Indigenous Peoples

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Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
Stories of Metis Women: Tales My Kookum Told Me
$35.00
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Text Content Territories: Indigenous Canadian; Métis;
Reading Level: N/A
ISBN / Barcode: 9781988824215

Synopsis:

This book, and accompanying Vimeo documentary link, is a collection of stories about culture, history, and nationhood as told by Métis women. The Métis are known by many names — Otipemisiwak, “the people who own ourselves;” Bois Brules, “Burnt Wood;” Apeetogosan, “half brother” by the Cree; “half-breed,” historically; and are also known as “rebels” and “traitors to Canada.” They are also known as the “Forgotten People.” Few really know their story.

Many people may also think that Métis simply means “mixed,” but it does not. They are a people with a unique and proud history and Nation. In this era of reconciliation, Stories of Métis Women explains the story of the Métis Nation from their own perspective. The UN has declared this “The Decade of Indigenous Languages” and Stories of Métis Women is one of the few books available in English and Michif, which is an endangered language.

Reviews
"With this book, some of these important and unique perspectives and worldviews about who we are as a people, how we have survived as people and how we will carry on and thrive as a people are shared through the writings of the daughters, mothers, aunties and grandmothers of the Métis Nation. I congratulate the Métis women who have taken the time to share and write down some of this knowledge for generations to come." —­Jason Madden, Métis rights lawyer and citizen of the Métis Nation

Additional Information
240 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | 50 black and white illustrations | Paperback

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
Authentic Indigenous Artwork
The 500 Years of Indigenous Resistance Comic Book: Revised and Expanded
$21.95
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Grade Levels: 10; 11; 12; University/College;
ISBN / Barcode: 9781551528526

Synopsis:

A new and expanded version of Gord Hill's seminal illustrated history of Indigenous struggles in the Americas. When it was first published in 2010, The 500 Years of Resistance Comic Book was heralded as a groundbreaking illustrated history of Indigenous activism and resistance in the Americas over the previous 500 years, from contact to present day. Eleven years later, author and artist Gord Hill has revised and expanded the book, which is now available in colour for the first time.

The 500 Years of Indigenous Resistance Comic Book powerfully portrays flashpoints in history when Indigenous peoples have risen up and fought back against colonizers and other oppressors. Events depicted include the the Spanish conquest of the Aztec, Mayan and Inca empires; the 1680 Pueblo Revolt in New Mexico; the Battle of Wounded Knee in 1890; the resistance of the Great Plains peoples in the 19th century; and more recently, the Idle No More protests supporting Indigenous sovereignty and rights in 2012 and 2013, and the resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline in 2016. Canadian events depicted include the Oka crisis in 1990, the Grand River land dispute between Six Nations and the Government of Canada in 2006, and the Wet'suwet'en anti-pipeline protests in 2020.

With strong, plain language and evocative illustrations, this revised and expanded edition of The 500 Years of Indigenous Resistance Comic Book reveals the tenacity and perseverance of Indigenous peoples as they endured 500-plus years of genocide, massacre, torture, rape, displacement, and assimilation: a necessary antidote to conventional histories of the Americas.

The book includes a foreword by Pamela Palmater, a Mi'kmaq lawyer, professor, and political commentator.

Reviews
"Gord Hill's goal of giving indigenous peoples a better understanding of their past so as to counter the benign version all too often taught in schools and presented in the media makes the format [of his work] the perfect vehicle for his hard-hitting message."-BC Studies

"Gord Hill has put colonial myth-makers on notice with a comic that educates and inspires." - The St'at'imc Runner

"Comics aren't always known for treating serious subjects, but Gord Hill's The 500 Years of Resistance Comic Book adds a dose of reality to the genre. Hill, of the Kwakwaka'wakw nation, has taken the topics of dispossession, genocide, and the colonization of First Nations in the western hemisphere and, surprisingly, pulled off a rendering in comic book form." -Dissident Voice

"Never before have I come across a non-fiction graphic novel capable of evoking such a powerful emotional response. Dealing with such topics as genocide, oppression and assimilation the comic is sure to cause frustration and sadness in the reader. At the same time, 500 Years of Resistance is inspirational and empowering, accurately depicting the strength and nobility of Native warriors. Gord's straightforward approach to writing coupled with his iconic illustrations has created a truly groundbreaking comic book." -Redwire Media

"An excellent introduction to the tremendous historical and ongoing legacy of resistance on the part of Indigenous peoples in Canada and elsewhere in the continent against the settler colonial regimes that continue to oppress and exploit." -Popmatters. com

Educator Information
This book is available in French: 500 ans de résistance autochtone 

Additional Information
144 pages | 9.00" x 12.00" | Comic Book | Colour Illustrations Throughout 

 

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
The Power of Style: How Fashion and Beauty Are Being Used to Reclaim Cultures
$14.95
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Text Content Territories: Indigenous Canadian;
Grade Levels: 7; 8; 9; 10; 11; 12;
ISBN / Barcode: 9781773214917

Synopsis:

Style is not just the clothes on our backs—it is self-expression, representation, and transformation.

As a fashion-obsessed Ojibwe teen, Christian Allaire rarely saw anyone that looked like him in the magazines or movies he sought out for inspiration. Now the Fashion and Style Writer for Vogue, he is working to change that—because clothes are never just clothes. Men’s heels are a statement of pride in the face of LGTBQ+ discrimination, while ribbon shirts honor Indigenous ancestors and keep culture alive. Allaire takes the reader through boldly designed chapters to discuss additional topics like cosplay, makeup, hijabs, and hair, probing the connections between fashion and history, culture, politics, and social justice.

Reviews
“A vibrant read about the connections between fashion, culture, and social justice.”  — Kirkus Reviews, 02/23/21

“The book to appeal to a wide age range. It is important that readers of all ages be given the opportunity to learn that there are others who have had the same or similar experiences of feeling that they were different from their peers because of the way that they looked or dressed. Highly Recommended.”  — CM Reviews, 02/12/21

“Dazzling and empowering . . . Fab drag queens, genderqueer and BIPOC YouTubers demoing makeup, plus-size and gender-bending cosplayers, men wearing high heels and fem fashion—they’re all here, a proud and dazzling explosion of confetti transforming the landscape.” — Booklist, *starred review, 03/02/21

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 12+ 

Common Core Correlations
CCSS.ELA-Literacy Strand-Reading literature:
W.6.1,1a,1b,1c,1d,1e
SL.6.1,1a,1b,1c,1d,1
RI.6.1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8
L.6.1,1a,2,2a,2b,3,3

Reading Level: Lexile 1070L 

The Power of Style is a Top Ten Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, YALSA

Table of Contents
Introduction

  1. Sewing Tradition: Through making (and wearing!) ribbonwork, the Indigenous community is keeping their culture’s unique traditions alive.
  2. Level-Up: Today’s cosplayers are disrupting the art form, promoting self-confidence, acceptance, and body positivity along the way.
  3. Standing Tall: By rocking high heels, men are walking tall—using footwear to advocate for the acceptance of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community.
  4. Head-Strong: Muslim women are embracing hijabs—but they’re doing so on their own terms. They’re celebrating their culture by embracing modest fashion in new, unexpected, and very stylish ways.
  5. Mighty Makeup: Makeup can be used as a tool for creativity. But it’s not only about getting glam: beauty junkies are channeling their cultures into their looks, using their face as a canvas for self-expression and pride.

Additional Information
96 pages | 8.00" x 10.00"

Authentic Indigenous Text
The Red Deal: Indigenous Action to Save Our Earth
$22.95
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Text Content Territories: Indigenous American; Native American;
Grade Levels: 12; University/College;
ISBN / Barcode: 9781942173434

Synopsis:

When the Red Nation released their call for a Red Deal, it generated coverage in places from Teen Vogue to Jacobin to the New Republic, was endorsed by the DSA, and has galvanized organizing and action. Now, in response to popular demand, the Red Nation expands their original statement filling in the histories and ideas that formed it and forwarding an even more powerful case for the actions it demands.

One-part visionary platform, one-part practical toolkit, the Red Deal is a platform that encompasses everyone, including non-Indigenous comrades and relatives who live on Indigenous land. We—Indigenous, Black and people of color, women and trans folks, migrants, and working people—did not create this disaster, but we have inherited it. We have barely a decade to turn back the tide of climate disaster. It is time to reclaim the life and destiny that has been stolen from us and riseup together to confront this challenge and build a world where all life can thrive. Only mass movements can do what the moment demands. Politicians may or may not follow--it is up to them--but we will design, build, and lead this movement with or without them.

The Red Deal is a call for action beyond the scope of the US colonial state. It’s a program for Indigenous liberation, life, and land—an affirmation that colonialism and capitalism must be overturned for this planet to be habitable for human and other-than-human relatives to live dignified lives. The Red Deal is not a response to the Green New Deal, or a “bargain” with the elite and powerful. It’s a deal with the humble people of the earth; a pact that we shall strive for peace and justice and a declaration that movements for justice must come from below and to the left.

Reviews
“The Red Nation has given us The Red Deal, an Indigenous Peoples’ world view and practice that leads to profound changes in existing human relations. Five hundred years of European colonialism, which produced capitalist economic and social relations, has nearly destroyed life itself. Technology can be marshaled to reverse this death march, but it will require a vision for the future and a path to follow to arrive there, and that is what The Red Deal provides.”—Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz, author of An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States

"The Red Deal is an incendiary and necessary compilation. With momentum for a Green New Deal mounting, the humble and powerful organizers of The Red Nation remind us that a Green New Deal must also be Red—socialist, committed to class struggle, internationalist in orientation, and opposed to the settler-colonial theft of Indigenous lands and resources. Redistribution also requires reparations and land back. The Red Deal is a profound call to action for us all."—Harsha Walia, author of Undoing Border Imperialism and Border and Rule: Global Migration, Capitalism, and the Rise of Racist Nationalism

“We really need The Red Deal because it forces open a critical conversation on how Land Back can be a platform for mass mobilization and collective struggle. The Red Deal poignantly argues that if we do not foreground decolonization and Indigenous liberation in climate justice strategies such as the Green New Deal, we will reproduce the violence of the original New Deal that dammed life-giving rivers and further dispossessed Indigenous peoples of their lands. Strategically, The Red Deal shows how, if we understand green infrastructure and economic restructuring as anticolonial struggle, as well as an anticapitalist, we can move from reforms that deny Indigenous jurisdiction towards just coalitions for repossession that radically rethink environmental policy and land protection without sacrificing Indigenous life and relations.”—Shiri Pasternak, author of Grounded Authority: The Algonquins of Barriere Lake Against the State

The Red Deal asserts that the fight for climate justice must center Native people when it comes to the issues that disproportionately impact Native communities, but it also communicates what the Green New Deal does not — namely, that public lands are stolen lands and climate change is significantly caused by just a few industries, which the government has at worst neglected to hold accountable and at best assisted in their efforts to mine the earth for resources in a move that put profits over people.” —Teen Vogue

“For the Red Nation, living and being interdependent with Mother Nature is explicitly anticapitalist. An ethos merely hinted at in the Green New Deal, The Red Deal understands that capitalism fundamentally protects wealth, not life”—The Politic

“The Red Nation also names Black abolitionists as an inspiration for the Red Deal, citing the links between mass incarceration and detention and climate change. They further note that police departments, prisons, and the U.S. military receive billions of taxpayer dollars annually while doing irreparable harm to Native Americans, Black people, and the Earth.” —Essence

Educator Information
Excerpt from the book:

The Red Deal begins with the oldest yet often forgotten struggle on this continent: ending the occupation. While usually erased from the history of this nation, settler colonial occupation has fundamentally shaped the development of the United States and indeed the world that it dominates economically and politically. Ending the occupation links those of us in the seat of empire with those who face its weapons, soldiers, and policies around the world. Together we share the common enemy of US imperialism, and Indigenous people here have fought against it since the first settlers began to occupy our lands by force. It is important to remember that the very first act of US imperialism was the military and settler incursions on Indigenous land as the fledgling colonies expanded westward. This is why we begin with ending the occupation.

The struggle against occupation on this continent has remained strong throughout history and continues to this day. We’ve seen this in the global uprisings led by Black relatives who have been resisting the colonization of Africa and the enslavement and oppression of African people stolen to work on this continent for centuries. The uprisings during the summer of 2020, even with the global COVID-19 pandemic, built upon the decades of Black resistance to police violence and the everyday brutality of American society towards Black people, and exploded into some of the largest mobilizations in US history. The spread of uprisings throughout cities across the country was also marked by the sharpening of tactics and clarity of the roots of the issues, with images of burnt down police precincts and flipped cop cars evoking memories of Black and Indigenous resistance to slave plantations and frontier forts. Calls for abolition of police and prisons arose with renewed volume, stretching forward from a long history of abolitionist struggle.

It is important that we continue nurturing these histories and movements of struggle against occupation on these lands and continue to build relationships with others globally who face the violence of occupation. We begin with addressing those things that act as obstacles to our collective liberation: the prisons and detention centers filled with our family members; the police officers and prison guards who stand between us and the capitalist interests they defend; and the military, police, and vigilantes who murder our relatives. As we know, colonial occupation is upheld by constant threats of violence and in many instances, actual violence. It is therefore no surprise that these obstacles to our life and wellbeing that employ violence in order to maintain the occupation, receive the largest proportions of resources by the US settler state. We seek to dismantle these institutions that get in our way of living good lives, and we aim to divert resources away from them through divestment.

This is just the first step, though. It is not enough to be against any one thing, even something as big, evil, and all-encompassing as colonial occupation. Ending the occupation gives us the space to breathe and envision other possibilities that we are for, and we must be clear about what we are for. We are for Indigenous life, for the life of all human and other-than-human beings. And in order to live good lives, we must heal ourselves from the destruction caused by colonialism and capitalism by stopping what harms us and desecrates our land and begin to build what will sustain us.

Additional Information
144 pages | 5.00" x 7.00" | b&w illustrations

Authenticity Note: The Red Nation is a coalition of Native and non-Native activists, educators, students, and community organizers advocating Native liberation. The Red Deal was written collectively by members of the Red Nation and the allied movements and community members who comprised the Red Deal coalition. Everyone from youth to elders; from knowledge keepers to farmers contributed to the creation of The Red Deal. It's up to readers to determine if this title works as an authentic resource for their purposes

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
These Are the Stories: Memories of a 60s Scoop Survivor
$22.00
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Reading Level: N/A
ISBN / Barcode: 9781928120278

Synopsis:

These are the Stories is a memoir presented in short chapters, comprising the life of a survivor of the Sixties Scoop. Christine Miskonoodinkwe Smith reveals her experiences in the child welfare system and her journey towards healing in various stages of her life. As an adult, she was able to reconnect with her birth mother. Though her mother passed shortly afterward, that reconnection allowed the author to finally feel "complete, whole, and home." The memoir details some of the author's travels across Canada as she eventually made a connection with the Peguis First Nation in Manitoba.

A memoir in the vein of Colleen Hele Cardinal's Raised Somewhere Else and Alicia Elliot's A Mind Spread Out On the GroundThese are the Stories is an inspirational and courageous telling of a life story.

Additional Information
170 pages | 5.50" x 8.50" | Paperback

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
What Comes From Spirit: Richard Wagamese Selected (HC)
$26.95
Quantity:
Format: Hardcover
Reading Level: N/A
ISBN / Barcode: 9781771622752

Synopsis:

Richard Wagamese, one of Canada’s most celebrated Indigenous authors and storytellers, was a writer of breathtaking honesty and inspiration. Always striving to be a better, stronger person, Wagamese shared his journey through writing, encouraging others to do the same.

Following the success of Embers, which has sold almost seventy thousand copies since its release in 2016, this new collection of Wagamese’s non-fiction works, with an introduction by editor Drew Hayden Taylor, brings together more of the prolific author’s short writings, many for the first time in print, and celebrates his ability to inspire. Drawing from Wagamese’s essays and columns, along with preserved social media and blog posts, this beautifully designed volume is a tribute to Wagamese’s literary legacy.

Reviews
"Treasure these words. Honour his thoughts. But don’t read it too fast. Soak it in. Enjoy every morsel. Linger on each page because every paragraph has nuggets of understanding. Lines of wisdom. Stories to appreciate." — Drew Hayden Taylor

Additional Information
176 pages | 5.50" x 8.00" | Hardcover

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
What Was Said to Me: The Life of Sti'tum'atul'wut, a Cowichan Woman
$24.95
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Grade Levels: 12; University/College;
ISBN / Barcode: 9780772679383

Synopsis:

A narrative of resistance and resilience spanning seven decades in the life of a tireless advocate for Indigenous language preservation.

Life histories are a form of contemporary social history and convey important messages about identity, cosmology, social behaviour and one’s place in the world. This first-person oral history—the first of its kind ever published by the Royal BC Museum—documents a period of profound social change through the lens of Sti’tum’atul’wut—also known as Mrs. Ruby Peter—a Cowichan elder who made it her life’s work to share and safeguard the ancient language of her people: Hul’q’umi’num’.

Over seven decades, Sti’tum’atul’wut mentored hundreds of students and teachers and helped thousands of people to develop a basic knowledge of the Hul’q’umi’num’ language. She contributed to dictionaries and grammars, and helped assemble a valuable corpus of stories, sound and video files—with more than 10,000 pages of texts from Hul’q’umi’num’ speakers—that has been described as “a treasure of linguistic and cultural knowledge.” Without her passion, commitment and expertise, this rich legacy of material would not exist for future generations.

In 1997 Vancouver Island University anthropologist Helene Demers recorded Sti’tum’atul’wut’s life stories over nine sessions. The result is rich with family and cultural history—a compelling narrative of resistance and resilience that promises to help shape progressive social policy for generations to follow.

Additional Information
240 pages | 6.00" x 9.00"

 

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
Authentic Indigenous Artwork
Where the Power Is: Indigenous Perspectives on Northwest Coast Art
$65.00
Quantity:
Format: Hardcover
Text Content Territories: Indigenous Canadian;
Reading Level: N/A
ISBN / Barcode: 9781773270517

Synopsis:

Where the Power Is: Indigenous Perspectives on Northwest Coast Art is a landmark volume that brings together over eighty contemporary Indigenous knowledge holders with extraordinary works of historical Northwest Coast art, ranging from ancient stone tools to woven baskets to carved masks and poles to silver jewellery. First Nations Elders, artists, scholars, and other community members visited the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia to connect with these objects, learn from the hands of their ancestors, and share their thoughts and insights on how these belongings transcend the category of “art” or “artifact” to embody vital ways of knowing and being in the world. Texts by the authors sketch the provenance of the objects, and, in dialogue with the commentators, engage in critical and necessary conversations around the role of museums that hold such collections.

The voices within are passionate, enlightening, challenging, and humorous. The commentators speak to their personal and family histories that these objects evoke, the connections between tangible and intangible culture, and how this “art” remains part of Northwest Coast Indigenous peoples’ ongoing relationships to their territories and political governance. Accompanied by over 300 contemporary and historical photographs, this is a vivid and powerful document of Indigenous experiences of reconnection, reclamation, and return.

Featuring contributions by:

ʼLiyaaʼmlaxha—Leonard Alexcee, Goldʼm Nitsʼk—Wii Gandoox—Mona Alexcee, Widiimas—Peter Alexcee, Kʼodalagalis—Byron Alfred, Skwiixta—Karen Anderson, Chaudaquock—Vera Asp, Don Bain, Stan Bevan, Jo Billows, Dempsey Bob, Raymond Boisjoly, Naxshageit—Alison Bremner, Wákas—Irene Brown, Tʼaakeit Gʼaayaa—Corey Bulpitt, Vanessa Campbell, Jisgang—Nika Collison, Nalaga—Donna Cranmer, Gloria Cranmer Webster, Joe David, Guud san glans—Robert Davidson, ʼWalas Gwaʼyam—Beau Dick, Idtaawgan—Mervin Dunn, Sharon Fortney, Yéil Ya-Tseen—Nicholas Galanin, qiyəplenəxw—Howard E. Grant, sʔəyəłəq—Larry Grant, taχwtəna:t—Wendy Grant-John, Müsiiʼn—Phil Gray, Tʼuuʼtk—Robin R.R. Gray, Wii Gwinaał—Henry Green, secəlenəxw—Morgan Guerin, Haaʼyuups, KC (Kelsey) Hall, J̌i:ƛʼmɛtəm—Harold Harry, qoqʼwɛssukwt—Katelynn Harry, 7idansuu—James M. Hart, YaʼYa Heit, Kwakwabalasamayi Hamasaka—Alan Hunt, Corrine Hunt, Tłaliłilaʼogwa—Sarah Hunt, Tsēmā Igharas, Pearl Innis, Haʼhl Yee—Doreen Jensen, Kwankwanxwaligi—Robert Joseph, kwəskwestən—James Kew, Gigaemi Kukwits, Peter Morin, Nugwam ʼMaxwiyalidzi—Kʼodi Nelson, ʼTayagilaʼogwa—Marianne Nicolson, Gwiʼmolas—Ryan Nicolson, Jaad Kuujus—Kwaxhiʼlaga—Meghann OʼBrien, Ximiq—Dionne Paul, A-nii-sa-put—Tim Paul, Xwelíqwiya—Rena Point Bolton, Oqwiʼlowgʼwa—Kim Recalma-Clutesi, Skeena Reece, Nʼusi—Ian Reid, Greg A. Robinson, Siʼt Kwuns—Isabel Rorick, Maximus (Max) Savey, Anaht pi ya tuuk—Sheila Savey, Linda Smith, Xsim Ganaaʼw—Laurel Smith Wilson, θəliχwəlwət—Debra Sparrow, səlisəyeʔ—Leona Sparrow, Wedłidi Speck, Marika Echachis Swan, Simʼoogit Gawaakhl of Wilps Luuyaʼas—Norman Tait, Snxakila—Clyde Tallio, Nakkita Trimble, Xˇùsəmdas Waakas—Ted Walkus, Nuuwagawa—Evelyn Walkus Windsor, Hiłamas—William Wasden, Jr., Tsamiianbaan—William White, Tania Willard, Skiljaday—Merle Williams, Gid7ahl-Gudsllaay Lalaxaaygans—Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson, Tʼɬaɬbaʼlisameʼ—Tʼɬalis—Mikael (Mike) Willie, Lyle Wilson, Nathan Wilson, and Michael Nicoll Yahgulanaas.

Additional Information
384 pages | 10.31" x 11.96" | Hardcover

Authentic Canadian Content
A Long Journey: Residential Schools in Labrador and Newfoundland
$29.95
Quantity:
Authors:
Format: Paperback
Text Content Territories: Indigenous Canadian;
Grade Levels: 10; 11; 12; University/College;
ISBN / Barcode: 9781894725644

Synopsis:

Left out of the national apology and reconciliation process begun in 2008, survivors of residential schools in Labrador and Newfoundland received a formal apology from the Canadian government in 2017. This recognition finally brought them into the circle of residential school survivors across Canada, and acknowledged their experiences as similarly painful and traumatic.

For years, the story of residential schools has been told by the authorities who ran them. A Long Journey helps redress this imbalance by listening closely to the accounts of former students, as well as drawing extensively on government, community, and school archives. The book examines the history of boarding schools in Labrador and St. Anthony, and, in doing so, contextualizes the ongoing determination of Indigenous communities to regain control over their children’s education.

Educator Information
This resource is recommended in the Canadian Indigenous Books for Schools 2020/2021 resource list as being useful for grades 10 to 12 for English Language Arts, Law, and Social Studies.

Caution: contains descriptions of mental, physical, and sexual abuse.

Additional Information
528 pages | 6.00" x 9.00"

Authentic Indigenous Text
Apple (Skin to the Core)
$28.99
Quantity:
Format: Hardcover
Grade Levels: 7; 8; 9; 10; 11; 12;
ISBN / Barcode: 9781646140138

Synopsis:

How about a book that makes you barge into your boss's office to read a page of poetry from? That you dream of? That every movie, song, book, moment that follows continues to evoke in some way?

The term "Apple" is a slur in Native communities across the country. It's for someone supposedly "red on the outside, white on the inside."

Eric Gansworth is telling his story in Apple (Skin to the Core). The story of his family, of Onondaga among Tuscaroras, of Native folks everywhere. From the horrible legacy of the government boarding schools, to a boy watching his siblings leave and return and leave again, to a young man fighting to be an artist who balances multiple worlds.

Eric shatters that slur and reclaims it in verse and prose and imagery that truly lives up to the word heartbreaking.

Awards

  • American Indian Youth Literature Award Winner

Reviews
"With language rich in metaphor, this is a timely and important work that begs for multiple readings."-Booklist, starred review

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 12 to 18.

Additional Information
352 pages | 6.50" x 9.40"

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
Approaching Fire
$19.95
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Text Content Territories: Indigenous Canadian; Métis;
Reading Level: N/A
ISBN / Barcode: 9781550818536

Synopsis:

In Approaching Fire, Michelle Porter embarks on a quest to find her great-grandfather, the Métis fiddler and performer Léon Robert Goulet. Through musicology, jigs and reels, poetry, photographs, and the ecology of fire, Porter invests biography with the power of reflective ingenuity, creating a portrait which expands beyond documentation into a private realm where truth meets metaphor.

Weaving through multiple genres and traditions, Approaching Fire fashions a textual documentary of rescue and insight, and a glowing contemplation of the ways in which loss can generate unbridled renewal.

Awards

  • The Miramichi Reader's 2020 Most Promising Author Award 

Reviews
“I wanted to write in a magical and poetic voice, but more than that I wanted to read magical books - true and straight up poetic stories that fulfill the past. Michelle is such a writer. This book is the art Louis spoke of that begins a much needed conversation: Métis nation or Manitoba?” - Lee Maracle

“I've never read a book quite like this before… Approaching Fire is a documentary you can hold in your hands, in which, rather than being a passive witness to scenes unfolding, you become immersed in a river of poetry. Author Michelle Porter uses a mixture of genres to create an account of her journey to uncover the history of her Métis roots, stretching from Newfoundland to British Columbia, Alberta to Saskatchewan, and finally digging deeply into Manitoba. Michelle travels through the stories she was raised on, using them as a base from which to understand the accounts of others, learning all she can about her Great Great Grandfather, Léon Robert (Bob) Goulet, renowned fiddler and performer. Her Pépé. In his story, her story, a wider history of the Métis people is told. A history of racial discrimination, stolen land rights, and the question of what truly unites and defines Métis identity. This book blazes with poetic beauty, and a voice Canada needs to hear.”— More Books Than Days

Additional Information
192 pages | 5.25" x 8.25" | Paperback

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
Brotherhood to Nationhood: George Manuel and the Making of the Modern Indian Movement
$32.95
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Grade Levels: 10; 11; 12; University/College;
ISBN / Barcode: 9781771135108

Synopsis:

Charged with fresh material and new perspectives, this updated edition of the groundbreaking biography From Brotherhood to Nationhood brings George Manuel and his fighting tradition into the present.

George Manuel (19201989) was the strategist and visionary behind the modern Indigenous movement in Canada. A three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee, he laid the groundwork for what would become the Assembly of First Nations and was the founding president of the World Council of Indigenous Peoples. Authors Peter McFarlane and Doreen Manuel follow him on a riveting journey from his childhood on a Shuswap reserve through three decades of fierce and dedicated activism.

In these pages, an all-new foreword by celebrated Mi'kmaq lawyer and activist Pam Palmater is joined by an afterword from Manuel’s granddaughter, land defender Kanahus Manuel. This edition features new photos and previously untold stories of the pivotal roles that the women of the Manuel family played and continue to play in the battle for Indigenous rights.

Reviews
Brotherhood to Nationhood is more than just a biography of the life of George Manuel; it demonstrates the roots of an Indigenous internationalism and political theory that is grounded in the ethics, knowledge, and practices of the Secwepemc people.” – Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, author of As We Have Always Done

Educator Information
Table of Contents
Foreword - Dr. Pamela Palmater
Preface - Peter McFarlane
Preface - Doreen Manuel

Part I. The Neck of the Chicken
1. Paradise, Paradise Lost, 1960
2. The Hard-Luck Shuswap Kid, 1920–1932
3. White Plague, Red Victims, 1932–1954
4. Local Agitator to Provincial Leader, 1955–1960
5. A Future for Your Children, 1960–1963

Part II. Building the National Movement
6. Community Development and the Arthur Laing Gang, 1965–1967
7. Down the Garden Path: Chretien Andras Consultations, 1968–1969
8. From White Paper to Red Paper, 1969–1970
9. The National Chief
10. The National Indian Philosophy, 1971–1972

Part III. Indian Shogun
11. International Travels
12. Land Title and the James Bay Battle, 1972–1973
13. Red Power
14. Political Eruptions in British Columbia, 1975
15. A Voice for the Fourth World, 1975–1976
16. Back to British Columbia,1976–1977
17. The Peoples’ Movement, 1977–1979
18. Constitutional Express, 1980

Part IV. Final Days
19. European Express, 1981–1982
20. Passing the Torch, 1982–1989

Epilogue
Afterword - Kanahus Manuel

Additional Information
402 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | Revised, 2nd Edition

Authentic Canadian Content
Authentic Indigenous Text
Cold Case North: The Search for James Brady and Absolom Halkett
$24.95
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Grade Levels: 12; University/College;
ISBN / Barcode: 9780889777491

Synopsis:

For fans of true crime, an unsolved mystery of missing persons, police conspiracies, and private investigations in an Indigenous community in northern Canada.

Métis leader James Brady was one of the most famous Indigenous activists in Canada. A communist, strategist, and bibliophile, he led Métis and First Nations to rebel against government and church oppression. Brady’s success made politicians and clergy fear him, and he had enemies everywhere.

In 1967, while prospecting in Saskatchewan with Cree Band Councillor and fellow activist Absolom Halkett, both men vanished without a trace from their remote lakeside camp. For 50 years rumours swirled of secret mining interests, political intrigue, assassination, and murder. Cold Case North is the story of how a small team, with the help of a local Indigenous community, exposed police failure in the original investigation, discovered new clues and testimony, and gathered the pieces of the North’s most enduring missing persons puzzle.

Reviews
“This engrossing account charts the efforts of three dedicated people to determine the fate of two missing Indigenous men in the north of Canada. [...] Meticulously researched, this smoothly written tale of injustice showcases the authors’ tenacity and arouses the reader’s indignation. This is a scathing rebuke of the RCMP’s failure to take the case of missing Indigenous people seriously.” —Publisher's Weekly

“Like too many cases involving missing and murdered Indigenous people, authorities failed to ensure that Brady and Halkett’s deaths were properly investigated. This book helps get to the bottom of the fate of these two men, and demonstrates why investigators should never dismiss the knowledge of Indigenous peoples.” —Darren Prefontaine, author of Gabriel Dumont

Cold Case North is part true crime thriller, part gripping mystery about the disappearance of Métis legend James Brady and Absolom Halkett in northern Saskatchewan. It is also about Indigenous knowledge, investigative incompetence, and the stuff of legend.” —Paul Seesequasis, author of Blanket Toss Under Midnight Sun

“A fascinating search for the truth, Cold Case North unravels the layers of a decades’ old mystery. It is about how communities hold knowledge for generations, and how missing loved ones are never forgotten.” —Katherena Vermette, author of River Woman and The Break

Additional Information
272 pages | 5.00" x 7.00"

Authentic Indigenous Text
Come Home, Indio: A Memoir
$30.95
Quantity:
Format: Paperback
Grade Levels: 11; 12;
ISBN / Barcode: 9781951491048

Synopsis:

A brutally honest but charming look at the pain of childhood and the alienation and anxiety of early adulthood.

In his memoir, we are invited to walk through the life of the author, Jim Terry, as he struggles to find security and comfort in an often hostile environment. Between the Ho-Chunk community of his Native American family in Wisconsin and his schoolmates in the Chicago suburbs, he tries in vain to fit in and eventually turns to alcohol to provide an escape from increasing loneliness and alienation. Terry also shares with the reader in exquisite detail the process by which he finds hope and gets sober, as well as the powerful experience of finding something to believe in and to belong to at the Dakota Access Pipeline resistance at Standing Rock.

Reviews
"fortunately for readers of this raw and intimate graphic memoir, Terry never fully lets go of his youthful vulnerability. . . . Reckoning with sobriety requires connection and humility, as Terry makes the case for with sincerity and beauty, as he ties his recovery to his spiritual homecoming.” —Starred Review, Publishers Weekly.

“Terry, known for his outstanding superhero illustrations, turns the lens inward in this brutally honest memoir. . . . An exceptionally well-told story with no easy answers but an ending that will inspire.” —Starred Review, Booklist.

“Illuminated by bursts of both joy and sorrow. With humbling sensitivity and candor, Jim shares with us his personal journey down emotionally complex paths towards home.” —TIMOTHY TRUMAN, author of Marvel Comics’ Conan series.

“An epic memoir. Terry has a way with words — his pithy writing skillfully mixes nostalgia and melancholy. But it his gorgeous, inventive, black-and-white artwork that makes this book so memorable.”— JOSH NEUFELD, author of A.D.: New Orleans After the Deluge

Educator Information
Recommended for ages 16+

Additional Information
240 pages | 6.00" x 9.00"

Authentic Indigenous Text
Earth Keeper: Reflections on the American Land
$21.99
Quantity:
Format: Hardcover
Text Content Territories: Indigenous American; Native American; Kiowa;
Grade Levels: 10; 11; 12; University/College;
ISBN / Barcode: 9780063009332

Synopsis:

A magnificent testament to the earth, from Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist and poet N. Scott Momaday.

One of the most distinguished voices in American letters, N. Scott Momaday has devoted much of his life to celebrating and preserving Native American culture, especially its oral tradition. A member of the Kiowa tribe who was born and grew up on Indian reservations throughout the Southwest, Momaday has an intimate connection to the land he knows well and loves deeply.

In Earth Keeper: Reflections on the American Land, he reflects on his native ground and its influence on his people. “When I think about my life and the lives of my ancestors, I am inevitably led to the conviction that I, and they, belong to the American land. This is a declaration of belonging. And it is an offering to the earth.” he writes.

Momaday recalls stories of his childhood, stories that have been passed down through generations, stories that reveal a profound and sacred connection to the American landscape and a reverence for the natural world.

In this moving and lyrical work, he offers an homage and a warning. Momaday reminds us that the Earth is a sacred place of wonder and beauty; a source of strength and healing that must be protected before it’s too late. As he so eloquently yet simply expresses, we must all be keepers of the Earth.

Reviews
“Poets and storytellers have always reminded us of our spiritual connections to the land and the world around us — passed along through dreams, stories, memories, and mythologies. Scott Momaday skillfully continues this tradition in Earth Keeper, from which we can all learn and benefit.”— Robert Redford

Earth Keeper is a prayer for continuity in these days of uncertainty. I cannot tell you why I loved this book, I can only tell you I wept my way through it. Each page brought me closer to myself, a self I had lost in the pandemic. We need Scott Momaday's calm, clear prose and stories. Words are medicine. There is wisdom in sharing what one knows, especially at a time when we know so little. ‘Let me say my heart,’ he says. And he does.”— Terry Tempest Williams, author of Erosion: Essays of Undoing

"Dazzling. . . . In glittering prose, Momaday recalls stories passed down through generations, illuminating the earth as a sacrosanct place of wonder and abundance. At once a celebration and a warning, Earth Keeper is an impassioned defense of all that our endangered planet stands to lose."— Esquire

“Wonder abounds in these pages. . . . Short chapters of prose that read almost like prayers to the natural world.”— Kirkus Reviews

“Short but satisfying. . . . Using lyrical, heartfelt language, [Momaday] looks back on a life lived close to nature, and on the joy that natural wonders have given him. . . . At a time when bad news is in plentiful supply, readers will find Momaday’s words refreshing and comforting in their sincerity.”— Publishers Weekly

"A profound reflection on humanity's relationship with its terrestrial home, the planet Earth."— Booklist

“A collection of short essays as multilayered and majestic as the landscape that has been present in everything that Momaday has written. . . . [A] poetic love letter to the Earth.”— Minneapolis Star Tribune

Educator Information
From the Author's Note: "This book is a very personal account, a kind of spiritual autobiography."

Additional Information
80 pages | 5.00" x 7.12"

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