Picture Books

One spring day the forest animals gathered with Mother Bear to meet her two new cubs. As they emerged from the den, Raven gifted a sacred white feather (a symbol of peace and harmony) to one of them. This beautifully illustrated story of a little spirit bear is written in lyrical text and will appeal to readers of all ages.

Educator & Series Information
Spirit Bear is part of the Strong Stories: Tlingit series. Strong Stories focus on different First Nation territories from across Canada and the United States. These stories reflect the belief that our stories are the roots of our people, our lands and our cultures. It is from our stories that we grow and become strong and proud.

This resource is also available in French: Ours Esprit.

Additional Information
16 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | ISBN: 9781771741095

In this book, Bill Helin explains the importance of stories and storytellers to the culture and history of the Tlingit people. Often using animals of the forest and ocean as characters, the storytellers wove teachings of survival, respect and family life into the fabric of their stories.

Educator & Series Information
Tlingit Storytellers is part of the Strong Stories: Tlingit series. Strong Stories focus on different First Nation territories from across Canada and the United States. These stories reflect the belief that our stories are the roots of our people, our lands and our cultures. It is from our stories that we grow and become strong and proud.

This resource is also available in French: Les Conteurs tlingits.

Additional Information
16 pages | 6.00" x 9.00" | ISBN: 9781771741071

“The Salmon Run”, follows a salmon on his journey to return to the spawning grounds. Written and illustrated by Clayton Gauthier, the debut book of talented artist and storyteller.

Additional Information
Dakelh translation by Francois Prince.

When two red foxes have an argument which breaks apart their community, a gentle buffalo decides to take a braid of sweetgrass to a local elder and asks her to help with a sharing circle for all the animals.

Reviews
"The Sharing Circle is a story about two animal friends getting into a disagreement and the resolution they come to through from working together. The story explores Indigenous teachings through Kokum Owl, bringing the animals together into a sharing circle to resolve the problem peacefully." - The Dalai Lama Center

Educator Information
Recommended for grades 2 to 5.

This resource is also available in French: Le Cercle de Partage

An adaptation of this book for a younger audience (ages 4-6) is available: The Circle of Sharing and Caring

A board book adaptation of this book is available: Our Little Sharing Circle (BB)

Additional Information
40 pages | 8.49" x 10.71"

What are some things you can try when you want to feel happy?

This book introduces readers to simple action verbs and the comparative word "more."

Educator Information
This book is part of the Nunavummi Reading Series, a Nunavut-developed series that supports literacy learning while teaching readers about the people, traditions, and environment of the Canadian Arctic. Things That Make Me Happy is a Level 5 book in the series.

Nunavummi Reading Series books have also been officially levelled using the Fountas & Pinnell Text Level Gradient™ Levelling System. Things That Make Me Happy's F&P Level is B.

Recommended for ages 3-5.

Additional Information
8 pages | 6.00" x 8.00"

This book introduces kids to the spine—tingling, hair—raising creatures found in Inuit myths. From the mahahaa, a fearsome creature that tickles people to death to the palraiyuk, a reptilian creature said to have six legs and the body of a snake.

Thunder Boy Jr. is named after his dad, but he wants a name that's all his own. Just because people call his dad Big Thunder doesn't mean he wants to be Little Thunder. He wants a name that celebrates something cool he's done, like Touch the Clouds, Not Afraid of Ten Thousand Teeth, or Full of Wonder.

But just when Thunder Boy Jr. thinks all hope is lost, he and his dad pick the perfect name...a name that is sure to light up the sky.

National Book Award-winner Sherman Alexie's lyrical text and Caldecott Honor-winner Yuyi Morales's striking and beautiful illustrations celebrate the special relationship between father and son.

Reviews
"[A] delightful story about a Native American boy trying to carve out his own identity." - The Washington Post

"Together [Sherman and Morales] deliver a story that feels both modern and timeless, a joyous portrait of one boy's struggle to (literally) make a name for himself in the world."—The New York Times Book Review

Educator Information
Recommended Ages: 4-8.

Additional Information
40 pages | 10.12" x 10.25"

Ukaliq can't wait to go on his first trip to the city, but his best friend Kalla isn't so sure!

This humorous story uses a repeating sentence structure to help children follow Ukaliq and Kalla on their adventure.

Educator Information
This book is part of the Nunavummi Reading Series, a Nunavut-developed series that supports literacy learning while teaching readers about the people, traditions, and environment of the Canadian Arctic. Ukaliq and Kalla Go to the City is a Level 8 book in the series.

Nunavummi Reading Series books have also been officially levelled using the Fountas & Pinnell Text Level Gradient™ Levelling System. Ukaliq and Kalla Go to the City's F&P Level is J.

Recommended for ages 4-6.

Additional Information
24 pages | 8.00" x 6.00"

All Viivi wants for her ninth birthday is a pair of kamiks. How can she show her parents that she's ready?

This book uses a humorous story to introduce children to kamiks, a traditional boot Inuit have worn for hundreds of years. An explanatory note helps children understand what kamiks look like and why they are worn.

Educator Information
This book is part of the Nunavummi Reading Series, a Nunavut-developed series that supports literacy learning while teaching readers about the people, traditions, and environment of the Canadian Arctic. Viivi's New Kamiks is a Level 9 book in the series.

Nunavummi Reading Series books have also been officially levelled using the Fountas & Pinnell Text Level Gradient™ Levelling System. Viivi's New Kamiks' F&P Level is I.

Recommended for ages 5-7.

This resource is also available in French: Les nouvelles kamiks de Viivi

Additional Information
28 pages | 8.00" x 8.00"

In this sweet and lyrical board book from the creators of the bestselling Little You, gentle rhyming text captures the wonder new parents feel as they welcome baby into the world. A celebration of the bond between parent and child, this is the perfect song to share with your little ones.

Internationally renowned storyteller and bestselling author Richard Van Camp teams up with award-winning illustrator Julie Flett for a second time to create a stunning board book for babies and toddlers.

Awards
- 2017 CCBC Best Books commendation

Reviews
"Both Van Camp's words and Flett's illustrations are economical, but We Sang You Home is not a quick read. Instead, each of the paired pages of text and illustration truly demands that the reader pause and reflect on the pages' contents. Highly recommended." — CM Magazine, June 2016

"The emotions of parenthood—including feelings of love, elation, and gratitude—are certain to be conveyed to [children] by the parents who share this tale with them. A lovely picture book that will resonate with parents and show young readers the profound, positive impact they have on their parents' lives." — School Library Journal, October 2016

"A great strength of this book is that it is nonspecific and inclusive enough to encompass all new babies—arriving through birth, fostering, or adoption—and it does not specify gender…The whole message is one of love, welcome, and completion now that the young one has joined the family. The eye-catching illustrations hint at a non-specific non-white race for the family (could be Asian, First Nations, Inuit, etc.), making this book inclusive and encompassing of Canada's ethnic diversity…It is a book of thankfulness and hope that would make a wonderful addition to the preschool collection in a library. Highly recommended." — Resource Links, October 2016

Educator Information
This book is available in a dual-language format: We Sang You Home / Ka Kîweh Nikamôstamâtinân

Available in Hardcover: We Sang You Home (HC)

Additional Information
26 pages | 7.00" x 7.00"

Authenticity Note: This story is meant to appeal to and honour a variety of families, not only Indigenous families.  This is why we have labelled it as not containing Indigenous text content; it may still work as an Indigenous text for your purposes, though, as the author and illustrator are in Indigenous.

When a young girl helps tend to her grandmother’s garden, she begins to notice things that make her curious. Why does her grandmother have long, braided hair and beautifully coloured clothing? Why does she speak another language and spend so much time with her family? As she asks her grandmother about these things, she is told about life in a residential school a long time ago, where all of these things were taken away. When We Were Alone is a story about a difficult time in history, and, ultimately, one of empowerment and strength.

Reviews
"When We Were Alone is rare. It is exquisite and stunning, for the power conveyed by the words Robertson wrote, and for the illustrations that Flett created. I highly recommend it." — Debbie Reese, American Indians in Children's Literature.

"…Robertson handles a delicate task here admirably well: explaining residential schools, that shameful legacy, and making them understandable to small children. It’s a dark history, and the author doesn’t disguise that, but he wisely focuses the grandmother’s tale on how, season by season, the students use creativity, imagination, and patience to retain their sense of identity. A beautifully quiet, bold strength arises from the continued refrain “When we were alone” and in how the children insisted on being themselves. Flett’s gorgeous, skillful illustrations have a flattened, faux naïve feel to them, like construction paper collage, a style that works perfectly with the story. She nicely contrasts the school’s dull browns and grays with the riotous colors surrounding Nókom and gets much expression from her simple silhouettes. Spare, poetic, and moving, this Cree heritage story makes a powerful impression." — Kirkus Reviews

"When We Were Alone addresses the topic of residential schools and, just as importantly, aspects of Cree culture and language. There is such gentleness about When We Were Alone that makes it an appropriate book for the even youngest of readers. Simply put, this is a much-needed book. Highly Recommended." — Dr. Kristen Ferguson, CM Magazine

"Robertson's text moves between the present and the past, the girl's questions and Nókom's memories, which deepen and intensify the quiet, powerful way she lives out her own culture, day by day, in the present. A beautifully rendered story of resisitance and love, this is made all the more luminous by Flett's art - not just by flashes of fuschsia or scarlet among ochre grasses, but by her precisely observed images of the compact bodies of the uniformed children, bowed beneath the weight of the scissors, or lovingly tending each other's hair. Highly recommended." — Deirdre Baker, Toronto Star

"When We Were Alone is a story about finding the strength to push forward when everything is against you. It follows a young girl asking her grandmother questions to learn more about her past. The grandmother shares her experience of a time when she was unable to make her own decisions and how she got through it." — The Dalai Lama Center

Educator Information
Recommended Grades: 3 and under.

Grades 10-11 BC English First Peoples resource for the unit First Steps - Exploring Residential School and Reconciliation through Children's Literature.

This book is also available in Swampy Cree syllabics and Roman orthography, as well as the original English: Ispík kákí péyakoyak/When We Were Alone

This resource is also available in French: Quand on etait seuls

Additional Information
24 pages | 8.50" x 7.50" | colour illustrations 

When a young boy's classmates gather around to look at a young boy's moccasins, he tells them the story of how his grandmother made them.

Additional Information
24 pages | 8.00" x 11.00" | New Edition

Amik tells Moshoom about his wonderful school. Then his grandfather tells him about the residential school he went to, much different from Amik’s school. So Amik has an idea….

Amik Loves School is one book in The Seven Teachings Stories series.The Seven Teachings of the Anishinaabe—love, wisdom, humility, courage, respect, honesty, and truth—are revealed in seven stories for children. Set in urban landscapes, Indigenous children tell familiar stories about home, school, and community.

Educator Information
Find the French translation of this book here: Amik aime l'ecole.

This book is part of The Seven Teachings Stories series, which are inspired by the Seven Sacred Teachings of the Anishinaabe—love, wisdom, humility, courage, respect, honesty, and truth. These stories are set in urban landscapes, where Indigenous children tell familiar stories about home, school, and community.

Additional Information
24 pages | 6.00" x 8.00"

Born of Mohawk and Cayuga descent, musical icon Robbie Robertson learned the story of Hiawatha and his spiritual guide, the Peacemaker, as part of the Iroquois oral tradition. Now he shares the same gift of storytelling with a new generation.

Hiawatha was a strong and articulate Mohawk who was chosen to translate the Peacemaker’s message of unity for the five warring Iroquois nations during the 14th century. This message not only succeeded in uniting the tribes but also forever changed how the Iroquois governed themselves—a blueprint for democracy that would later inspire the authors of the U.S. Constitution.

Caldecott Honor–winning illustrator David Shannon brings the journey of Hiawatha and the Peacemaker to life with arresting oil paintings. Together, Robertson and Shannon have crafted a new children’s classic that will both educate and inspire readers of all ages.

Includes a CD featuring a new, original song written and performed by Robbie Robertson.

Additional Information
48 pages | 9.50" x 11.25"

"A long time ago, Our People came from the Northern Woodlands to the Great Plains looking for food," Grandfather said. "They saw that the Buffalo lived in harmony with Mother Earth the same as Our People did."

Through the Creator, the buffalo gave themselves as a gift for the sustenance and survival of the Plains Cree people. The largest land animal in North America once thundered across the Great Plains in numbers of 30 to 50 million. They provided shelter, food, clothing, tools, hunting gear, ceremonial objects and many other necessities for those who lived on the Plains.

But by 1889, just over a thousand buffalo remained, and the lives of the Plains Cree people changed. The buffalo is honoured to this day, a reminder of life in harmony with nature as it was once lived. This is the story of how the buffalo came to share themselves so freely.

Educator Information
The text is in English and y-dialect Plains Cree.  Y-dialect Plains Cree translation by Randy Morin, Jean Okimasis, and Arok Wolvengrey.

This resource is also available in French: Hommage au bison.

Additional Information
48 pages | 11.00" x 8.50"