Not recommended: KOKOPELLI'S FLUTE by Will Hobbs

Years ago, someone asked me about Kokopelli's Flute by Will Hobbs. It wasn't the first ask but it is on my mind lately. I can't get a digital copy. I am able to read the first chapters in Google books. Here's notes as I read: 

The cover illustration is, without doubt, a rendition of Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde. In addition to the title, the cover includes these words: "Tep didn't mean to unleash the ancient magic..."

Chapter 1 of Kokopelli's Flute begins with "The magic had always been there." Magic again? Immediate response from me? Umm... what is he talking about?! I continue reading that first paragraph. The "magic" is in "the light" and in "the rock" in "the miniature city the Ancient Ones left perched in the cliffs." For years, the main character, Tep, has been trying to get closer to "the magic." We read "This would be the night I not only got close, but crossed over." 

Again, what magic? And where or what does he want to cross over to in that "miniature city"? Pause to look up the book description:

THE MAGIC HAD ALWAYS BEEN THERE. Tep Jones has always felt the magic of Picture House, an Anasazi cliff dwelling near the seed farm where he lives with his parents. But he could never have imagined what would happen to him on the night of a lunar eclipse, when he finds a bone flute left behind by grave robbers. Tep falls under the spell of a powerful ancient magic that traps him at night in the body of an animal.

Only by unraveling the mysteries of Picture House can Tep save himself and his desperately ill mother. Does the enigmatic old Indian who calls himself Cricket hold the key to unlocking the secrets of the past? And can Tep find the answers in time?

Back to chapter one, second paragraph. There we learn that a total eclipse of the moon will take place that night and Tep wants to see it from what he calls "Picture House." He's been there a lot, "puzzling over the secrets of the ancient pueblo." He thinks that maybe during the eclipse, if he listens hard enough, he might hear the footsteps of the Ancient Ones. Maybe even their voices. Maybe even dancers coming out of their kivas. Me: sighing, frowning, shaking my head. But there's more of that sort of thing on page three:

Eight hundred years ago the people came through all those little doorways for the last time, walked away, and left only stillness, silence, and secrets.

That wistful (if that's the right word) writing about any people makes me cringe, but especially when its a white character thinking about ancestors of today's Pueblo Indians. 

On page four, as Tep and his dog wait for the eclipse, they hear voices. Turns out to be two men who are talking about how they're gonna make thousands of dollars digging at the site. Tep can't believe it. He sees the items they've dug up. One is a "seed jar" which struck me as odd. We call them seed pots. 

"Picture House" Tep tells us, has not ever been vandalized because it isn't marked on maps and its hard to get to. The two men are in a room that Tep has been in many times. There's a back wall in that room that Tep says is built with a special purpose in mind, like to bury someone. Tep is only supposed to be a kid, but his character is created by an adult. Clearly, Tep doesn't like what the two men are doing but I don't like him going all through "Palace House" either, looking for the magic. Sheesh. 

The two men have found "a burial" which is the body of what they call an albino because his skin is pink. There was a large pot with him that broke open. In that pot was a basket the two men call "a medicine man's bundle." So, the body is that of an albino medicine man. I really dislike this content. Hobbs (the author) seems to be telling us it is bad to do this, but in telling us the value of this activity, it doesn't jive. Especially when we read the next part. 

Tep scares them off and then goes to see where they had been digging. They took the pot and the basket and most of its contents. In their rush they left behind a small polished flute. Tep thinks he should return it immediately to the albino medicine man but he is afraid of him and doesn't want to go into the room. He thinks the flute must be powerful. "Something told me I shouldn't put it to my lips" but he does it anyway, startled by how clear it sounds. Then he sees a packrat.  

That's all I can see online. Reading the book's description, however, my guess is that "the magic" of the flute turns Tep into a packrat by night. Again, sigh. 

At this point, I'm saying "not recommended." If I'm able to get a copy and have the wherewithall to read the rest of it, I seriously doubt I'd change my mind. This book is rife with do-gooder whiteness. 

Why is it being assigned in schools? What educational purpose does it meet?! 

 

Highly Recommended: STITCHES OF TRADITION by Marcie Rendon; illustrated by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley

Stitches of Tradition (Gashkigwaaso Tradition)

Written by Marcie Rendon (enrolled member of the White Earth Nation)

Illustrated by Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley (Anishinaabe; member of Wasauksing First Nation

Published in 2024

Publisher: Heartdrum (Imprint of HarperCollins)

Reviewer: Debbie Reese

Review Status: Highly Recommended

****

Regular readers of AICL know that I urge them to look at author's notes whenever they pick up a book by a Native writer. Doing that gives you (teacher, parent, librarian, professor, reviewer...) information that you probably did not get in school or college. That information supports the reading you'll do when you flip back to the front of the book and start reading the words and looking at the illustrations. 

Marcie Rendon's note for Stitches of Tradition is outstanding. Her note focuses on ribbon skirts. The second paragraph stands out to me:

Skirts are worn not only in traditional ceremonies but also as a political statement. There are many different teachings about the skirt, but the most important thing to remember is that the ribbon skirt says, We are here. We have survived genocide. We are resilient and beautiful.

Some words make me pump my fist and declare YES. Those words did precisely that. The dedication did, too. Rendon's is "For all the grandgirls." And the illustrator, Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley's is "To the women who raised me, and to all the matriarchs guiding us to a brighter future." Imagine more loud declarations from me. 

All right! So what is this story about? Here's the description:

An Ojibwe grandmother carefully measures and selects just the right colors of fabric, and her sewing machine hums whirr, whirr, whirr late into the night.

In the morning, her growing granddaughter has a beautiful new ribbon skirt to wear, a reminder of her nookomis and the cultural traditions that stitch together her family with love.

That basic scene repeats as that grandaughter gets older and her grandma makes another skirt. This part is especially dear because I can see it in my memory and imagine it in other Native homes across the country: 

Nookomis whips out a measuring tape. She measures how round I am from my belly button back around to my belly button. She measures how long I am from my waist to my ankle. She says, "You're growing so tall." 

Deep sigh--thinking about times when I was being measured or when I was doing the measuring for one of our traditional dresses--and for the time when I'll be measuring my granddaughter and reading this lovely book to that granddaughter! 

Now for the political part. At various times as the granddaughter gets older, she needs a new skirt. About halfway through the story we read that her auntie, who is a lawyer, is becoming a district judge. The granddaughter and grandma need new skirts to honor her at the upcoming swearing in. So Nookomis gets out that measuring tape and measures her granddaughter. And then, she says:

"Noozhishenh, now you must measure me." 
Sweet as can be! And oh so real! 

Here's the swearing-in page:

 

This book is full of goodness and reality of who Native people are, culturally and politically, and there's layers to it, too, with deep significance for Native people. For those who are Ojibwe there's things in the illustrations that will call to them. Obviously, I highly recommend Stitches of Tradition!  

At PEN America: "Native American Heritage Now: An Interview with Dr. Debbie Reese

 Today (November 13, 2024), PEN America published an interview Amulya Hiremath did for Native American Heritage Month: 

I appreciate Hiremath's opening paragraph and am grateful for the opportunity to speak to PEN about my work. The interview is in the Banned Books category. Here's that first paragraph:

At the tail end of another year that has threatened and targeted books by Native Americans–from book bans to incorrect reclassifications–the work of Dr. Debbie Reese becomes extremely important. Her website, American Indians in Children’s Literature (AICL), is a repository of information on Native American heritage that acts, at once, as both an archive and a record, especially of misrepresentation of culture in literature."

I am also glad to see that they set up a page at Bookshop that features books from my "Banning of Native Voices" page where I talk about Native writers that have been banned or challenged. 

Take a look at the interview, and click over to Bookshop and buy some books! 

Highly Recommended: BIINDIGEN! AMIK SAYS WELCOME

Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome

by Nancy Cooper (Chippewas of Rama First Nation)

Illustrations by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley (Wasauksing First Nation)

Published in 2023

Publisher: Owl Kids (Canada)

Reviewer: Jean Mendoza

Review Status: Highly Recommended

This is a short-and-sweet review of a cool picture book from the shelves of one of my favorite local places, the Urbana Free Library in Urbana, Ilinois. It's a pleasure to know they offer some of the most current books by and about Indigenous people. 

Here's what the publisher, Owl Kids, says about Biindigen!:

It’s a special day for Amik the beaver and her little sister, Nishiime. Their cousins are coming to visit! Amik is excited, but Nishiime feels nervous about meeting new people, and when the cousins finally arrive, Nishiime disappears.

Lively, immersive illustrations show Amik and her cousins as they search the woods for Nishiime. Each creature they encounter, introduced to readers using their Anishinaabe names, reveals how beavers help the forest community. A fish thanks them for digging canals in the mud that they swim through. A deer thanks the beavers for cutting down trees so they can reach the tastiest leaves. None of the creatures have seen Nishiime, but keen-eyed kids will have spotted her hiding in the background throughout the story....With the perfect blend of fact and fun, this salute to the industrious beaver is also an energetic celebration of Indigenous perspectives, languages, and diversity.

Reason #1 to recommend this book: the illustrations. AICL has reviewed several books illustrated by Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley, including Sharice's Big Voice. Readers will notice differences in how Pawis-Steckley approaches the subjects in each of the books. In Biindigen! the animals' bodies have some of the stylized lines and forms seen in Boozhoo! Hello!, but they have a somewhat different "feel."  They are plump, sleek, and lively-looking. And it's fun looking for Nishiime after she vanishes from her sister's sight.

My only concern is that the inking on some of the pages in the copy I have is so dark that details can be hard to see. In the sample pages on the Owl Kids web site,  the illustrations seem much brighter.

Reason #2: centering Indigenous knowledge. Author Nancy Cooper reveals in a non-didactic (yet accurate) way how beavers operate as a keystone species in the environments they occupy. This is an important understanding for children, as many people mistakenly view beavers as destructive -- cutting down trees, blocking streams, and so on. But the other animals that appear in the story express gratitude for the ways beaver activity benefits them.

Another fact implicit in Cooper's storytelling is that Native Nations interacted with each other for millennia, across distance and language differences, often using water routes on their journeys. The Beaver cousins do the same thing -- traveling far to get together, carrying or wearing items from their homelands and nations. That's something to point out when sharing the book with children.

Reason #3: promotion of Indigenous languages. The beavers know each other by their names in the languages of the places they come from, including Anishinaabemowin, Inuktitut, and Ayajuthum. Cooper's storytelling incorporates several Anishinaabe words (the meanings are apparent in context) and provides pronunciations and English definitions in the back matter. Seeing their language in good books is a big positive for Native children, and learning about Indigenous languages is important for non-Native kids, as well.

Reason #4: portraying shyness as okay. Amik and the cousins are eager to get together. Nishiime thinks she is, but is overtaken by shyness. She watches instead, as many young children do in new situations. She returns to Amik only when the cousins are about to depart, after she has determined that she will feel safe with them. Instead of scolding her or pointing out the joy she missed by not joining in, the older beavers are happy to see her and answer her questions before they head for home. 

Biindigen: Amik Says Welcome can be an asset in several areas of the primary curriculum. I hope teachers and librarians will follow the example of my favorite library and get a copy -- or more than one -- for the bookshelves.

 

Highly Recommended! CHOOCH HELPED by Andrea L. Rogers, illustrated by Rebecca Lee Kunz

Chooch Helped

by Andrea L. Rogers (citizen of the Cherokee Nation)

illustrated by Rebecca Lee Knuz (citizen of the Cherokee Nation)

Published in 2024

Publisher: Levine Querido

Reviewer: Debbie Reese

Review Status: Highly Recommended

****

Sometimes a story reaches right into your being and makes you laugh, smile, wince, and then it makes you feel loved. That is my experience reading Chooch Helped by Andrea L. Rogers. She's a citizen of the Cherokee Nation. Illustrations are by Rebecca Lee Kunz, who is also a citizen of the Cherokee Nation. 

Look at the cover. Kunz's art captures precisely what we see as we begin reading Chooch Helped. The posture of the girl as she peers over her shoulder at the boy watering a plant, spilling water as he does it captures what we see in the first part of the book. His red cape and red boots... how many of us have memories of siblings or cousins who wore things like that?!  How many of us have a younger brother or sister who--even as they grew into toddlerhood--were called "the baby"? Chooch Helped invites us to revisit our own memories and, perhaps, tell our little ones about an auntie or uncle who annoyed us when we were kids. I adore what this story does for me, and can't wait to read it to kids! 

Setting that aside for now, this story does more than touch on memories. In a straightforward way, Rogers introduces us to some Cherokee words. Cherokee families may feel a special delight seeing their language in this book. The rest of us may tell our children words in our own languages as we read Chooch Helped. 

I urge you to get a copy and flip to the back matter. Take a look at those pages before reading the book with kids. You'll find a glossary that tells you how to say the Cherokee words in the story. And, you'll find the Author's Note and the Artist's Note. Rogers and Knuz give us tribally specific information that they've put on each page. To most readers, the page where Chooch helps tune up bicycles is just a page about a kid helping his dad fix bikes but in her note, Rogers gives us more depth. She tells us about the 

Cherokee Nation's Remember the Removal Bike Ride. Here's that portion:

In the Artist's Note, Kunz tells us about Cherokee patterns in baskets and as I studied the illustrations to find it, I spotted (and loved) the green footprints we learn about as we get to the end of the story. That reveal is clever and delightful and oh-so-perfect! I adore this book! 

Get a few copies for friends! If you're a teacher, get one for your classroom, and librarians, get copies for your library system. 

What is going on with COLONIZATION AND THE WAMPANOAG STORY by Linda Coombs?

Update at 12:34PM on October 22: The library met today and reversed their decision. The catalog already reflects the change! Instead of jF Coo, the shelf number is J974.004 Coo. 

As news media reports on the change, I'll be back to update with links. --Debbie

****

What is going on with Colonization and the Wampanoag Story by Linda Coombs?

Published at approximately 9:45AM on October 22, 2024; updated at 12:34PM on October 22, 2024.

On October 8, colleagues wrote to let me know that a public library in Texas had made a decision to remove Colonization and the Wampanoag Story by Linda Coombs (Aquinnah Wampanoag) from the juvenile nonfiction shelves to the fiction shelves. I joined efforts to write a letter objecting to that decision and I added the book to my log of Native-authored books that have been challenged or banned. 

Colonization and the Wampanoag Story came out in 2023 from Crown Books for Young Readers, which is an imprint of Random House Children's Books. Here's the book description:

Until now, you've only heard one side of the story: the "discovery" of America told by Christopher Columbus, the Pilgrims, and the Colonists. Here's the true story of America from the Indigenous perspective.

When you think about the beginning of the American story, what comes to mind? Three ships in 1492, or perhaps buckled hats and shoes stepping off of the Mayflower, ready to start a new country. But the truth is, Christopher Columbus, the Pilgrims, and the Colonists didn't arrive to a vast, empty land ready to be developed. They arrived to find people and communities living in harmony with the land they had inhabited for thousands of years, and they quickly disrupted everything they saw.

From its "discovery" by Europeans to the first Thanksgiving, the story of America's earliest days has been carefully misrepresented. Told from the perspective of the New England Indigenous Nations that these outsiders found when they arrived, this is the true story of how America as we know it today began.

I've followed and recommended Coombs's work for years. She has done excellent work over many decades, as a tribal historian for the Aquinnah Wampanoag and in writings through which she tries to help teachers create educational materials. I read her book last year and included it in our annual Best Books list. 

The decision to recategorize the book was taken by the "Citizens Review Committee" that is appointed by the county commissioner. When initially formed, that committee had five citizens and five librarians, but in March of 2024, Montgomery County officials decided the librarians could no longer weigh in on reviews of children's and young adult books that residents had challenged. Why they removed the librarians is not clear to me. Professional training in book selection was essentially set aside in favor of "common sense" of the local community (see Montgomery County Adopts Citizen-Led Library Book Review Policy for use of the phrase "common sense."

Montgomery County Memorial Library System is in Texas, north of Houston. That system includes 7 different locations. Yesterday morning when I went to their catalog and entered the book title, this is what I saw:

In the first column are the names of the libraries that have a copy. The second column is "Material Type" where each library has it listed as "Juvenile books, circulating." The third column, "Shelf Number" for all the libraries is "jF Coo" which means juvenile Fiction, Coombs. In the 4th column, "Status" you see "Material being cataloged" at five libraries. From what I've read in news reports, the libraries had to complete the move by October 17, which was 5 days ago. I assume "material being cataloged" means librarians are working on moving the book, changing the information in the catalog, and doing all that needs doing in order to keep track of books in a catalog. 

Here's a fact based on my experience:

A lot of people in the United States don't know we (Native peoples) exist anymore. I've read accounts in which someone says "there's no Indians here" and that books or educational materials about them are not needed in this or that location. 

But here's the thing: we are here, in spite of all that was done over hundreds of years to get rid of us. Did you know, for example, that L. Frank Baum (he wrote The Wizard of Oz) wrote an editorial calling for "the total annihilation of the few remaining Indians." Books by Native writers ought to be in every school and public library. There are more, today, than ever before. When libraries choose to put our nonfiction books in the fiction section, they are continuing efforts to remove us from existence. There's obvious harm to Native kids who look for books that accurately reflect who we are, but there's harm to non-Native kids, too. They'll grow up, mis-educated, and may apply that misinformation to the work they do as adults. 

Why, exactly, did the Citizens Review Committee in Texas make this decision? 

News media states the thinking behind the decision to reclassify the book is not available to the public. I hope reporters will press for the information. 

My guess is that when the committee received a request that Colonization and the Wampanoag be reviewed, they started by looking at the cover and the table of contents. They saw that Coombs structured the book by alternating chapters in an unusual way. Let me explain.

In the book, there is an Introduction, thirteen chapters, an Epilogue, Resources for Young Readers, and a Bibliography. Here's a screen capture of the Table of Contents for my e-copy:

The Introduction is in plain font. Here's a key paragraph:

The book starts with a story, "When Life Was Our Own," which describes Wampanoag life before any European contact. The story was created to relate traditional Wampanoag culture, beliefs, practices, and values based on our oral traditions and research done over many years. There are no written sources of these early times, due to the processes of colonization described in the other parts of the book. An understanding of precontact life brings clarity to the impacts of colonization on Indigenous people. 

Chapter 1, "When Life Was Our Own: Spring and the Time of the New Year" is in italics. Here's a paragraph from there:

Little Bird felt a slight breeze on her face and the sudden warmth of the morning sun, bidding her to open her eyes to a new day. Her body resisted rousing from the warm furs of the bed. Maybe just one more snuggle before getting up! Just yesterday, her family and many others had moved from the winter home to their summer cornfields. Sachem Corn Tassel, the leader of their village, had Little Bird's family return to the same field they'd planted in last year.  

Chapter 2, "Creating Colonies: More than a New Place to Live" is in plain font. Its subtitle is "Some Background Information and Context (Never forget the Context!)." It starts with this paragraph:

This section will discuss three episodes in history that occurred before 1620. These paved the way for the Pilgrims to settle in America. They are the Doctrine of Discovery; the impacts of Christopher Columbus's voyages; and the PPP--Pre-Pilgrim Patterns--which happened along coastal southern New England. 

Chapter 3, "When Life Was Our Own: Summer--Tending to Corn Mother" is in italics, and chapter 4, "PPP: Pre-Pilgrim Patterns" is in plain font. That pattern continues throughout the book. 

In her book, Coombs uses storytelling, or the oral tradition. Is that why the committee decided her book is fiction? Storytelling/oral tradition is a technique that Native people use to pass information from one generation to the next. Coombs uses it to provide a Native perspective on the history the book focuses on. Using that technique she invites readers to be with a Native family, and then in the next chapter she gives readers the information typically found in textbooks. 

I think it is a terrific model. 

And it isn't an unfamiliar one! On Twitter/X, the librarian who writes using ReadingDanger as their name pointed to several books categorized as nonfiction that someone might say 'hey, that's not nonfiction!' One example is the Magic School Bus series. Information in those outstanding books is conveyed by Ms. Frizzle and the kids in her class. A quick look at the catalog tells me those books are cataloged as nonfiction.   

Below I'm providing links to items I've read. I'll add additional links as I can, and additional thoughts as they develop. For starters? I think the book ought to be moved back to the nonfiction section of the library. 

March 26, 2024

Texas county removes librarians from certain book review processes at LoneStar Live. Note from Debbie on Oct 23: As I continue researching how this happened, I'll be adding older items -- like this one from March--that has information about the policy that removed librarians from the committee that was created to review objections to library materials. It reminds me of efforts to denigrate people with expertise as "elites" that are "out of touch" with people. I also want to note that individuals who attended the Montgomery County board meetings to object to books wore red attire.  

October 11, 2024

"American History from an Indigenous Perspective:: Nonfiction or Fiction?" from the Texas Freedom to Read Project. 

October 14, 2024

Texas county sidelines librarians, reclassifies book on abuse of Native Americans as "fiction" by Judd Legum at Popular Information. 

Houston-area library moves Indigenous history book to fiction section at Lonestar Live.

October 16, 2024

Letter to the Montgomery County Commission, signed by American Indians in Children's Literature, and the American Indian Library Association, available at PEN America. 

October 18, 2024

Texas county labels Native American history book a work of fiction, sparking outrage at the San Antonio Current. 

October 19, 2024

We fight book bans in Texas. This county's latest move stunned us at MSNBC.

October 20, 2024

Attacks on People's Stories are Attacks on People. Just Ask a Librarian at Forward Times is an interview with ALA President, Cindy Hohl (Santee Sioux Nation) who has also served as President of the American Indian Library Association.

October 21, 2024

Texas condemned for placing book on colonization in library's fiction section at The Guardian.

October 22, 2024

Texas county reverses classification of history book as fiction by Daniel Wu at The Washington Post. 

Montgomery County library will reclassify book about Native Americans amid pressure at Chron. 

Texas library committee under review after relabeling Indigenous history book as fiction at Lonestar Live.

October 23, 2024

UPDATE: Texas library committee reverses decision to reclassify Indigenous history book as "fiction" reversed by Judd Legum at Popular Information.

Texas county reverses classification of Indigenous history book as fiction in The Guardian

Questions about ABDO's COMANCHE in its "Native American Nations" series

Yesterday, I shared a resolution issued by the Comanche Nation that denounces Gwynne's Empire of the Summer Moon. 

Today I looked for children's books about the Comanche Nation. The one that popped up a lot is published by ABDO. Comanche is part of a "Native American Nations" series they did in which all the books are by "F. A. Bird." It came out in 2022. 

The cover of each book has the name of a tribal nation, the logo for the series, and the author's name:

Who is F. A. Bird? When I got the book, I decided to do this post because there's a lot wrong with this book, and my guess is F. A. Bird made similar errors in the other books. I can't find any information about who F. A. Bird is, anywhere. Help me! If you know who that is, please let me know. 

The series has 10 titles: Algonquin, Apache, Cherokee, Cheyenne, Comanche, Iroquois, Navajo, Nez Perce, Seminole, Sioux. I'll try to get the other books, but for now, I'm looking at the title for the first one: Algonquin. Who is that book about? There is no "Algonquin" tribal nation in what is currently called the US. 

The format for each book consists of thirteen two-page chapters. One of those pages is a photograph; the other has about 3 paragraphs of information. The first twelve chapters are historical in nature and use past tense verbs as if the Comanche people of today don't do any of the things presented on those pages. Let's consider what we see in Chapter 8, "Children." It says their babies "were placed on a cradleboard." Many Native families still use cradleboards. Another example is that "grandparents helped raise the children" and "told their grandchildren stories." That still happens. Grandparents help today, and they tell their grandchildren stories. 

Though the series title includes the word "Nations," it only appears once in the entire book! Chapter 13, "The Comanche Today," is primarily about the "Comanche Nation Homecoming Powwow." How is a teacher meant to teach children the fact of nationhood if that fact is not included in the book? 

Chapter 6 is "Crafts." It is about bows and arrows. Why is that being called a craft? The page is primarily about hunting. In that context, it was not (and is not) a craft. Calling it a craft situates it in a hobbyist space. 

After looking over the information in the Comanche book, I wonder what the Comanche people would want included? How would they want that information presented? Chapter 9 is "Traditions" and talks about "the Great Spirit" and "the Evil Spirit." It tells us that the Evil Spirit was cast out of the "Spirit World" when it refused to recognize humans as "the Great Spirit's best creation." That Evil Spirit hides in fangs and stingers of poisonous creatures. The accompanying photo is of a scorpion. Is that what the Comanche people say in their traditional stories? What is the source for that page of info? 

At the moment, I am full of questions about this book--and the entire series! 

Comanche Nation Denounces EMPIRE OF THE SUMMER MOON

At American Indians in Children's Literature, we occasionally read and recommend books intended for adult readers. We aren't alone in doing that. Within children's literature, the Alex Award is given each year to ten books that have special appeal to young adults, ages 12 through 18. 

We often receive emails asking us to read an adult book, and/or if there's anyone doing critical reviews of adult books like the reviews we do at AICL. In answer to the latter, there is not (as far as we know) someone who reads and critiques books for adults. To the former, we sometimes read/critique an adult book because we know it is shaping the ideas that librarians will use to select children's books. We don't have endless time, however. We pretty much stick to children's books. 

One book I've been asked about is S. C. Gwynne's Empire of the Summer Moon: Quannah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches. I didn't read it but am happy to share a resolution from the Comanche Nation of Oklahoma. Dated October 5, 2024, their resolution says, in part:

WHEREAS, Mr. Gwynne purposefully eschewed use of Comanche sources in writing his book, and as a result of his over-reliance on ethnocentric sources, the book repeats many inaccuracies and stereotypes concerning the Comanche people. 

If you are an educator or a parent that is homeschooling their child and using Gwynne's book as a resource, please reconsider using it. Here's the Comanche Nation's resolution (you can also find it on their website):