdrich meets Karen Russell in this deliciously strange and daringly original novel from Pulitzer Prize finalist Margaret Verble: set in 1926 Nashville, it follows a death-defying young Cherokee horse-diver who, with her companions from the Glendale Park Zoo, must get to the bottom of a mystery that spans centuries.

Two Feathers, a young Cherokee horse-diver on loan to Glendale Park Zoo from a Wild West show, is determined to find her own way in the world. Two’s closest friend at Glendale is Hank Crawford, who loves horses almost as much as she does. He is part of a high-achieving, land-owning Black family. Neither Two nor Hank fit easily into the highly segregated society of 1920s Nashville.

When disaster strikes during one of Two’s shows, strange things start to happen at the park. Vestiges of the ancient past begin to surface, apparitions appear, and then the hippo falls mysteriously ill. At the same time, Two dodges her unsettling, lurking admirer and bonds with Clive, Glendale’s zookeeper and a World War I veteran, who is haunted—literally—by horrific memories of war. To get to the bottom of it, an eclectic cast of park performers, employees, and even the wealthy stakeholders must come together, making When Two Feathers Fell from the Sky an unforgettable and irresistible tale of exotic animals, lingering spirits, and unexpected friendship.

Reviews
"Verble beautifully weaves period details with the cast’s histories, and enthralls with the supernatural elements, which are made as real for the reader as they are for the characters. This lands perfectly."—Publishers Weekly, STARRED review

"This utterly memorable, beautifully written story will linger with readers."—Booklist, STARRED review

"An ambitious novel that’s impressive in its scope and concept: Glendale Park Zoo and the 101 are rife with narrative possibility and give the author a chance to examine a fascinating cross section of race and class."—Kirkus

“Two Feathers, tough and warmhearted, clear-eyed and funny, captivates from the first striking scene. Margaret Verble has created a remarkable world, rich with vibrant characters and layered histories, long obscured, that emerge to shape their lives in surprising, thought-provoking, and moving ways.” —Kim Edwards, bestselling author of The Memory Keeper’s Daughter and The Lake of Dreams

“Two Feathers Fell from the Sky is a rich and lively novel, steeped in place and history. Verble’s meticulous research and generosity of spirit shine through, lending her characters and their adventures a fullness that lingers.”—Kelli Jo Ford, author of Crooked Hallelujah and winner of the Plimpton Prize

Additional Information
384 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Hardcover

Wild Waters is Larry Loyie’s, Cree, exploration of the little-known side of the fur trade, the side of Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) and Canadien (French Canadian) paddlers who powered the canoes. After seeing his four times great-grandfather’s name, Tomma, in Chief Trader Archibald McDonald’s 1828 journal, Larry, with partner and co-author Constance Brissenden, began researching and writing about a challenging canoe voyage from Montreal to Hudson Bay, and then on to the Pacific. Larry was determined to combine his creative vision of Tomma’s life with the entries in McDonald’s journal to honour the unacknowledged voices of history. Some of the people in Wild Waters existed; others are based on the authors’ view of the fur trade and its people. Wherever possible, real dialogue was used. Weights and measures are consistent with usage of the era.

Reviews
“Wild Waters, Inside a Voyageur's World is an authentic, atmospheric tale of the voyageur and Hudson’s Bay Company days. Not only do you admire the strength and courage of the paddlers in navigating the wild waters, but also how they negotiated the intense personalities and rivalries of the Europeans they laboured for. An excellent historical account of the voyageur’s life!” -- Darlene Adams, Curator, High Prairie & District Museum, High Prairie, AB.

Educator Information
The publisher recommends this novel for grades 6 to 12 and for Adult Education.

Additional Information
152 Pages | Paperback

How can we heal in the face of trauma? How can we transform intergenerational pain into a passion for community and healing?

Presenting herself as “Myrtle,” residential school survivor and Indigenous television personality Bevann Fox explores essential questions by recounting her life through fiction. She shares memories of an early childhood filled with love with her grandparents—until she is sent to residential school at the age of seven. Her horrific experiences of abuse there left her without a voice, timid and nervous, never sure, never trusting, affecting her romantic relationships and family bonds for years to come.

This is the story of Myrtle battling to recover her voice. Genocidal Love is a powerful confirmation of the long-lasting consequences of residential school violence —and a moving story of finding a path towards healing.

Awards

• 2021 Indigenous Voices Awards winner for Published Prose in English: Creative Nonfiction and Life-Writing

Reviews
“A riveting, often difficult, brave, important book. ” —Deanna Reder, Chair, Department of Indigenous Studies, Simon Fraser University

“A riveting and courageous reflection. . . . Genocidal Love is unique in its detailed account of the often re-traumatizing effects of the legal and bureaucratic barriers of compensation programs predating the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. ” —Jesse Rae Archibald-Barber, editor of kisiskâciwan and co-editor of Performing Turtle Island

“Fox tears beauty from the jaws of genocide, daring to claim love beyond settler imaginings—love that nurtures decolonial futures and makes possible a more just world. ”—Sam McKegney, author of Magic Weapons and Masculindians

Educator Information
A forward from Michelle Coupal explains more about "Genocidal Love—a story that Bevann tells about herself outside the boundaries of what constitutes fiction and non-fiction".

Additional Information
256 pages | 5.00" x 7.00"

Echo Desjardins is adjusting to her new home, finding friends, and learning about Métis history. She just can’t stop slipping back and forth in time. One ordinary afternoon in class, Echo finds herself transported to the banks of the Red River in the summer of 1869. All is not well in the territory as Canadian surveyors have arrived to change the face of territory, and Métis families, who have lived there for generations, are losing access to their land. As the Resistance takes hold, Echo fears for her friends and the future of her people in the Red River Valley.

Educator & Series Information
This is volume 3 in the graphic novel series, A Girl Called Echo, by Katherena Vermette.

Books in this series include: 
Volume 1: Pemmican Wars
Volume 2: Red River Resistance
Volume 3: Northwest Resistance
Volume 4: Road Allowance Era

Recommended for grades 5 to 9 by publisher.

Katherena Vermette, a Governor General's Award-winning author deftly enters a format typically dominated by male creators with this graphic novel series, A Girl Called Echo. Featuring compelling illustrations, a female main character, and the contemporary foster care system, the series follows Echo Desjardins as she discovers her Métis heritage firsthand while slipping back and forth through time.

This book is available in French: Elle s'appelle Echo Tome 3: La résistance du Nord-Ouest

Additional Information
48 pages | 6.50" x 10.00"

Adam's Tree is a fictional account of life on the Cowesses First Nation in Saskatchewan during the 1940's and 50's. This period in history finds forces like regulatory policy, World War II, systemic racism, and the long reach of the depression defining reserve life and rural relationships. These short stories are told from the perspective of various characters on the reserve: an Indigenous teenage girl named Sophie, men who return to Cowesses after the war, struggling with untreated and unacknowledged PTSD, settlers like the local school teacher and the "Indian agent".

This book contributes to the dialogue on reconciliation, freeing Indigenous voices during a period of time that is rarely written about. It encourages readers to examine the sources and meaning of today's inheritance of complex relations.

Additional Information
220 pages | 5.50" x 8.50"

Inconvenient Skin challenges how reconciliation has become a contested buzzword filled with promises and good intentions but rarely any meaningful follow-through. While Canada's history is filled with darkness, these poems aim to unpack that history to clean the wounds so the nation can finally heal. Powerful and thought-provoking, this collection will draw you in and make you reconsider Canada's colonial legacy. The cover features the art of Kent Monkman, and the interior features work by Joseph Sanchez, a member of the Indian Group of Seven.

Written in English and Cree.

Educator Information
This collection of poems features Shane Koyczan's well-known poem, "Inconvenient Skin," delivered in a dual-language format of English and Cree and paired with illustrations, artwork, and photography.

Recommended in the Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools 2019-2020 resource list as being useful for grades 11 and 12 for these subjects: Art Education, English Language Arts.

This poem talks about sexual assault, genocide, and violence.  Some of the artwork shows violence and nudity.  This could be triggering for some readers.

Additional Information
80 pages | 8.50" x 8.50" | Colour Illustrations

This is the story of a Metis soldier fighting for Canada on the Western Front of Europe during World War I. Vancouver 1914: a young Indigenous man named Jonathon Woodrow, desperate to prove himself as a warrior, enlists to fight in the Canadian army. Relying on his experience in hunting and wilderness survival, Private Woodrow quickly becomes one of the most feared trench raiders in the 1st Canadian Division. But as the war stretches on, with no end to the fighting in sight, Woodrow begins to realize that he will never go home again.

A 2017 finalist for the Playwright Guild of Canada’s prestigious Carol Bolt Award for Playwrights, Redpatch focuses on how First Nations soldiers and communities contributed to Canada’s involvement in the First World War.

Educator Information
Recommended in the Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools 2019-2020 resource list for grades 10 to 12 for Drama, English Language Arts, and Social Studies.

Contains some use of strong language.

This work is a play including an eight-page graphic novel written by Sean Harris Oliver.

Additional Information
96 pages | 5.50" x 8.50"

May 1875: Mary Todd Lincoln is addicted to opiates and tried in a Chicago court on charges of insanity. Entered into evidence is Ms. Lincoln’s claim that every night a Savage Indian enters her bedroom and slashes her face and scalp. She is swiftly committed to Bellevue Place Sanitarium. Her hauntings may be a reminder that in 1862, President Lincoln ordered the hanging of thirty-eight Dakotas in the largest mass execution in United States history. No one has ever linked the two events—until now. Savage Conversations is a daring account of a former first lady and the ghosts that tormented her for the contradictions and crimes on which this nation is founded.

Reviews
"In Savage Conversations, LeAnne Howe experiments with the form of verse drama to tell the history of the Dakhóta resistance to colonization and the mythos surrounding the Lincoln presidency of that same period. The setting is the asylum to which Mary Todd Lincoln was involuntarily committed ten years after the death of her husband. The characters are the First Lady, whose racism against Native Americans is well-documented, the “Savage Indian” she claims to see and be tortured by nightly, and a rope. The story is a reckoning of hauntings and unprosecuted crimes, an attempt at imagining some way to live with an unbearable history of human rights abuses and genocide." - Kathryn Nuernberger, Kenyon Review

“In May of 1875, Mary Todd Lincoln is confined to an insane asylum. There, she is haunted by a ‘Savage Indian’ who scalps her nightly and sews her eyes open. In Howe's telling, the specter haunting the widowed First Lady is one of the thirty-eight Dakota men, hanged in 1862 by her husband in the largest mass execution in American history. In reading this, I was blown away. Unmoored. Sent spiraling adrift on gusts of wind.” —Rachel S, Harvard Book Store

“Part fever dream, part extended meditation on madness, Howe’s Savage Conversations is a bracing commentary on the nature of guilt and grief.”—Historical Novel Society

“Savage Conversations takes place somewhere in between its sources, between sanity and madness, between then and now, between the living and the dead. It pushes past the limitations of textual sources for telling indigenous history and accounts of insanity.”—Barrelhouse Reviews

“LeAnne Howe’s words are to savor, contemplate, and horrify. Savage Conversations explodes with the stench of guilt and insanity that undergirds the American story, whispered through a personal, familial, national, and supernatural drama revelatory in every sense. Howe’s uncanny images will long haunt readers, just as the Dakota 38 linger in land and memory, both offering a testament to the violent entanglements of past and present.” —Philip J. Deloria

“Savage Conversations invokes our own racial conflict and probes America’s psyche, its struggle to reconcile its colonialist values, indeed its white supremacy, with its multi-ethnic cultures and populations. . . . Through the masterly dramatic management of Mrs. Lincoln’s disturbing and chilling obsessions, Howe shows that there is no escape from the yesterday’s paradigms of power without a true reckoning with the injustices that set the stage for our troubled social landscape.”—On the Seawall

“Howe’s book powerfully contributes to our understanding and re-thinking of a moment in time that we are still grappling with today. In the wake of recent movements to remove Confederate monuments as we work to present the truths of history, Howe’s book directs our attention to a violent event that has not been adequately acknowledged. Through experimental form, Howe refracts a moment of history that readers simply cannot forget, that they will inevitably carry with them long after reading the last page.” —The Carolina Quarterly

Educator Information
Experimental verse drama.

Additional Information
144 pages | 5.00" x 7.50" 

Explore the past 150 years through the eyes of Indigenous creators in this groundbreaking graphic novel anthology. Beautifully illustrated, these stories are an emotional and enlightening journey through Indigenous wonderworks, psychic battles, and time travel. See how Indigenous peoples have survived a post-apocalyptic world since Contact.

Watch for new stories and familiar characters:

• Métis businesswoman Annie Bannatyne and Louis Riel
• Oka Crisis, Meech Lake Accord, and Kelowna Accord
• the Berger Inquiry into the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline
• Jack Fiddler, an Anishinaabe shaman charged as a serial killer
• Rosie, an Inuk girl coming of age during WWII
• wâpanacâhkos, an Indigenous woman sent back from the future to the early 2000s
• fishing raids and salmon wars in Listuguj, Quebec
• Francis Pegahmagabow, WWI sniper and veterans’ rights activist
• the impact of the Sixties Scoop and the child welfare system
• Chief Billy Assu and the potlatch bans in British Columbia

Reviews
Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair, one of the contributors to this work, says the book is, an “opportunity to shine a light on the stories most Canadians haven’t heard, to learn from Indigenous communities from 1867 to present day—whether these stories are influenced by the creation of Canada or not." 

"…breathtaking comics anthology…this mix of powerful storytelling and memorable illustrations is a place to begin a dialogue with Indigenous peoples in Canada." —The Globe and Mail

"The anthology is visually gorgeous. Each story is powerfully conveyed, reflecting a time and moment in the Indigenous history of Canada…great read for any age." —Quill & Quire, starred review

"This Place is the graphic novel I’ve waited my whole life for, and the graphic novel Canada has needed for 150 years. The stories contained within its pages are both beautifully rendered and vitally necessary. They represent a history not only largely untold and unknown, but one obscured, hidden from sight, so that other stories may occupy a privileged place in the defining a national story. Their importance is exquisitely captured on these pages, told by some the leading artists working today. This is an essential book, for comic fans, teachers and anyone who wants to learn the stories of this place we now share." —Jesse Wente, broadcaster and film critic

"A landmark collection of Indigenous comics that redraws how we understand the past, present, and future of Indigenous communities and cultures since Confederation. Each chapter immerses us in a gripping story about real people brought to life through vivid and affecting artwork. This collection proves the power of comics storytelling to create fresh pathways to knowledge and new ways of envisioning Indigenous experiences." —Candida Rifkind, University of Winnipeg

"This is the power of storytelling. It’s going deeper and truer than the history books and the newspaper accounts. It’s bringing the stories to the people for the people and doing it for the right reasons: to teach and to illuminate. This Place: 150 Years Retold is the dawn to a new storytelling tradition that doesn’t need to be held back. It should be shouted forward from now on." —Helen Kubiw, CanLit for LittleCanadians

Educator Information
This graphic novel is recommended for ages 15+.

Recommended in the Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools 2019-2020 resource list for grades 7 to 12 for Art Education, English Language Arts, Law, and Social Studies.

These stories refer to real incidents and include graphic violence, abuse, and death.

A teacher's guide is available: This Place: 150 Years Retold Teacher Guide

Additional Information
250 Pages

A boy discovers his Native American heritage in this Depression-era tale of identity and friendship by the author of Code Talker.

It's 1932, and twelve-year-old Cal Black and his Pop have been riding the rails for years after losing their farm in the Great Depression. Cal likes being a "knight of the road" with Pop, even if they're broke. But then Pop has to go to Washington, DC--some of his fellow veterans are marching for their government checks, and Pop wants to make sure he gets his due--and Cal can't go with him. So Pop tells Cal something he never knew before: Pop is actually a Creek Indian, which means Cal is too. And Pop has decided to send Cal to a government boarding school for Native Americans in Oklahoma called the Challagi School.

At school, the other Creek boys quickly take Cal under their wings. Even in the harsh, miserable conditions of the Bureau of Indian Affairs boarding school, he begins to learn about his people's history and heritage. He learns their language and customs. And most of all, he learns how to find strength in a group of friends who have nothing beyond each other.

Reviews
"Cal's cleareyed first-person narration drives the novel. Meticulously honest, generous, autonomous and true, he sees things for what they are rather than what he'd like them to be. The result is one of Bruchac's best books." —New York Times Book Review

"A tautly paced and compelling story of self-discovery, family, belonging, and friendship." —Horn Book, starred review

"Multiple compelling Depression-era histories converge in Bruchac's latest . . . The students' utter subversion of Challagi's mission to sever their ties with Indian culture soon becomes apparent, as does Cal's powerful, growing understanding of his identity." —Booklist

Educator Information
Recommended Ages: 10+

Additional Information
320 pages | 5.81" x 8.56"

This groundbreaking anthology from territory that is now Saskatchewan, kisiskâciwan, includes rich oral narratives from Cree, Saulteaux, Nakoda, Dakota, Dene, and Métis cultures; early writings from Cree missionaries; speeches and letters by Treaty Chiefs; stories from elders; archival discoveries; and contemporary literary works in all genres.

Historically and culturally comprehensive, voices include Big Bear, Thunderchild, Louis Riel, Gabriel Dumont, Edward Ahenakew, Maria Campbell, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Rita Bouvier, Harold Johnson, Gregory Scofield, Warren Cariou, Louise Halfe, and many more.

Educator Information
The collected works in this anthology would be useful for high school and college/university courses.  All the works in this anthology are connected to Saskatchewan in some way.  Some themes include Residential Schools, family, resilience, the Sixties Scoop, and coming of age.

Recommended resource for Grades 10-12 for these subjects: Drama, English Language Arts, Social Studies.

Caution: Some of the works in this anthology contain mature subject matter, such as discussion of abuse, violence, sexuality, etc. 

Additional Information
300 pages | 6.00" x 9.00"

Authenticity Note: This work is labelled as containing Authentic Indigenous Text because of the contributions from Indigenous Peoples.

Echo Desjardins, a 13-year-old Métis girl adjusting to a new home and school, is struggling with loneliness while separated from her mother. Then an ordinary day in Mr. Bee’s history class turns extraordinary, and Echo’s life will never be the same. During Mr. Bee’s lecture, Echo finds herself transported to another time and place—a bison hunt on the Saskatchewan prairie—and back again to the present. In the following weeks, Echo slips back and forth in time. She visits a Métis camp, travels the old fur-trade routes, and experiences the perilous and bygone era of the Pemmican Wars.

Educator & Series Information
Recommended for ages 12+ by the publisher.

Pemmican Wars is the first graphic novel in the A Girl Called Echo series.

Books in this series include: 
Volume 1: Pemmican Wars
Volume 2: Red River Resistance
Volume 3: Northwest Resistance
Volume 4: Road Allowance Era

The Canadian Indigenous Books for School list recommends this for Grades 5-12 for these subject areas: Arts Education, English Language Arts, Social Studies.

This book is available in French: Elle s'appelle Echo Tome 1: La guerre du Pemmican

Additional Information
48 pages | 6.50" x 10.00"