Indigenous Peoples

The creators of Raven, Rabbit, Deer are back with another thoughtful tale of a young boy and his grandfather taking a walk through the woods and all the creatures and plants they encounter.

Walking as “quiet as mice and rabbits and deer” they come upon fresh moose droppings and set out to find the moose itself. They discover the branches where the moose ate breakfast, greet a chipmunk and goose, and inspect rosehips and pussy willows, but the moose is nowhere to be found. Finally, after accepting that they will have to try again next time, the boy and his grandfather head home… only to be met with a big surprise.

In Finding Moose, Governor General’s Award-nominated author Sue Farrell Holler gives us a glimpse into the wondrous world of nature through the eyes of a curious child. Grandpa quietly encourages this curiosity while offering answers and further lessons where he can. Illustrator Jennifer Faria draws us in with gentle paintings that make us want to reach out and touch the scenery.

Reviews
“For a lovely early spring walk, learning about nature and being introduced to words in Ojibwemowin, join an Anishinaabe grandfather with his grandson to see how forest life reveals itself and search for an elusive mooz.”—CanLit for LittleCanadians

“Children will enjoy this simple story that introduces them to some of their forest neighbours whose names are in both English and Ojibwemowin. Highly recommended.”— Simcoe.com

“[T]his joyful book reinforces the need to listen, see, and be present in the woods so that the wonders of nature can unfold. The power of loving inter-generational relationships rests at the core of this simple story… The end result is a touching story that addresses important lessons at a time when environmental change is such a pressing concern.”—Children’s Literature

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 3 to 6.

Additional Information
32 pages | 9.00" x 8.00" | Hardcover

In her debut picture book, professional Indigenous dancer Ria Thundercloud tells the true story of her path to dance and how it helped her take pride in her Native American heritage.

At four years old, Ria Thundercloud was brought into the powwow circle, ready to dance in the special jingle dress her mother made for her. As she grew up, she danced with her brothers all over Indian country. Then Ria learned more styles--tap, jazz, ballet--but still loved the expressiveness of Indigenous dance. And despite feeling different as one of the only Native American kids in her school, she always knew she could turn to dance to cheer herself up.

Follow along as Ria shares her dance journey--from dreaming of her future to performing as a professional--accompanied by striking illustrations that depict it while bringing her graceful movements to life.

Reviews
"A warmly illustrated memoir of dance and culture, this will have broad appeal about using art for expression and to overcome difficulties." —School Library Journal, starred review

"A moving picture book about the resilience one can find in one’s cultural inheritance." —Kirkus Reviews

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 4 to 8.

Additional Information
40 pages | 10.44" x 10.31" | Hardcover 

In this Native American story, Kara and Amanda are best-friend cousins. Then Kara leaves the city to move back to the Rez. Will their friendship stay the same?

Kara and Amanda hate not being together. Then it's time for the family reunion on the Rez. Each girl worries that the other hasn't missed her. But once they reconnect, they realize that they are still forever cousins. This story highlights the ongoing impact of the 1950s Indian Relocation Act on Native families, even today.

This tender story about navigating change reminds readers that the power of friendship and family can bridge any distance.

Awards

• American Indian Youth Literature Award Winner

Reviews
"Amanda loves purple, while Kara’s favorite is pink, but “they agree that sunflowers are beautiful, powwow dancing is fun, and chokecherry jam on toast is the best.” When the time comes for Kara’s family to leave, both girls’ parents assure them that the family will be together again next summer at the reunion. A year passes, and the cousins miss each other very much but keep in touch by phone and through letters. When it’s time for the reunion on the reservation, the families make preparations: Amanda’s family packs and gets the GPS set for the two-day drive; Kara’s family makes welcoming signs, and her dad hangs a picture of the family tree. But the girls are nervous: Will they still be friends? In an author’s note, Goodluck explains that in the past, many Native families have faced separations; she cites the Indian Relocation Act of 1956 as one cause. Nevertheless, she emphasizes that they still maintain close relationships due to shared family and tribal values. This matter-of-fact yet poignant story brings that bond to vivid life as the girls realize that no matter what, they are “forever cousins.” The illustrations rely on a muted palette, featuring appealing characters with large heads. Cultural references are scattered throughout, like the dolls made by the girls’ magúu (grandmother), powwow dancing, and a Hidatsa naming ceremony. Children facing separations of their own will find this reassuring. A sweet story of friendship, family, and community. "—Kirkus Reviews

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 4 to 7.

Additional Information
32 pages | 8.00" x 10.00" | Hardcover 

In this delightful Lumbee story, clever Rabbit outsmarts a selfish Great Snapping Turtle. When Rabbit discovers many animals could not find water, he sets out to solve the mystery. What he finds is the Great Snapping Turtle blocking the water of the Mother Spring. When the stubborn turtle refuses to move, Rabbit figures out a way to let the water flow. As the water flowed to all creatures, it also created the oceans of Turtle Island.

Educator Information
Recommended for grades 2 and under.

Additional Information
40 pages | 8.00" x 10.00" | Paperback

In this adorable book to be shared with babies and toddlers, mothers explore their love for their babies as experienced through the five senses. From the sound of a baby's giggles to the smell of a kunik, this book celebrates the unique bonds shared between mothers and babies.

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 2 and under.

Subjects / Themes: Family; Baby; Mother; Concepts - Senses & Sensations; Polar Regions

Additional Information
28 pages | 8.00" x 8.00" | Boardbook

Poignant words from award-winning Indigenous author Monique Gray Smith about all the hopes adults have for the young people in their lives.

The hopes we have for the children in our lives are endless. We want our young people to thrive and experience all that life has to offer, but we also feel protective of them. Using simple but powerful statements, Monique Gray Smith delivers a touching message about loving, nurturing and wishing the best for our children. Paired with Gabrielle Grimard's warm and enchanting illustrations, the message in I Hope will resonate with all parents, grandparents and caregivers.

Reviews
"I Hope is a story about adults' hopes for the children in their lives. It speaks to the “hope” of the next generation thriving and experiencing all that life has to offer, even when there is a hesitation to be protective of them. The story focuses on loving, nurturing, and wishing the best for the children in our lives." - The Dalai Lama Center

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 3 to 5.

This book is available in English and Plains Cree: I Hope / nipakoseyimon 

This book is available in French: J'espère

Additional Information
32 pages | 9.00" x 9.00" | Hardcover 

Poignant words from award-winning Indigenous author Monique Gray Smith about all the hopes adults have for the young people in their lives.

The hopes we have for the children in our lives are endless. We want our young people to thrive and experience all that life has to offer, but we also feel protective of them. Using simple but powerful statements, Monique Gray Smith delivers a touching message about loving, nurturing and wishing the best for our children. Paired with Gabrielle Grimard's warm and enchanting illustrations, the message in I Hope will resonate with all parents, grandparents and caregivers.

Reviews
“Comforting, encouraging sentiments that adult readers and their little ones will appreciate.” — Kirkus Reviews

“Grimard’s artwork along with Gray Smith’s messages of hope create a synergy and context…Together they successfully teach intangible moments.” — CM: Canadian Review of Materials

"I Hope is a story about adults' hopes for the children in their lives. It speaks to the “hope” of the next generation thriving and experiencing all that life has to offer, even when there is a hesitation to be protective of them. The story focuses on loving, nurturing, and wishing the best for the children in our lives." - The Dalai Lama Center

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 3 to 5.

Dual-language format: English and Plains Cree.

This book is available in English only: I Hope

This book is available in French: J'espère

Cree translation by Dolores Greyeyes Sand.

Additional Information
32 pages | 9.00" x 9.00" | Hardcover 

Little Ocean likes to play outside. In this picture book, Ocean shows us how she has fun outside in all types of weather. Outside is where new discoveries are made and adventures happen!

Educator & Series Information
Recommended for preschool-aged children.

This book is part of the The Adventure Series of Learning With Ocean.

Additional Information
16 Pages 

Little Ocean is learning about her identity. In this picture book, Ocean’s Mom teaches her about her Ojibwe and Cree culture and how to walk proud.

Educator & Series Information
Recommended for preschool-aged children.

This book is part of the The Adventure Series of Learning With Ocean.

Additional Information
28 Pages 

Nadia Sammurtok lovingly invites the reader into the amautik—the pouch in the back of a mother’s parka used to carry a child—to experience everything through the eyes of the baby nestled inside, from the cloudlike softness of the pouch to the glistening sound of Anaana’s laughter.

Sweet and soothing, this book offers a unique perspective that will charm readers of all ages.

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 3 and under.

Additional Information
24 pages | 7.50" x 7.50" | Board book

On the river, beaver smacks his tail, the salmon swim, and a family pull in the catch. As a member of her community, six-year-old Monica participates in the traditional salmon harvest among the picturesque scenery, cold mornings, warm fires, and extended family.

Educator Information
Recommended for kindergarten to grade 3.

This book is available in French: Dans Notre Territoire Traditionnel.

Additional Information
36 pages | 8.25" x 8.25" | Paperback

This is the true story of the journey of the Midnight Sun Mosque.

In 2010 a Winnipeg-based charity raised funds to build and ship a mosque to Inuvik, one of the most northern towns in Canada’s Arctic. A small but growing Muslim community there had been using a cramped trailer for their services, but there just wasn't enough space. The mosque travelled over 4,000 kilometers on a journey fraught with poor weather, incomplete bridges, narrow roads, low traffic wires and a deadline to get on the last barge heading up the Mackenzie River before the first winter freeze. But it made it just in time and is now one of the most northern mosques in the world.

This beautiful picture book reminds us that the collective dream of fostering a multicultural and tolerant Canada exists and that people of all backgrounds will come together to build bridges and overcome obstacles for the greater good of their neighbors.

Reviews
"Roman Catholic clerics and Gwich'in First Nations elders are present at the official opening of the new mosque. A short introduction and author's note provide additional details for consideration and discussion." - Kirkus Reviews

A simple, celebratory story of community collaboration and religious tolerance.

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 3 to 5.

Additional Information
32 pages | 10.75" x 8.75" | Hardcover 

A magical children’s picture book, written in Cree and English, depicting the transformation of a barren landscape into a rich natural world where an elderly couple can spend their remaining days.

Rooted in the historical displacement and relocation of members of the Chemawawin First Nation from their ancestral homeland, The Move is a bilingual story of two Cree Elders adjusting to life in their new environment. The story presents two contrasting landscapes of the old community—the homeland of the Chemawawin People—and the new community of Easterville, which at first appears barren and lifeless. Gradually, the couple begins to incorporate their old customs and traditions into their current surroundings. Family members begin to visit, and eventually nature begins to bloom all around them. Through traditional Cree storytelling techniques and vivid imagery, the new landscape springs to life and becomes a true community, filled with life and happiness.

Reviews
“kā-āciwīkicik / The Move is a small treasure. A wonderful story about memory, land, and kinship, and how language is integral to our relations with each other and with the land and all living things. This is a moving story of hope, wonderfully illustrated in tones that feel like earth, and with translation into Cree it invites us in, like a crackling fireplace in a log cabin, to sit with a cup of tea in hand and learn the old stories.” —Paul Seesequasis, bestselling author of Blanket Toss Under Midnight Sun

“My experience reading kā-āciwīkicik / The Move was profound. From the dreariness of relocation and searching for hope to finding happiness in reconnecting to culture—this story is both educational and poetic. Doris, Don and Alyssa balance healing in two worlds and do it beautifully through words, storyline, and graphics.” —Shayla Raine, author of The Way Creator Sees You

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 4 to 8.

Dual-Language: Cree and English.

Additional Information
48 pages | Paperback

An Indigenous story about how four extraordinary individuals of dual male and female spirit, or Mahu, brought healing arts from Tahiti to Hawaii, based on the Academy Award–contending short film.

In the 15th century, four Mahu sail from Tahiti to Hawaii and share their gifts of science and healing with the people of Waikiki. The islanders return this gift with a monument of four boulders in their honor, which the Mahu imbue with healing powers before disappearing.
 
As time passes, foreigners inhabit the island and the once-sacred stones are forgotten until the 1960s. Though the true story of these stones was not fully recovered, the power of the Mahu still calls out to those who pass by them at Waikiki Beach today.

With illuminating words and stunning illustrations by Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson, and Daniel Sousa, Kapaemahu is a monument to an Indigenous Hawaiian legend and a classic in the making.

Additional Information
40 pages | 9.50" x 9.31" | Hardcover

This is the true story behind a song that was once a hymn remembered from residential school. With the help of his family and community, especially the determination of his son, and encouraging words of his Grandmother, Knowledge Keeper Quuia Charleson (Nuu-Chah-Nulth), has reclaimed Love Your Creator and continues to share both the song and its story through oral tradition at events and on travels. Engaging illustrations by Stefan Brunette passionately portray the people and events in this exciting picture book for all ages. Discover the story and learn the strength of a song.

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 5 to 12.

This book is available in French: Aime ton Créateur: L'histoire d'une chanson de prière.

Additional Information
36 pages | 10.00" x 8.00" | Paperback