Ojibway (Ojibwe)
Synopsis:
Flow into a new season in one of Canada’s most celebrated literary landscapes, with Leaf Counter. A lyric decolonial romp through the Ontario’s famed Prince Edward County, Aginjibagwesi (Spinus tristis) draws us through the poetics of the land and the struggles of the poet as decolonizer in this new epic border-crossing collection. Golden witness to the timelessness of land and spirits, Leaf Counter criss-crossed the lands around Ameliasburgh, its ghosts, heroes, and even the poets of Purdy’s A-Frame. Leaf Counter knows of sorrow, struggle, and wends a tale in a braided narrative as he scans "light and steeple” and sees timeless men at the centre and edges of the order of things, Simon Girty, Al Purdy, Charles Bukowski, and even Bret Hart, move and shift in time and place. Leaf Counter is our celestial, Lenape, winged guide of legend and myth. And through his spring enumeration of all things, we garner an understanding of the famed Canadian poet Al Purdy and the lands that he grew from. Witness the collapse of the old repressive order through the eyes of the poet and movements of the mighty little bird.
Additional Information
148 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
The central theme of this poetry collection revolves around the idea that each individual is shaped by the connections they forge with others throughout their lives. Each poem serves as a tribute to the relationships that influence us, weaving a rich tapestry of shared experiences and emotions. The collection is guiding readers through a journey of reflection and introspection. Each poem follows a distinct outline: it begins with a cherished memory that encapsulates the essence of the relationship, then delves into the significance of that bond and what it has taught us. Next, the poems explore the evolution of these connections—whether they have transformed, faded away, or remain vibrant in our lives. As the verses unfold, they evoke sensory reminders of these individuals—objects, places, or moments that bring them to mind—while also celebrating the qualities we admire in them. The poems culminate in a heartfelt exploration of their lasting impact on our identities and the permanent marks they leave behind. Each poem becomes a mirror, inviting readers to consider their own relationships and the intricate ways in which these connections shape who they are. Through this collection, we are reminded that we are, in many ways, a mosaic of everyone we have loved, learned from, and lost along the way.
Educator & Series Information
This book is part of the Modern Indigenous Voices series.
Additional Information
96 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Since the earliest days of human memory, countless generations have turned their eyes to the skies in wonder, drawing patterns, understanding the stars’ connection to cycles and events, and carrying their stories and teachings forward to subsequent generations.
The Song of the Stars offers a unique journey through the skies, linking us to generations of ancestors who marvelled at the same stars we still gaze upon today. The book brings together Anishinaabe cultural teachings about the cosmos and the Anishinaabemowin language with scientific insights to demonstrate how both viewpoints can help us foster deeper and more meaningful relationships to the Earth and the cosmos. Robert Animikii Horton, Anishinaabemowin educator, proves that this dual perspective can be a source of awe and wonder, inspiring in us a love of both language and science.
Demonstrating how Anishinaabe cultural teachings and scientific insights can complement one another and need not be irreconcilable opposites, The Song of the Stars provides a combination of perspectives that cultivates a deeper understanding of the vast mystery surrounding our place in the universe.
Educator Information
Contents
1. In Awe of the Awe-Inspiring
2. Aki: The Earth
3. Giizis: The Sun
4. Gichi-giizis: The Solar Eclipse
5. Naawakwe: Solar Noon
6. Ma’iingan Omiikana: The Sun’s Ecliptic
7. Aadwaa’amoog: Orion’s Belt
8. Waawaate: The Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis)
9. Jiibay Miikana: The Milky Way
10. Gookomisinaan Dibiki-giizis: The Moon
11. Gaagige-giizhig: The Universe
12. Anang: Star
13. Ojiig Anang: Fisher Star
14. Ojiig: The Big Dipper
15. Gichi-Ogimaa Anang: Vega
16. Gaa-bibooniked: The Wintermaker
17. Maang: The Little Dipper
18. Bagonegiizhig: The Pleiades
19. Moonz: Pegasus
20. Onwaajige Anang: Halley’s Comet
21. Madoodiswan: Corona Borealis
22. Ma’iingan: Canis Major
23. Nanaboozhoo: Scorpius
24. Waaban Anang: The Morning Star
25. Biidaaban, Waaban, Zaagajiwens, & Mooka’am: The Process of Sunrise
26. Mishibizhiw: Leo, Cancer, and Hydra
27. Gaa-madoodood: Hercules
28. Bangishin Anang: Falling Star
29. Binesi: Cygnus
30. Mishiginebig: Draco
31. Ikwe Anang: Venus
32. Directions and More
Additional Information
120 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
Chief Stacey Laforme, an esteemed Indigenous leader and storyteller, breathes life into every poem and story, drawing upon his deep cultural roots. Rich with the essence of his soul, the poems in Beneath the Surface capture the moments and emotions that have shaped him, offering a poignant exploration of identity, resilience, and hope. Through humour and pain, Laforme invites readers to not just read, but to truly feel the weight and wisdom carried within each verse.
This collection goes beyond poetry, providing rich backstories and leadership insights that contextualize the verses. As in his earlier collections, Living in the Tall Grass and Love, Life, Loss and a little bit of hope, Laforme once again extends an invitation to readers, encouraging them to see the world through Indigenous eyes. Themes of peace, humanity, grief, and trauma are woven throughout the book, creating a tapestry of reflection, healing, and ultimately, hope.
Beneath the Surface serves as both a deeply personal reflection and a call for greater understanding and connection, illuminating the complexities of life through the lens of Indigenous wisdom and storytelling.
At the end of this book, this journey, Laforme seeks to help you better answer the following questions. Who was I, Who am I, and Who do I want to be? As a person, a people, a country, a world, who do we want to be?
Additional Information
192 pages | 8.50" x 5.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Named after the Respecting Aboriginal Values and Environmental Needs (RAVEN) nonprofit organization, The RAVEN Essays is an anthology that celebrates a decade of prize-winning student essays. Since 2012, RAVEN has awarded an annual essay prize to honour students who champion the vital importance of Indigenous rights and self-determination, both in Canada and globally. The essays featured in this collection highlight exceptional student work while reflecting on the evolving relationship between Indigenous politics and academia. From issues like fishing rights and the Trans Mountain Pipeline to challenges of sexism and conservation policy, these essays capture a transformative period in Indigenous struggles, offering insights that resonate far beyond the Canadian settler state.
The anthology also includes contributions from prominent scholars such as Glen Coulthard, Dara Culhane, Michael Fabris, Sarah Hunt, and Heather Dorries. Five complementary essays explore various aspects of structural change, institutional constraints, and broader commitments to Indigenous knowledge within university settings. Aimed at readers in Indigenous law, environmental studies, anthropology, and geography, The RAVEN Essays is a book created by students for students, and by academics for the academy.
Together, the contributors reflect on the powerful formation and enactment of Indigenous law, environmental stewardship, place-based knowledge, pedagogy, and literacy – both within the academy and in the broader community, across land, water, and culture.
This collection celebrates emerging scholars in Indigenous studies, featuring student essays that explore Indigenous justice, ethics, and environmental justice, while highlighting a decade of collaboration with RAVEN, a legal defence organization.
Educator Information
Chapters
Educator Information
306 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | 11 Illustrations | Paperback
Synopsis:
Bringing together voices from across Turtle Island, a groundbreaking collection of letters from Indigenous writers, activists, and thinkers—to their ancestors, to future generations, and to themselves.
Drawing on the wisdom and personal experience of its esteemed contributors, this first-of-its-kind anthology tackles complex questions of our times to provide a rich tapestry of Indigenous life, past, present, and future. The letters explore the histories that have brought us to this moment, the challenges and crises faced by present-day communities, and the visions that will lead us to a new architecture for thinking about Indigeneity. Taking its structure from the medicine bundle—tobacco, sage, cedar, and sweetgrass—it will stir and empower readers, as well as enrich an essential and ongoing conversation about what reconciliation looks like and what it means to be Indigenous today.
Contributors: Billy-Ray Belcourt, Cindy Blackstock, Cody Caetano, Warren Cariou, Norma Dunning, Kyle Edwards, Jennifer Grenz, Jon Hickey, Jessica Johns, Wab Kinew, Terese Marie Mailhot, Kent Monkman, Simon Moya-Smith, Pamela Palmater, Tamara Podemski, Waubgeshig Rice, David A. Robertson, Niigaan Sinclair, Miss Chief Eagle Testickle, Zoe Todd, David Treuer, Richard Van Camp, katherena vermette, Jesse Wente, Joshua Whitehead.
Additional Information
192 pages | 5.50" x 8.25" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
By the celebrated author of Canada Reads Finalist Indian Horse, a stunning new novel that has all the timeless qualities of a classic, as it tells the universal story of a father/son struggle in a fresh, utterly memorable way, set in dramatic landscape of the BC Interior. For male and female readers equally, for readers of Cormac McCarthy, Thomas King, Russell Banks, and general literary.
Franklin Starlight is called to visit his father, Eldon. He's sixteen years old and has had the most fleeting of relationships with the man. The rare moments they've shared haunt and trouble Frank, but he answers the call, a son's duty to a father. He finds Eldon decimated after years of drinking, dying of liver failure in a small town flophouse. Eldon asks his son to take him into the mountains, so he may be buried in the traditional Ojibway manner.
What ensues is a journey through the rugged and beautiful backcountry, and a journey into the past, as the two men push forward to Eldon's end. From a poverty-stricken childhood, to the Korean War, and later the derelict houses of mill towns, Eldon relates both the desolate moments of his life and a time of redemption and love and in doing so offers Frank a history he has never known, the father he has never had, and a connection to himself he never expected.
A novel about love, friendship, courage, and the idea that the land has within it powers of healing, Medicine Walk reveals the ultimate goodness of its characters and offers a deeply moving and redemptive conclusion.
Wagamese's writing soars and his insight and compassion are matched by his gift of communicating these to the reader.
Reviews
“In Medicine Walk, Wagamese manages the nuances of betrayal and redemption with uncommon artistry. It is a breathtaking novel of sorrow, hope and polished steel.” – Thomas King
“A deeply felt and profoundly moving novel, written in the kind of sure, clear prose that brings to mind the work of the great North American masters; Steinbeck among them. But Wagamese's voice and vision are also completely his own, as is the important and powerful story he has to tell.” – Jane Urquhart
“Medicine Walk recounts the mythic journey of an estranged father and son who are searching for reconciliation and love. Richard Wagamese’s novel renders the Canadian wilderness with staggering insight and beauty. The same can be said for his understanding of the fragility, wildness and resilience of the human heart. Magnificent.” – Lisa Moore
“Medicine Walk is a masterpiece, a work of art that explores human interconnectedness with a level of artistry so superb that the personal becomes eternal.” – National Post
“A moving story…. Wagamese balances the novel’s spiritual and political subtexts with sly humour, sharp, believable dialogue and superb storytelling skills. Medicine Walk is a major accomplishment from an author who has become one of Canada’s best novelists.” – Toronto Star
“This is very much a novel about the role of stories in our lives, those we tell ourselves about ourselves and those we agree to live by…. Wagamese understands that the stories we don’t tell are as important as the ones we do….But Medicine Walk is also testament to the redemptive power of love and compassion.” – Globe and Mail
“One of the finest novels of the year…. Medicine Walk is not only a graceful book, it is a novel of grace, of coming to terms with hidden truths, of coming to know the secrets behind forbidding appearances, of finding the humanity within strangers.” – Vancouver Sun
“An essential read…. Superbly written.” – Now Magazine (NNNN)
Educator & Series Information
This edition of Medicine Walk is part of the Kanata Classics series, which celebrates timeless books that reflect the rich and diverse range of voices in Canadian literature.
Grades 10-12 BC English First Peoples resource for units on Childhood, Place-Conscious Learning, and Family.
Additional Information
256 pages | 5.50" x 8.25" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Mother, Can I Say it Now? is a compelling collection of poems that delve into the beauty and depth of Indigenous poetry. It reflects the essence of everyday life and captures the spirit of belonging. The poems in this collection explore themes of identity, culture, and connection to the land. They offer a unique perspective that resonates with readers from all walks of life. From The Next Pretend-Indian to Things Abandoned in the Night, each poem tells a story that is both compelling and thought-provoking. These captivating verses are a tribute to the resilience and creativity of Indigenous voices.
Educator & Series Information
This book is part of the Modern Indigenous Voices series.
Additional Information
88 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
High Noon Neptune is a powerful poetry collection that delves into important issues of loss, love, class, and capitalism. Throughout this book, the reader is taken on a journey of survival, where the intersections of identity and oppression are explored with clarity and reverence. The poems shed light on the complexities of living in a society that is rife with discrimination and inequality, and the battles that individuals face to survive within these intersecting systems. This book fearlessly navigates through societal and personal struggles with a sharp wit and bold defiance. With each poem, David Groulx confronts and challenges the societal norms and structures that perpetuate injustice and inequality. High Noon Neptune offers a raw and unapologetic perspective on the realities of navigating life as a marginalized individual. This poetry collection is a powerful testament to the resilience and strength of those who refuse to be silenced and continue to fight for survival.
Educator & Series Information
This book is part of the Modern Indigenous Voices series.
Additional Information
88 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Growing up on the Nipissing First Nation reserve in Northern Ontario, Christian Allaire wanted to work in the fashion industry, a future that seemed like a remote, and unlikely, dream
He was first introduced to style and design through his culture’s traditional Ojibwe powwow regalia—ribbon skirts, beaded belts, elaborate headdresses. But as a teenager, he became transfixed by the high-fashion designs and runway shows that he saw on Fashion Television and in the pages of Vogue.
His unwavering interest in fashion led him to complete a journalism degree so he could pursue his goal of becoming a full-time fashion writer. After landing his first big magazine job in New York City, Allaire found himself working at the epicentre of the international fashion industry. His dream had come true. Yet he soon realized the fashion world—and his place in it—wasn’t always quite as glamorous as he imagined it would be.
From grinding as an unpaid intern, to becoming a glitzy (but overworked) fashion editor, Allaire writes with feeling about the struggle to find his place—and community—in the highly exclusive world of fashion. And he recounts, with great candour, the difficulty of balancing his ambitions with the often-inaccurate perceptions—including his own—of his culture’s place in the realm of fashion.
Full of joy, honesty, adversity, and great clothes, From the Rez to the Runway is a gripping memoir about how to achieve your dreams—and elevate others—while always remaining true to yourself.
Reviews
“Christian is a gift. He embodies the precious intersection between arts and advocacy, and is a truly grounded and inspired human being. In having such a curated, unique and sharp eye for both classic and cutting edge design, coupled with an unshakable commitment to elevating Indigenous designers, he has carved a necessary space which elevates Indian Country and the world of fashion as a whole. A true game changer whose impact will be seen and felt for generations.” — Lily Gladstone, Oscar-nominated actor
Funny, honest and utterly charming, From the Rez to the Runway lends the cliche fashion editor origin story a refreshing new perspective. With a true sense of passion and wide-eyed wonder, Christian Allaire pursues his personal quest for creativity, purpose and self-discovery and finds that staying true to one’s self brings the greatest rewards. Brimming with moving family memories from the reservation and hilarious fashion misadventures alike, the book is a must-read for all the so-called outsiders and misfits who’ve ever dared to follow their dreams. — Chioma Nnadi, Head of Editorial Content, British Vogue
From beadwork to Burberry, Christian Allaire is a force in fashion. He paints a portrait of a complicated industry rarely seen behind the scenes — let alone traversed by Indigenous writers. In this compelling and inspiring memoir, Allaire details how he carries community with him through every glass ceiling he shatters. His work, and this memoir, are a triumph. After all, ‘Don’t mess with a rez kid.’ — Devery Jacobs, Filmmaker and Actor, Reservation Dogs
There is a new generation of Fashion Transformers and Christian Allaire is leading the movement. Allaire has been chosen by spirit to shine a light on Indigenous Fashion and Art, and he has done so at the highest levels, from New York to Paris, and all around the world. He is a door opener for the truth, power, and beauty of true fashion and its creators. — Kelly Cutrone, founder of People’s Revolution and New York Times bestselling author
Additional Information
272 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Dearest Departed, I do not know when I decided I was going to write. I am not a writer. You are. You were.
Honorary twins Ally and Andy, born at the start and end of the same year, have always shared everything — until Ally dies, his passing ruled a suicide by overdose. A year later, Andy starts her first year at college without her other half, writing letters to Ally as she makes new friends who know nothing about him, falls in love for the first time, and strives to embrace her bisexuality and her Indigenous identity. When Andy discovers the poems Ally hid in their room, she pieces together these remaining fragments to make sense of her brother’s life — and his death.
A story told through letters and poems, The Fragments that Remain is a heart-wrenching and hopeful debut novel from Mackenzie Angeconeb.
Reviews
“[A] powerful exploration of identity and trauma. … An affirming account of an Indigenous teen’s experience with multiple forms of loss.” — Kirkus Reviews
“[The] Fragments that Remain takes the reader on a candid journey of brokenness and awakenings. Through layers of grief, the narrator navigates the path toward hope and healing with beautifully authentic thoughts, feelings and experiences. This novel, the first from Mackenzie Angeconeb, is a triumph.” — Valerie Sherrard, award-winning author of The Glory Wind and Standing on Neptune
Educator Information
Recommended for ages 13+.
Additional Information
270 pages | 5.37" x 8.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Dévastée par la perte de son frère aîné bien-aimé, emporté par le cancer, Bugz retourne à l'endroit où elle a toujours trouvé du réconfort et de la force : le Floraverse, un jeu vidéo multijoueurs d’envergure internationale.Au cours de l'année écoulée, elle a retrouvé petit à petit tout ce qu'elle avait perdu dans ce monde virtuel. Mieux encore, elle travaille secrètement à la création d'un robot qui sera à la fois une arme redoutable et une source d'inspiration. Le robot Waawaate ressemble à s'y méprendre au frère qui lui manque tant, et agit même comme lui.Bugz se sent prêt à le montrer à Feng, qui est devenu son compagnon de route dans le Floraverse. Elle est impatiente de faire équipe avec son ami et son robot pour démontrer sa supériorité dans le jeu. Feng a toutefois ses propres problèmes à régler, surtout lorsqu'il apprend que ses parents sont vivants et veulent le contacter. Alors qu'ils s'efforcent de surmonter leur deuil et leur perte, Feng et Bugz se rapprochent de plus en plus.Mais les perturbations dans le Floraverse ne peuvent être ignorées, surtout lorsque Bugz se rend compte que son robot Waawaate devient de plus en plus puissant, sans qu'elle puisse le contrôler.Les frontières entre le monde virtuel et le monde réel deviennent dangereusement floues pour une jeune fille autochtone dans cette passionnante suite du roman fantastique Un pied dans chaque monde, de Wab Kinew.
Educator Information
Recommended for ages 12+.
This book is part of Le Floraverse series.
This book is available in English: The Everlasting Road
Additional Information
Paperback
Synopsis:
Part coming-of-age novel, part searing examination of a community finding itself, Small Ceremonies is a tantalizing and heartbreaking debut.
“I fear for our friendship, for the day it will end, wondering when that day will be . . .”
Tomahawk Shields (a.k.a. Tommy) and Clinton Whiteway are on the cusp of adulthood, imagining a future rife with possibility and greatness. The two friends play for their high school’s poor-performing hockey team, the Tigers, who learn at the start of the new season that the league wants them out. Their annual goal is now more important than ever: to win their first game in years and break the curse.
As we follow these two Indigenous boys over the course of a year, we are given a panoptic view of Tommy and Clinton’s Winnipeg, where a university student with grand ambitions chooses to bottle her anger when confronted with numerous micro- (and not so micro-) aggressions; an ex-convict must choose between protecting or exploiting his younger brother as he’s dragged deeper into the city’s criminal underbelly; a lonely rink attendant is haunted by the memory of a past lover and contemplates rekindling this old flame; and an aspiring journalist does everything she can to uncover why the league is threatening to remove the Tigers. These are a sampling of the chorus of voices that depicts a community filled with individuals searching for purpose, leading them all to one fateful and tragic night.
Ferociously piercing the heart of an Indigenous city, Kyle Edwards's sparkling debut is a heartbreaking yet humour-flecked portrayal of navigating identity and place, trauma and recovery, and growing up in a land that doesn't love you.
Reviews
“The geographical and familial landscape of the ironically named Whiteway clan yields a subtle and fascinating portrait of growing up Native in Manitoba. The understatement underscores the intensity and contradictions of outgrowing your home and self. This is a truly fine novel.”—Percival Everett, author of James
“Small Ceremonies dropped my jaw with the glittering precision of its detail, and the life-affirming humanity of its characters. Kyle Edwards knows this world of frozen hockey rinks and fishing shacks just as intimately as he knows the warm and broken hearts of this Winnipeg community that he writes about. I haven’t been this excited about a debut in years.”—Michael Christie, author of Greenwood
"Small Ceremonies flattens the grass for us all. A power play of wit, grit, and generational spirit, phenom Kyle Edwards has you rooting for the Tigers when few will. With its scars, scores, and hard-won triumphs, this polyphony of neechies carries us through overtime into glory. A dignified, accomplished, and suave figure-eight of a novel."—Cody Caetano, author of Half-Bads in White Regalia
"In this compelling, multi-voiced first novel, Kyle Edwards carries us north to the landscape of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and into the geography of youth itself. This book—bracing, kaleidoscopic—made me relive those gritty, tender, fragile years before you are fully grown, when you still believe you can do both—stay rooted and fly free."—Danzy Senna, author of Caucasia and Colored Television
"Such a chorus of compelling voices here! I would find myself growing attached to one character only to find the next equally engaging. Edwards is, at once, bracingly honest about and deeply tender towards everyone in this novel. A stunning debut."—Aimee Bender, author of The Butterfly Lampshade
Additional Information
368 pages | 5.50" x 8.25" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
"Never let anything or anyone stop you from following where your Spirit says it belongs. . ."
Spirit exists in everything on Mother Earth. If we are open to it, Spirit may guide us through even the darkest of moments.
In this genre-defying blend of poetry and story, Ojibway and Mohawk Elder Dawn Smoke shares all that lives within her heart, mind, and soul. As a young girl confronted with the anger and pain of being scooped from her birth family, Dawn bravely discovers her truth and a path towards healing. She is unwavering in her honesty, a protector of Mother Earth, and a fierce advocate against the oppression of Indigenous people.
Reclaiming what was taken is not an easy feat, yet in doing so, Dawn illuminates the Spirit all around us. This striking memoir, told in spoken word, speaks to the devastating realities of colonization and radiates with the resilience found within culture and community.
Additional Information
120 pages | 5.50" x 8.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
A powerful anthology uniting the voices of Indigenous women, Elders, grassroots community activists, artists, academics, and family members affected by the tragedy of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit people from across Turtle Island.
In 2010, Métis artist Jaime Black-Morsette created the REDress Project—an art installation consisting of placing red dresses in public spaces as a call for justice for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit people (MMIWG2S). Symbolizing both absence and presence, the red dresses ignite a reclamation of voice and place for MMIWG2S. Fifteen years later, the symbol of the empty red dress endures as families continue to call for action.
In this anthology, Jaime Black-Morsette shares her own intimate stories and memories of the REDress Project along with the voices of Indigenous women, Elders, grassroots community activists, artists, academics, and family members affected by this tragedy. Together they use the power of their collective voice to not only call for justice for MMIWG2S, but honour Indigenous women as keepers and protectors of land, culture, and community across Turtle Island.
Reviews
“REDress is a must-read for anyone who seeks to truly understand the hearts of those most impacted by MMIWG2S. For allies and interested citizens, this anthology shows how Canada emboldened and fostered a society to inflict genocide against Indigenous women, girls, and Two-Spirited and transgendered relatives.”—Sheila North, Former Grand Chief, Creator of hashtag #MMIW, Mother and Kookom
“REDress is a love offering to MMIWG2S and those who are intimately impacted by this epidemic.”—Cathy Mattes, curator, writer, and Associate Professor in History of Art at the University of Winnipeg
"This is a moving look at how women in indigenous communities are using art and activism to keep the the issue at the forefront, despite the lack of progress in solving or preventing the crimes.... A content warning signals that the book contains language concerning violence against women. I’d offer this to activist artists or anyone interested in justice for indigenous communities, in high school and up." - Youth Services Book Review - Stephanie Tournas, Retired librarian, Cambridge, MA
Educator Information
Content Warning: This book's content deals with violence against Indigenous women, girls, and Two-Spirit people; genocide; death; intergenerational trauma; suicide; and residential schools.
Big Ideas: Diverse and Inclusive Representation: Identity; Land-Based or Place-Based Learning; Social-Emotional Learning: Death, Grief, Bereavement; Social-Emotional Learning: Self Expression, Creative Writing, Art; Social Justice: Citizenship and Social Responsibility; Social Justice: Impacts of Colonization and Colonialism; Social Justice: MMIWG2S; Social Justice: Prejudice and Racism.
Edited by: Jaime Black-Morsette
Contributions by: KC Adams, Mackenzie Anderson Linklater, Marjorie Beaucage, Christi Belcourt, Judy Da Silva, Karine Duhamel, Deantha Edmunds, Cambria Harris, Jaimie Isaac, Casey Koyczan, Crystal Lepscier, Lee-Ann Martin, Diane Maytwayashing, Cathy Merrick, Sherry Farrell Racette, Gladys Radek, Zoey Roy, Jennifer Lee Smith, and Patti Beardy.
Additional Information
168 pages | 7.00" x 10.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Cerulean Blue is a comedic play about a struggling blues band invited to participate in a benefit concert for a First Nation community in conflict with governmental authorities. Upon arriving, the band discovers the entire lineup of musical acts has cancelled and they’re left trapped behind barricades. Complicating the matter, there is conflict within the band and the sudden appearance of an old girlfriend makes the event even more perilous.
This play is an homage to fast-moving farces while also addressing Aboriginal issues. Cerulean Blue deals with relationships, perceptions, politics, and what to do when you discover you’ve been dating your first cousin. Add a few spoonfuls of original blues music, and you’ve got a fun-filled evening.
The play was written for a large ensemble cast, which makes it ideal for musical theatre departments in high schools and colleges – every student can play apart.
Cast of ten women and ten men.
Additional Information
144 pages | 7.88" x 8.47" | Paperback
Synopsis:
We clothed the royals. We fed the worker. We guided the traveler. We abetted the soldier. We are not afraid to love. So begins Carl Gawboy's groundbreaking graphic history of the Fur Trade Era. From 1650 to 1850, the Ojibwe Nation was the epicenter of the first global trading network. Trade goods from Africa, Asia, Europe, and South America flowed into the Great Lakes region, floating along Ojibwe waterways in birchbark canoes paddled by mixed-race Voyageurs. Gawboy offers a fresh perspective on the fur trade era, placing Ojibwe technology, kinship systems, cultural paradigms, and women at the heart of this remarkable era, where they have always belonged.
Additional Information
202 pages | 8.25" x 11.00" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
A poignant and inspiring memoir of the people and challenges that shaped the life and career of Canada's most decorated Indigenous athlete.
Over the course of his incredible career, Bryan Trottier set a new standard of hockey excellence. A seven-time Stanley Cup champion (four with the New York Islanders, two with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and one as an assistant coach with the Colorado Avalanche), Trottier won countless awards and is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame. In 2017, he was named one of the NHL's Top 100 Players of All Time.
Trottier grew up in Val Marie, Saskatchewan, the son of a Cree/Chippewa/Metis father and an Irish-Canadian mother. All Roads Home offers a poignant, funny, wise, and inspiring look at his coming of age, both on and off the ice. It is a unique memoir in which Trottier shares stories about family, friends, teammates, and coaches, the lessons that he has learned from them, and the profound impact they have had in shaping the person he has become.
Some of the incredible characters featured in the book include Trottier's father Buzz; legendary Islanders coach Al Arbour; teammates Clark Gillies and Mike Bossy; and the Penguins' Mario Lemieux, to name but a few. He'll also talk about the high school English teacher and guidance counsellor who helped him develop self-confidence and encouraged him as a writer: Governor General's Award–winning poet, Lorna Crozier.
All Roads Home also includes a Foreword from bestselling author Jesse Thistle (From the Ashes) and two very special Afterwords: one from Trottier's daughter, Lindsy Ruthven, and the other from his life-long friend, beloved hockey great Dave "Tiger" Williams.
Additional Information
304 pages | 5.16" x 7.95" | Paperback
Synopsis:
A brand-new, spine-chilling collection of horror/thriller fiction, Zegaajimo, Anishinaabemowin for "to tell a scary story," includes stories from eleven leading First Nations and Metis authors from across the territories of Canada: Nathan Niigan Noodin Adler, Dawn Dumont, Daniel Heath Justice, D.A. Lockhart, Karen McBride, Tyler Pennock, Waubgeshig Rice, David A. Robertson, Drew Hayden Taylor, and Richard Van Camp.
Many of the stories draw on Traditional Stories. These stories of supernatural settings and deadful dees are more than speculative fiction, they are also reminders that monsters are already in our midst, that the known can be just as frightening as the unknown, and that the slightest mistakes can have dire consequences.
The collection is co-edited by Nathan Niigan Noodin Adler and Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm. Thrilling horror, Indigenous-style, perfect for Halloween!
Additional Information
230 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
In 1997 Ted Nolan won the Jack Adams Award for best coach in the NHL. But he wouldn’t work in pro hockey again for almost a decade. What happened?
Growing up on a First Nation reserve, young Ted Nolan built his own backyard hockey rink and wore skates many sizes too big. But poverty wasn’t his biggest challenge. Playing the game meant spending his life in two worlds: one in which he was loved and accepted and one where he was often told he didn’t belong.
Ted proved he had what it took, joining the Detroit Red Wings in 1978. But when his on-ice career ended, he discovered his true passion wasn’t playing; it was coaching. First with the Soo Greyhounds and then with the Buffalo Sabres, Ted produced astonishing results. After his initial year as head coach with the Sabres, the club was being called the “hardest working team in professional sports.” By his second, they had won their first Northeast Division title in sixteen years.
Yet, the Sabres failed to re-sign their much-loved, award-winning coach.
Life in Two Worlds chronicles those controversial years in Buffalo—and recounts how being shut out from the NHL left Ted frustrated, angry, and so vulnerable he almost destroyed his own life. It also tells of Ted’s inspiring recovery and his eventual return to a job he loved. But Life in Two Worlds is more than a story of succeeding against the odds. It’s an exploration of how a beloved sport can harbour subtle but devastating racism, of how a person can find purpose when opportunity and choice are stripped away, and of how focusing on what really matters can bring two worlds together.
Reviews
"Full of incredible insights into a tough life that Teddy’s perseverance turned into inspiration. It blew me away.”—Bryan Trottier, NHL Hall of Famer
“Ted’s beautiful memoir follows a trail of losses and the pain of getting well, and his stunning successes, lifting trophies, lifting lives. Ted was able to reach so many things, but his truth went beyond these things, and it’s the story of how he went beyond, to keep what was true in front of him that makes this book so enjoyable, and so important.”—Ron MacLean, CBC sportscaster and host of Hockey Night in Canada
“Ted Nolan’s story is truly remarkable. Ted persevered and overcame significant obstacles at a time when Indigenous people were not encouraged, applauded, or even wanted in elite hockey leagues. Ted broke barriers, battled racism, worked hard, and not only became an NHL player but also an elite junior, NHL, and international coach. Ted paved the way for many Indigenous youth to not only participate, but succeed in hockey arenas across North America and Europe as coaches and players.”—Phil Fontaine, former National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations
“Playing for Ted Nolan is one of my fondest memories. People called us “The Hardest Working Team in Hockey” and that doesn’t happen without a coach who can show each player their purpose and prove his belief in them. We all played beyond our own abilities for Ted. We led the NHL in penalty minutes and no team wanted to play us in our building. I respect Ted as a coach both on and off the ice, and this book gives a hint of why he inspires that in players and in people in general.”—Rob Ray, broadcaster and former NHLer
“Teddy was my favourite coach, mentor and friend. I love Ted Nolan. This book gives a good sense of what makes him so special.”—Brad May, former NHLer, Stanley Cup winner, and AT&T SportsNet analyst
“My father was so proud of Ted; he understood what he was going through. A story of perseverance, Life in Two Worlds is a great read for any generation."—Neil Sasakamoose, son of Fred Sasakamoose, the NHL’s first Treaty Indigenous player and bestselling author of Call Me Indian
Additional Information
336 pages | 5.11" x 7.97" | 8-page colour insert | Paperback
Synopsis:
It’s summertime on the rez. The frybread is sizzling, and the local radio station plays bluegrass, Anishinaabemowin lessons, and Friday-night bingo numbers. Lenna, the youngest of the Little family, is preparing to leave home for her first year of college, with little enthusiasm or help from her stubborn father and reckless brother. Amidst lingering doubts about departing the family flock, Lenna collides into a meet-cute with the charming and awkward Sam Thomas, who is returning to the reserve after many years away. With the promise of a romance budding between them, Lenna is caught in a whirlwind of uncertainty, wondering if she’s ready to bid farewell just as she's about to take flight.
Filled with Indigenous humour, small-town seasoning, and dream-world interludes, this heartwarming love story captures the bittersweet highs and lows of a rural teenage upbringing. A love letter to community, Niizh is a refreshing coming-of-age romcom about two young lovebirds leaving the nest.
Reviews
“In Niizh, Joelle Peters offers up a profound love and simultaneous longing for family and community. She stages generational strengths—humour, caring, and insightfulness—alongside generational wounds that can keep our dearest at arm’s length. This disarmingly simple story is artfully crafted with dialogue featuring a uniquely Peters-ian dry wit. Niizh is a celebration of the joys, beauties, and challenges of a young and fiercely capable Indigenous woman.” — Tara Beagan
“I was excited about this play the first time I read it. It's smart and funny, and it's exactly what we need right now.” — Keith Barker
“Joelle can write the rez. Conveying the history, the hardship, but, more than anything, the humour and the beauty of our complicated communities. And to see those spaces on stage is a powerful thing.” — Falen Johnson
“What's most satisfying is how many themes Peters layers into the script—including the loss of Indigenous language and culture, the fear of failure of those embarking on something new and, most poignantly, the shame and anger around abandonment.” — Glenn Sumi
Additional Information
112 pages | 5.40" x 8.35" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Miskozi is searching for something...There's something missing. And she's not sure what it is. She goes on a search for herself and her culture, accompanied by her inner white girl, Waabishkizi, and guided by Ziibi, a manifestation of an ancestral river, both provoking her to try and find the answers. She begins the journey back before she was even born, right at the seeds of colonization when her ancestors were forced to hide their culture anywhere they could. Burying their language.Their teachings.Their bundles.Their moccasins. White Girls in Moccasins is a hilarious and poignant reclamation story that world-hops between dreams, memories, and a surreal game show. Miskozi recounts her life and is forced to grapple with her own truth, while existing in a society steeped in white supremacy. A love letter to brown kids born in the 80s, surviving in the 90s and all those continuing to deeply reclaim.
Additional Information
72 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Journey to the southernmost tip of the territories held by Canada. North of Middle Island opens with a collection of individual poems that capture the spirit of the relatively isolated, sparsely populated community of Pelee Island.
The pieces explore contemporary Indigenous experience in the natural and built environments of the island and surrounding waters. The book concludes with an epic, "rarely true" narrative of modern-day warriors, told in traditional Anglo-Saxon style-a new Lenape myth of how Deerwoman (Ahtuhxkwe) comes to Pelee Island. The events of this epic tale are loosely based on the infamous professional wrestler and actor Rowdy Roddy Piper's time on the island and Wrestlemania XII, Piper's notorious "Backlot Brawl" with fellow wrestler Goldust (Nkuli Punkw). Follow acclaimed Moravian of the Thames First Nation poet D.A. Lockhart on this lyrical, epic journey into the unique culture and landscapes that lie just North of Middle Island.
Additional Information
93 pages | 5.50" x 8.50"
Synopsis:
Judge, senator, and activist. Father, grandfather, and friend. This is Murray Sinclair’s story—and the story of a nation—in his own words, an oral history that forgoes the trappings of the traditional written memoir to center Indigenous ways of knowledge and storytelling. As Canada moves forward into the future of reconciliation, one of its greatest leaders guides us to ask the most important and difficult question we can ask of ourselves: Who are we?
For decades, Senator Sinclair has fearlessly educated Canadians about the painful truths of our history. He was the first Indigenous judge in Manitoba, and only the second Indigenous judge in Canadian history. He was the Chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, and remains one of the foremost voices on Reconciliation. And now, for the first time, he will share his full story—and his full vision for our nation—with readers across Canada.
Drawing on Senator Sinclair’s unique experiences, and his perspectives regarding Indigenous identity, human rights, and justice in Canada, Who We Are will examine the roles of history, resistance, and resilience in the pursuit of finding that path forward, and healing the damaged relationship between Indigenous Peoples and non-Indigenous peoples in Canada. And in doing so, it will reveal Senator Sinclair’s life in a new and direct way, exploring how all of these experiences shaped him as an Anishinaabe man, father, and grandfather.
Structured around the four questions that have long shaped Senator Sinclair’s thinking and worldview—Where do I come from? Where am I going? Why am I here? Who am I?—Who We Are will take readers into the story of his remarkable life as never before, while challenging them to embrace an inclusive vision for our shared future.
Additional Information
480 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
In The Dialogues: The Song of Francis Pegahmagabow, award-winning author Armand Garnet Ruffo brings to life not only the story of the famed WWI Indigenous sniper, but also the complexities of telling Indigenous stories. From Manitoulin Island to the trenches of WWI to the stage, Ruffo moves seamlessly through time in these poems, taking the reader on a captivating journey through Pegahmagabow’s story and onto the creation of Sounding Thunder, the opera based on his life. Throughout, Ruffo uses the Ojibwe concept of two-eyed seeing, which combines the strengths of western and Indigenous ways of knowing, and invites the reader to do the same, particularly through the inclusion of the Anishinaabemowin language within the collection. These are poems that challenge western conventions of thinking, that celebrate hope and that show us a new way to see the world.
Additional Information
120 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
From Tanya Talaga, the critically acclaimed and award-winning author of Seven Fallen Feathers, comes a riveting exploration of her family’s story and a retelling of the history of the country we now call Canada
For generations, Indigenous People have known that their family members disappeared, many of them after being sent to residential schools, “Indian hospitals” and asylums through a coordinated system designed to destroy who the First Nations, Métis and Inuit people are. This is one of Canada’s greatest open secrets, an unhealed wound that until recently lay hidden by shame and abandonment.
The Knowing is the unfolding of Canadian history unlike anything we have ever read before. Award-winning and bestselling Anishinaabe author Tanya Talaga retells the history of this country as only she can—through an Indigenous lens, beginning with the life of her great-great grandmother Annie Carpenter and her family as they experienced decades of government- and Church-sanctioned enfranchisement and genocide.
Deeply personal and meticulously researched, The Knowing is a seminal unravelling of the centuries-long oppression of Indigenous People that continues to reverberate in these communities today.
Additional Information
480 pages | 6.12" x 9.25" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
Tap into guidance from the animal spirit realm and connect to ancestral wisdom with this transformative 44-card deck and guidebook from Indigenous Medicine Woman and author of You Are the Medicine and The Sacred Medicine Oracle, Asha Frost.
Everything is interconnected. All of creation carries a spirit. Indigenous people have always had a sacred relationship with animals and treated them as honored elders. Animal beings in the spirit realm are part of our spiritual support team as allies and medicine keepers, ready to help, waiting to remind you of your humanity and deep connection to the natural world.
With 44 Elder Animals depicted in a richly detailed traditional Ojibway art style, each card carries its own unique medicine. This deck offers meaningful insights and messages to guide you on your path both from the universe and in the voice of an animal spirit guide from the lands of the Ojibway people—from Elder Artic Hare to Elder Wolf. Whether you're seeking clarity, healing, or a deeper connection to your ancestral lineage, these cards provide a bridge to the spirit world.
Use this deck your rituals and ceremonies, do readings with it for your clients and friends, and share it with your communities. As the medicine ripples out, hold Indigenous people in your heart and honor how their history continues to impact your current reality.
Additional Information
128 pages | 3.50" x 5.00" | Card Deck & Guidebook
Synopsis:
Human Stories series by Jason Bone Oshkaabewis (Helper/Writer) and Midewid (One Who Works With the Sound of the Drum), Ron Indian-Mandamin. Baagak (The Flying Skeleton) is a Being known by many. With Tellings of Baagak by Keith Berens, Isaac Murdoch, and more.
Educator & Series Information
Recommended for grades 10 to 12.
This book is Volume 1 in the Human Stories series.
Additional Information
96 Pages | Paperback
Synopsis:
The third edition of this iconic collection features Indigenous feminist voices from across generations and locations, including many exciting new contributors.
The third edition of the iconic collection Making Space for Indigenous Feminism features feminist, queer and two-spirit voices from across generations and locations.
Feminism has much to offer Indigenous women, and all Indigenous Peoples, in their struggles against oppression. Indigenous feminists in the first edition fought for feminism to be considered a valid and essential intellectual and activist position. The second edition animated Indigenous feminisms through real-world applications. This third edition, curated by award-wining scholar Gina Starblanket, reflects and celebrates Indigenous feminism’s intergenerational longevity through the changing landscape of anti-colonial struggle and theory. Diverse contributors examine Indigenous feminism’s ongoing relevance to contemporary contexts and debates, including queer and two-spirit approaches to decolonization, gendered and sexualized violence, storytelling and narrative, digital and land-based presence, Black and Indigenous relationalities and more. This book bridges generations of powerful Indigenous feminist thinking to demonstrate the movement’s cruciality for today.
Reviews
“This collection is all feast, no fluff. It covers foundational elements of Indigenous feminism with depth and breadth and engages issues of national and international importance with considerable insight. Due to its readability and smart use of theory, this book is eminently teachable. I haven't highlighted this much in a long time.”— Margaret Robinson, Canada Research Chair in Reconciliation, Gender, and Identity
“This volume offers a view of the development and expansion of Indigenous feminisms as theory and praxis, reaffirming the validity of our respective Indigenous epistemologies to guide us into the future.”— Jennifer Nez Denetdale (Diné), University of New Mexico
“Multiplying are the calls for transformative healing issued by Indigenous feminism which is, at its core, about Indigenous sovereignty, solidarity, and liberatory justice for all. The diverse and incisive essays in Making Space for Indigenous Feminism (3rd ed) expose ongoing cis-heteropatriarchal settler colonialism, anti-Indigenous racism, and the erasure of gender and sexual diversity (including by Indigenous people ourselves), and their impacts upon minds, bodies, lived experiences, and relationships. Resistance and hope abound in the re-centring of (queer) Indigenous feminist futurisms: world-building that honours the self-determination of Indigenous women, girls, Two-Spirit, and trans folks, and promotes wellbeing for all of Creation.”— Chantal Fiola, author and associate professor, University of Manitoba
“This third edition continues to fulfill the promise of the title to make space for feminist interventions in Canadian Indigenous studies. Each author is committed to relational ethics and transformative praxis in addressing the most pressing issues that create epistemic and material injustices. From the heart rendering an intimate state-of-the-field assessment from pillars in the field, the politics of gender, policy, and violence manifested in Canada currently, to its latter chapters that open up new spaces by continuing to press for just Indigenous futures, of which decentering binaries of gender and sexuality is necessary, we see the importance of Indigenous feminist theorizing and praxis. Confronting gendered violence, heterosexism, disciplinary regimes, and colonialism with honesty and truth telling, Making Space generously offers us new paths to materialize a decolonial world.”— Mishuana Goeman, author of Mark My Words and Settler Aesthetics: Visualizing the Spectacle of Originary Moments in The New World
“Making Space for Indigenous Feminism provides us with powerful voices emerging from and incorporating past, present, and future. Each chapter continues to make space for the power of Indigenous feminisms, as women, femme, Queer, LGBTQS+ and Mad think together in a powerful analysis of our now. This latest edition of a classic, newly edited by Gina Starblanket, includes Elders and youth and brings us back to why Indigenous feminisms are the embodied, lived and felt knowledges that will inform our struggles going forward.”— Dian Million, University of Washington, American IndianStudies
Educator Information
Table of Contents
Extending Our Accounts of Indigenous Feminism—Joyce Green and Gina Starblanket
Section I: Home | Identity | Legacies
- Always Coming Home: Indigenous Identity, Indigenous Feminism, Scholarship and Life—Joyce Green
- Why Am I a Feminist?—Emma LaRocque
- Settler Colonialism in Canada: Making “Indian” Women Disappear—Mary Eberts, Shelagh Day, Sharon McIvor
Section II: Institutions | Representation | Resistance
- Red Ticket Women: Revisiting the Political Contributions of the Indian Rights for Indian Women’s Movement—Gina Starblanket
- Perpetual State of Violence: An Indigenous Feminist Anti-Oppression Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls—Robyn Bourgeois
- Gender Reveals that Matter: Cis-Heteropatriarchy, Settler Colonialism, and Child Welfare—Megan Scribe
Section III: Land | Relationality | Love
- Towards an Anti-Colonial Feminist Care Ethic—Eva Jewell
- Our Movements Need some Love as Well: Indigenous Land Defense and Relationality—Isabel Altamirano-Jimenez
- Mana Wahine and Mothering at the Loʻi: A Two-Spirit/Queer Analysis—Hōkūlani K. Aikau
Section IV: Decoloniality | Movement | Futurities
- Decolonization is a Queer Desire: Poetics, Politics, Negativity—Billy-Ray Belcourt
- Mad Indigenous Womanhood and the Psycho-Politics of Settler Colonialism—Cara Peacock
- On Black and Indigenous Relationality: A Conversation—Gina Starblanket, Robyn Maynard, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson
- Decolonization is Also Metaphorical: Indigenous Feminist and Queer-Two-Spirit Storywork Matters—Kelly Aguirre
Additional Information
320 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Exploring reconciliation and connection through a story that spans seven generations, Frozen River (nîkwatin sîpiy) tells the story of two eleven-year-olds through the eyes of Grandmother Moon. Eilidh and Wâpam are born under the same blood moon, but Eilidh was born in Scotland and Wâpam in Kihci-Manito kâ ayapit, now known as Manitoba. After sailing across the ocean in hopes of a more prosperous life, Eilidh meets Wâpam deep in the forest, and the two become instant friends. Coming from vastly different worlds, Eilidh and Wâpam decide to teach each other about their ways of life. But when a sacred promise between them is broken, the relationship among cultures becomes jeopardized for generations to come.
Frozen River (nîkwatin sîpiy) shows audiences that an openness to learn from those who have protected and honoured the waterways for centuries can lead to healing and reconciliation.
Awards
- 2021 Sharon Enkin Plays for Young People Award winner
Reviews
"The show’s script cleverly makes important issues digestible for young audiences."— Van City Vince
Educator Information
Recommended for ages 8 to 14.
Additional Information
88 pages | 5.37" x 8.38" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Ezra Cloud hates living in Northeast Minneapolis. His father is a professor of their language, Ojibwe, at a local college, so they have to be there. But Ezra hates the dirty, polluted snow around them. He hates being away from the rez at Nigigoonsiminikaaning First Nation. And he hates the local bully in his neighborhood, Matt Schroeder, who terrorizes Ezra and his friend Nora George.
Ezra gets into a terrible fight with Matt at school defending Nora, and that same night, Matt’s house burns down. Instantly, Ezra becomes a prime suspect. Knowing he won’t get a fair deal, and knowing his innocence, Ezra’s family sends him away to run traplines with his grandfather in a remote part of Canada, while the investigation is ongoing. But the Schroeders are looking for him…
From acclaimed author Anton Treuer comes a novel that’s both taut thriller and a raw, tender coming-of-age story, about one Ojibwe boy learning to love himself through the love of his family around him.
Reviews
“Where Wolves Don't Die will lift you up and not let you down. Anton Treuer knows how to tell a gripping story and the suspense doesn't let up for a single page. Along the way you'll learn about Ojibwe lifeways, languages, sharp jokes, gentle humor, and how to keep romantic love alive from youth to old age. I couldn't put this book down until I'd finished it, and then, I could not forget it.”—Louise Erdrich, Pulitzer Prize winner and owner of Birchbark Books
“I am in awe, crying and smiling at the same time. Where Wolves Don’t Die is a love letter to our Ancestors.”—Angeline Boulley
“Treuer immerses the reader in Ojibwe culture in this suspenseful novel of wilderness survival… An essential illumination of contemporary Indigenous life.”—Booklist
Educator Information
Recommended for ages 12 to 18.
Set in the Canadian wilderness, Where Wolves Don't Die is a thrilling YA coming-of-age novel that has garnered praise from Angeline Boulley, Booklist, and more. A suspenseful adventure tale for teens.
Additional Information
256 pages | 5.50" x 8.25" | Hardcover
Synopsis:
In this engrossing graphic novel, teen hockey player Chase learns more about himself and his identity in the face of prejudice and homophobia.
Thirteen-year-old Chase’s life and identity should be simple. He’s the goalie for his hockey team, the Eagles. He’s a friend to Kevin and Jade. He's Kookum's youngest grandchild. He’s a boy. He should like girls.
But it’s not that simple. Chase doesn’t like girls the way that the other boys do. It’s scary being so different from his peers. Scarier still is the feeling that his teammates can tell who he is—and that they hate him for it. If he pretends hard enough, maybe he can hide the truth.
Real strength and change can’t come from a place of shame. Chase’s dreams are troubled by visions of a bear spirit, and the more he tries to hide, the more everything falls apart. With the help of an Elder, and a Two-Spirit mentor, can Chase find the strength to be proud of who he is?
Between the Pipes explores toxic masculinity in hockey through the experiences of an Indigenous teen.
Reviews
“Highlights the importance of community and cultural connection as roots for embracing one’s identity.” — Kirkus Reviews
“The authors deftly confront multiple layers of intolerance exacerbated by toxic masculinity. Ojibwe artist RL uses saturated full color (with well-placed, empowering rainbows) to capture Chase’s self-empowering journey. The result is a compelling, hope-giving antidote against potential at-risk suicide among 2-Spirit/Indigenous LGBTQQIA+ youth.” — Booklist
“This hopeful...story offers valuable insight into Chase’s experience as a gay, Indigenous teen. Hockey and identity collide in this affirming graphic novel about recognizing and valuing one’s authentic self.” — School Library Journal
Educator Information
Recommended for ages 12 - 18.
Reading Level: Fountas & Pinnell Y
Additional Information
56 pages | 6.50" x 10.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
In this moving graphic novel, thirteen-year-old Reanna grieves the loss of her older sister. Can she find comfort through her family’s Ojibwe traditions?
It’s been a year since Reanna’s sister, Chelsea, went missing on her way home from school. Without any idea of what happened, Reanna and her family struggle to find closure.
Driven from their home by memories, Reanna’s mom moves to the big city. Left behind on the reserve, Reanna and her little brother go to live with their dad.
Reanna is hurt and angry that her mom has run away. She feels lonely, abandoned… but she is not alone. Lights turn on in empty rooms, and objects move without being touched.
There are little moons everywhere.
Reviews
"Little Moons has all the hallmarks of becoming a cherished companion for young hearts navigating the turbulent waters of grief and loss. This graphic novel not only offers solace but also illuminates the path toward healing. Little Moons gently guides readers through the darkest of nights, reminding them that even in moments of profound sadness, there is still light to be found."—Tasha Spillett, New York Times bestselling author
Educator Information
Recommended for ages 12 to 18.
Subjects, Themes, and Big Ideas: Death, Grief, Siblings, Paranormal, Graphic Novels, Socail Justice, MMIWG2S, Prejudice and Racism, Social Emotional Learning, Aspects of Indigenous Cultures, Smudging, Powwow, Spirituality and Ceremony, Regalia, Traditional Art, Contemporary Setting, Strong Female Characters.
Fountas & Pinnell Z+
Additional Information
64 pages | 6.50" x 10.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Affectée par le départ de sa mère, Tiffany, une jeune Anishinaabe, cherche à prendre en main son existence, entre son père et sa Mamie Ruth, sur la réserve de Lac-aux-Loutres, dans le centre de l’Ontario.Alors qu’elle compose déjà difficilement avec l’autorité de son père, les exigences de l’école et le début d’une relation amoureuse avec un garçon non autochtone, Tiffany voit sa vie bousculée par un mystérieux personnage, Pierre L’Errant, que son père a décidé de prendre comme chambreur.Celui-ci, qui dit débarquer d’Europe, fait une drôle d’apparition dans ce village où jamais un touriste ne met les pieds. Mamie Ruth, qui en a vu d’autres, n’est cependant pas dupe de ses histoires et devine qu’il camoufle d’épouvantables démons intérieurs.Auteur de nombreux romans et de pièces de théâtre, Drew Hayden Taylor, lui-même Anishinaabe, a voulu écrire un « roman gothique autochtone » où il aborde les défis de l’adolescence, la transmission de la culture et, surtout, la nécessité de ne jamais abandonner.
Educator Information
This book is available in English: The Night Wanderer: A Native Gothic Novel
Additional Information
330 pages | 4.72" x 7.48"
Synopsis:
“We should not have to change to fit into society the world should adapt to embrace our uniqueness.” -- Chief Stacey Laforme
Chief Stacey Laforme breathes life into every poem and story he shares, drawing from his own experiences. Rich with the essence of his soul, the poems in this book capture the moments and emotions that have shaped him. His desire is for readers to not just read, but to truly feel the humour and pain intertwined in these poems. Much like in Living in the Tall Grass, this latest poetry collection invites non-Indigenous people to see through the eyes of Indigenous people with topics of peace and humanity, as well as grief, trauma ... and hope.
Reviews
"Thought provoking, healing meditations. Giima Laforme writes from his perspective as a son, father, husband, community leader, but most of all as a human being. He invites us to walk with him, and to see the world as he sees it. Not only is this an invitation we should accept, but it is also a beautiful and generous gift." — Kevin Hearn, musician
"Chief Stacey Laforme writes with the motive of love, and poetry is his instrument. When considering the unmarked graves at residential schools, Chief Laforme’s poem ‘Debwewin—Truth’ freezes you with the line, “She felt the shovels enter her body.” But as you will see, there is always hope. Chief has both the scalpel and the suture. He cuts, then he cures." —Ron MacLean, broadcaster
Additional Information
160 pages | 8.50" x 5.50" | Paperback | 3 b&w illustrations
Synopsis:
Bugz, une adolescente autochtone, se retrouve à cheval entre deux univers : la réalité et le monde virtuel (le « Floraverse »). Dans le monde réel, elle est timide et mal dans sa peau. Elle vit du stress sous différentes formes – anxiété adolescente et vie en réserve obligent. Mais dans le monde virtuel, loin de la « Rez », son alter ego a non seulement pleine confiance en elle-même, mais domine complètement le jeu dans cet univers vidéo multijoueur d’envergure internationale. Bugz rencontre Feng, un jeune dissident expulsé par la Chine et venu vivre avec sa tante médecin sur la réserve. Bugz et Feng s’entendent immédiatement à merveille : deux marginaux et avides joueurs en ligne. Mais la relation est mise à mal lorsque Bugz se voit trahie et que tout ce qu’elle a bâti dans le jeu s’écroule. Il leur faudra à tous deux puiser dans des forces insoupçonnées pour restaurer leur amitié et réconcilier les aspects parallèles de leurs vies : la tradition avec la culture de masse, l’Orient et l’Occident, le réel et le virtuel…
Educator Information
Recommended for ages 12+.
This book is part of the Le Floraverse series.
This book is available in English: Walking in Two Worlds
Additional Information
Paperback
Synopsis:
Krie Redsky is an extraordinary Indigenous child who has both a curse and blessing that allows him to walk between this world and the Spirit Realm. He is also at an age where he is learning to cope with the twists and turns of friendships, the awkwardness of first love, and the self-doubt that must be overcome following loss and betrayal. But, nurtured by Knowledge Keepers as “one who is without fear, and with the ability to cross realities,” he is soon recognized as an individual who can – and will – battle the terrifying ancient spirit stealers known as Bonewalkers. But is he strong enough for what is to come?
Additional Information
236 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Ceremony, community and connection - the poems of Once the Smudge is Lit carry the reader into deeply spiritual elements of Nishnaabe/Ojibwe culture. Co-written by Cole Forrest and Kelsey Borgford, the poetry of Once the Smudge is Lit highlights the Indigenous experience in post-colonial times through explorations of themes ranging from love to community. Bogford's and Forrest's verses seek to open a multidimensional window into the experience of being a contemporary Nishaabe. A profound sense of movement, connection, and continuity is emphasized by Tessa Pizzale's beautifully evocative illustrations, which include a line of smudge smoke that flows from page to page from beginning to end.
Additional Information
50 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | 50 Illustrations | Paperback
Synopsis:
The boundaries between the virtual and the real world become dangerously blurred for a young Indigenous girl in the follow-up to the YA fantasy debut Walking in Two Worlds from bestselling Indigenous author Wab Kinew.
Devastated by the loss of her beloved older brother to cancer, Bugz returns to the place where she can always find solace and strength: the Floraverse. Over the past year, she has gained back all that she had lost in that virtual world, and while the remaining ClanLess members still plot against her, she is easily able to overcome their attacks. Even better, she's been secretly working on a bot that will be both an incredible weapon and a source of comfort: Waawaate.
With the Waawaate bot looking exactly like the brother she misses so much — even acting so much like him — Bugz feels ready to show him off to Feng, who has become a constant companion in the Verse, and she cannot wait to team up with both friend and bot to secure her dominance once and for all. But Feng has his own issues to deal with, especially when news that his parents are alive and want to contact him threatens to send his new life on the Rez into upheaval.
As they work through their complicated feelings of grief and loss, Feng and Bugz find themselves becoming ever closer. But disturbances in the Floraverse cannot be ignored, especially when Bugz realizes that her Waawaate bot is growing in powers beyond her control . . .
Educator & Series Information
Recommended for ages 12+.
This book is part of The Floraverse series.
This book is available in French: La Route sans fin
Additional Information
272 pages | 5.50" x 8.25" | Paperback
Synopsis:
A tragic plane crash that leaves two women stranded and fighting for their lives kicks off this sweeping and hilarious novel from award-winning writer Drew Hayden Taylor that blends thriller, murder mystery, and horror with humour and spectacle.
Elmore Trent is a professor of Indigenous studies who finds himself entangled in an affair that's ruining his marriage; Paul North plays in the IHL (Indigenous Hockey League), struggling to keep up with the game that's passing him by; Detective Ruby Birch is chasing a string of gruesome murders, with clues that conspicuously lead her to both Elmore and Paul. And then there's Fabiola Halan, former journalist-turned-author and famed survivor of a plane crash that sparked a nationwide tour promoting her book.
What starts off as a series of subtle connections between isolated characters quickly takes a menacing turn, as it becomes increasingly clear that someone—or something—is hunting them all.
Taking tropes from the murder mystery, police procedural, thriller, and horror genres, Drew Hayden Taylor weaves a pulse-pounding and propulsive narrative with an intricate cast of characters, while never losing the ability to make you laugh.
Reviews
"Cold is an absolutely enthralling novel from a legendary writer and storyteller. Drew Hayden Taylor is a master of genuinely capturing contemporary Indigenous realities in fiction, making the vibrant characters in this exceptional story relatable and real. Cold is creepy and funny, smart and lively, and overall a strikingly dynamic book that will keep readers on edge from start to finish."—Waubgeshig Rice, author of Moon of the Crusted Snow and Moon of the Turning Leaves
"The myth of the Wendigo has shaped narratives from Pet Semetary to Shadow Country to The Hunger—but never in my reading has it been so cleverly and relevantly employed as it is in Drew Hayden Taylor's serpentine and haunting new novel, Cold." —Nick Cutter, author of The Troop and Little Heaven
Additional Information
368 pages | 5.50" x 8.25" | Paperback
Synopsis:
A prominent Indigenous voice uncovers the lies and myths that affect relations between white and Indigenous peoples and the power of narrative to emphasize truth over comfort.
Part memoir and part manifesto, Unreconciled is a stirring call to arms to put truth over the flawed concept of reconciliation and to build a new, respectful relationship between the nation of Canada and Indigenous peoples.
Jesse Wente remembers the exact moment he realized that he was a certain kind of Indian--a stereotypical cartoon Indian. He was playing softball as a child when the opposing team began to war-whoop when he was at bat. It was just one of many incidents that formed Wente's understanding of what it means to be a modern Indigenous person in a society still overwhelmingly colonial in its attitudes and institutions.
As the child of an American father and an Anishinaabe mother, Wente grew up in Toronto with frequent visits to the reserve where his maternal relations lived. By exploring his family's history, including his grandmother's experience in residential school, and citing his own frequent incidents of racial profiling by police who'd stop him on the streets, Wente unpacks the discrepancies between his personal identity and how non-Indigenous people view him.
Wente analyzes and gives voice to the differences between Hollywood portrayals of Indigenous peoples and lived culture. Through the lens of art, pop culture, and personal stories, and with disarming humour, he links his love of baseball and movies to such issues as cultural appropriation, Indigenous representation and identity, and Indigenous narrative sovereignty. Indeed, he argues that storytelling in all its forms is one of Indigenous peoples' best weapons in the fight to reclaim their rightful place.
Wente explores and exposes the lies that Canada tells itself, unravels "the two founding nations" myth, and insists that the notion of "reconciliation" is not a realistic path forward. Peace between First Nations and the state of Canada can't be recovered through reconciliation--because no such relationship ever existed.
Reviews
"Unreconciled is one hell of a good book. Jesse Wente’s narrative moves effortlessly from the personal to the historical to the contemporary. Very powerful, and a joy to read."—Thomas King, author of The Inconvenient Indian and Sufferance
“With Unreconciled, Jesse Wente proves himself to be one of the most influential Anishinaabe thinkers of our time. By telling his own story, Jesse provides Canada with an essential roadmap of how to move forward through the myth of reconciliation towards the possibility of a just country. There is much work to be done but reading Jesse’s words, soaking them in and letting them settle in your mind, will set us all on the right path.”—Tanya Talaga, bestselling author of Seven Fallen Feathers
“Mahsi cho, Jesse Wente, for illuminating the biggest issue facing Canada’s relationship with Indigenous people: Canada fears Indigenous people because Canada is terrified of our power. Each language class, culture camp, graduation ceremony, each Supreme Court Ruling, each Treaty (that wasn't forged), each feast and naming ceremony… is part of the incredible Reclaiming happening right now. Please read this book. It's an infuriating read but a necessary one.”—Richard Van Camp, author of The Lesser Blessed and Moccasin Square Gardens
"With Unreconciled, Jesse Wente proves he's a storyteller through and through—one who is unafraid of telling hard but necessary truths, yes, but also one who knows that vulnerability is the quickest way to the heart. Wente shares so generously with his readers in this book, braiding together his own past with the problems of the present, ultimately offering us a way forward, together."—Alicia Elliott, author of A Mind Spread Out on the Ground
Additional Information
208 pages | 5.10" x 7.98" | Paperback
Synopsis:
A landmark publication bringing together more than seventy voices illuminating the rich array of Indigenous art held by the McMichael Canadian Art Collection.
Under the editorial direction of Anishinaabe artist and scholar Bonnie Devine, Early Days gathers the insights of myriad Indigenous cultural stakeholders, informing us on everything from goose hunting techniques, to the history of Northwest Coast mask-making, to the emergence of the Woodland style of painting and printmaking, to the challenges of art making in the Arctic, to the latest developments in contemporary art by Indigenous peoples from across Turtle Island.
Splendidly illustrated, Early Days not only tells the story of a leading collection but also traces the emergence and increasing participation of many Indigenous artists in the contemporary art world. This publication will be the largest in the history of the McMichael, and represents a vital acknowledgment of the place of Indigenous art and ways of knowing in global art history.
Featured contributors: Barry Ace, Leland Bell, Dempsey Bob, Christian Chapman, Violet Chum, Hannah Claus, Dana Claxton, Jisgang Nika Collison, Alan Corbiere, Marcia Crosby, Ruth Cuthand, Mique'l Dangeli, Joe David, Sarah Davidson, Robert Davidson, Bonnie Devine, Tarralik Duffy, Norma Dunning, David Garneau, John Geoghegan, Janice Grey, Haay'uups (Ron Hamilton), Jim Hart, Emma Hassencahl-Perley, Emily Henderson, Lynn A. Hill, Richard Hill, Maria Hupfield, Jaimie Isaac, Heather Igoliorte, Luis Jacob, Gayle Kabloona, William Kingfisher, Jessica Kotierk, Robin Laurence, Duane Linklater, Ange Loft, Tanya Lukin Linklater, Jean Marshal, Michael Massie, Gerald McMaster, Ossie Michelin, Sarah Milroy, Antoine Mountain, Nadia Myre, Jeneen Frei Njootli, Ruth Phillips, Jocelyn Piirainen, Ryan Rice, Carmen Robertson, Paul Seesequasis, Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, Wedlidi Speck, Clyde Tallio, Drew Hayden Taylor, Nakkita Trimble-Wilson, Jesse Tungilik, Camille Georgeson Usher, William Wasden Jr., Jordan Wilson, Jessica Winters.
Additional Information
400 pages | 11.00" x 10.00" | 200 Colour Photographs | Hardcover
Synopsis:
Brandi Bird's frank, transcendent poetry explores the concepts of health, language, place, and memory in this long-anticipated debut collection.
Brandi Bird's long-anticipated debut poetry collection, The All + Flesh, explores the concepts of health, language, place, and memory that connect its author to their chosen kin, blood relatives, and ancestral lands. By examining kinship in broader contexts, these frank, transcendent poems expose binaries that exist inside those relationships, then inspect and tease them apart in the hope of moving toward decolonial future(s). Bird's work is highly concerned with how outer and inner landscapes move and change within the confines of the English language, particularly the "I" of the self, a tradition of movement that has been lost for many who don't speak their Indigenous languages or live on their homelands. By exploring the landscapes the poet does inhabit, both internally and externally, Bird's poems seek to delve into and reflect their cultural lineages-specifically Saulteaux, Cree, and Métis-and how these transformative identities shape the person they are today.
I am made of centuries & carbohydrates
the development of my molars
the hunger the teeth grew
has been with me since childhood
I can't escape the mouths of others
Awards
- 2024 Poetry in English, Indigenous Voices Awards
Reviews
"Since hearing Brandi Bird at a reading in a park in summertime recite the lines, "I know / then that there is hope / until I die & then / there is other / people's hope," I have thought about them many times, they have merged with my own consciousness. That's the power of Bird's poems-they resonate at such a visceral and cerebral level that they become a part of you. The All + Flesh marks the arrival of an endlessly moving and astounding voice in Indigenous poetry. I, for one, will be reading these poems for the rest of my life." — Billy-Ray Belcourt, author of A MINOR CHORUS
"In The All + Flesh, Brandi Bird maps the psychic space between 'NDN compartmentalization' and split prairies, from bus depots to 'endocrine storms,' from LiveJournal to a living history of relocation under land theft. 'My body is not an empire but first contact happened at / birth' and 'I eat / until my mouth needles / the dark.' With exacting lucidity, Bird's lyrics chart the body as a reservoir for colonial malice, a site of resistance, and a conduit for a voice that is visceral, immediate, and uncompromising. An absolute triumph of a debut."— Liz Howard, author of Letters in a Bruised Cosmos
Additional Information
96 pages | 6.00" x 8.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Métis writer and educator Nikki Soliman walks children through the importance of mental health and wellness in Magnificent Magnetic Me. This book examines the importance of embracing the tools needed to stay positive. It teaches about the power of thoughts and words and the energy we attract.
Educator Information
Recommended for grades 5 to 8.
Additional Information
32 Pages | Paperback
Synopsis:
From epic ventures into mythic and fantastical tales to the everyday trials of getting the laundry done, NShannacappo’s debut poetry collection follows many journeys through darkness to hope, healing and heroism. Pure and hauntingly beautiful turns of phrase sound out in the voices of angels, monsters and demons, mythic characters, and the sometimes wry, sometimes grieving voice of a man once broken in heart, spirit, and mind. Through the Eyes of Asunder begins and ends with hope, and takes the reader through sorrow and sadness to bright moments of happiness and love.
Reviews
“Neal Shannacappo is a spiritual thinker. The poetry and life’s perspectives he shares in this collation remind us of the unconditional love and support one can access through the Creator-given learning ways we as human beings are blessed to be born with. Read his words! Feed them to your heart, digest them spiritually and you will benefit from the medicine intended in every word and stanza.”—Albert Dumont, 2021–2022 Poet Laureate for Ottawa and author of Sitting by the Rapids.
“Reading this book, it felt many times like I had stumbled upon a shoebox filled with letters not sent and journals put away for safekeeping. You feel like you shouldn’t pry, but you just can’t help yourself. It was a wonderful read.”—John Brady McDonald, author of KITOTAM
Additional Information
143 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | 6 illustrations | Paperback
Synopsis:
Connect with healing traditions, stories, ancestral wisdom, and animal guidance through this 56-card deck and guidebook from Indigenous Medicine Woman and author of You Are the Medicine, Asha Frost.
Indigenous people know the power of earth and spirit medicine. Everything in our natural world is interconnected and sacred. The plants, animals, rocks, waters, stars, moon are our relations, our kin. Every aspect of creation has a spirit. This spirit lives in all things and informs us how to walk in a good way or, in Anishinaabemowin, Mino-bimaadiziwin.
The Sacred Medicine Oracle was birthed to invite readers into a conscious and respectful relationship with medicine teachings, awakening a daily connection to your own inner divinity, power, and wisdom. From the powerful remembering of "Past Life Medicine" to the promise of miracles with "Jingle Dress," each of the 56 cards depicts ceremony, traditions, moon phases, animal guides, and plant allies, all of them alive with energy and blessed with healing intentions from the ancestors.
Additional Information
144 pages | 4.88" x 5.38" | 56 Cards and Guidebook
Synopsis:
In this collection of two plays about the process of children becoming adults, Drew Hayden Taylor works his delightfully comic and bitter-sweet magic on the denials, misunderstandings and preconceptions which persist between Native and Colonial culture in North America.
In “The Boy in the Treehouse,” Simon, the son of an Ojibway mother and a British father, climbs into his half-finished tree house on the vision-quest his books say is necessary forhim to reclaim his mother’s culture. “It’s a Native thing,” he informs his incredulous father (who tells him he’d never heard of such a thing from his wife): “Only boys do it. It’s part of becoming a man.” Of course, what with the threats of the police, the temptation of the barbeque next door, and the distractions of a persistent neighbourhood girl, Simon probably wouldn’t recognize a vision if he fell overit.
“Girl Who Loved Her Horses” is the Native name for the strange and quiet Danielle from the non-status community across the tracks, imbued with the mysterious power to draw the horse “every human being on the planet wanted but could never have.” She is and remains an enigma to the people of the reservation, but the power of her spirit remains strong. Years later, a huge image of her horse reappears, covering an entire side of a building in a blighted urban landscape of beggars and broken dreams. The eyes of her stallion, which once gleamed exhilaration and freedom, now glare with defiance and anger. Danielle has clearly been forced to grow up.
With these two plays, Taylor rediscovers an issue long forgotten in our “post-historical” age: the nature of, and the necessity for, these rites of passage in all cultures.
Additional Information
160 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
From the 1960s through the 1980s the Canadian Children's Aid Society engaged in a large-scale program of removing First Nations children from their families and communities and adopting them out to non-Indigenous families. This systemic abduction of untold thousands of children came to be known as the Sixties Scoop. The lasting disruption from the loss of family and culture is only now starting to be spoken of publicly, as are stories of strength and survivance.
In Silence to Strength: Writings and Reflections on the 60s Scoop, editor Christine Miskonoodinkwe Smith gathers together contributions from twenty Sixties Scoop survivors from across the territories of Canada. This anthology includes poems, stories and personal essays from contributors such as Alice McKay, D.B. McLeod, David Montgomery, Doreen Parenteau, Tylor Pennock, Terry Swan, Lisa Wilder, and many more. Courageous writings and reflections that prove there is strength in telling a story, and power in ending the silence of the past.
Reviews
"This is an excellent collection and I recommend it to all who are interested in learning the truth about Indigenous Peoples by reading what they have written, not what has been written about them by non-Indigenous writers. The striking cover art is by George Littlechild, also a survivor of the Sixties Scoop." - MariJo Moore
Additional Information
140 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback
Synopsis:
Drawing on her Ojibwa roots and storytelling, Barnes shares stories that take the heart on the path to the past, nostalgic though it may be, wherein lies discovery, memories, and rhythms that ease the soul. Touching, tender but never overwrought, Barnes' poetry brings wonder to the spirit of nature and provides a sense of connection to the things most often overlooked.
Additional Information
140 pages | 7.50" x 5.00" | Paperback
Synopsis:
A beautifully illustrated collection of inspiring life stories of fifty extraordinary historical women from BC and the Yukon.
This fascinating, informative, and charming book introduces young readers to a diverse group of women who changed the face of history in unexpected ways and defied the expectations and gender norms of their times. Through charming illustrations and concise biographies, Her Courage Rises features social activists and politicians, artists and writers, scientists and healers, pioneers and prospectors, athletes and entrepreneurs, teachers and cultural tradition keepers.
These women represented all ages, walks of life, and backgrounds. Some, like Cougar Annie and shipwreck heroine Minnie Paterson, became legendary in popular culture, long after their deaths. Others, like politician Rosemary Brown, artist Emily Carr, and Olympic sprinter Barbara Howard, achieved fame during their lives. Still others, including photographer and cultural teacher Elizabeth Quocksister, artist and cultural consultant Florence Edenshaw, land claims activist and translator Jane Constance Cook (Ga’axsta’las), and language champion Barbara Touchie, made great strides in preserving and promoting Indigenous rights and cultures. And many, like environmentalist Ruth Masters, water diviner Evelyn Penrose, and Doukhobor pioneer Anna Markova, are less well-known but still made important contributions to their communities and our wider collective history.
Her Courage Rises is full of inspirational female role models and insights into the trailblazing women who made history in BC and the Yukon.
Reviews
"[An] extra-textual approach blended with rigorous traditional research allowed Healey and Fraser to create a fresh and unique historical document – one that not only gives fascinating detail, but manages to capture an ineffable humanity and relatability in even the most exceptional people profiled."
Quill & Quire
“This easily approachable book is a celebration of the achievements of fifty women who had the determination and strength of character to fashion new directions, sometimes despite great odds. Their stories represent hope and courage and serve as a reminder that women have always played a defining role in shaping their societies.”—Cathy Converse, author of Following the Curve of Time and Against the Current: The Remarkable Life of Agnes Deans Cameron
"Haley Healey has written another very important book highlighting the achievements of many women in history. This short book, beautifully illustrated by Kimiko Fraser, will be one to treasure in your favourite historical non-fiction collection."—Valerie Green, historian and author of If More Walls Could Talk: Vancouver Island’s Houses from the Past
“An engaging book that encourages the interest of young readers by providing a factual way in to explore diverse lives. By reframing unorthodox lives and breaking down stereotypes, the author highlights the resilience and determination of her subjects, made more tangible through the illustrations.”—Linda J. Eversole, author of Victoria Unbuttoned: A Red-Light History of BC's Capital City and Stella: Unrepentant Madam
Educator Information
Recommended for ages 12+
Additional Information
128 pages | 7.00" x 9.00" | Hardcover























































