Thursday, February 25, 2016

Published in 2015: Books by/about Native peoples

I will be updating this page whenever I read something published in 2015. What it likely means is that a title will be added to the "Not Reviewed" list at the end, and when it is reviewed, it will be moved into the Recommended or Not Recommended list. 

 Recommended (N=15)

 Not Recommended (N=26)
  • Alko, Selina. (2015) The Case for Loving. Published by Scholastic.
  • Arnold, David. (2015) Mosquitoland. Published by Viking, an imprint of Penguin.
  • Asch, Frank. (1979/2015) Popcorn. Published by Simon and Schuster.
  • Bowman, Erin. (2015) Vengeance Road. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
  • Carson, Rae. (2015) Walk on Earth a Stranger. Published by Greenwillow, an imprint of HarperCollins.
  • Cromwell, Ellen S. (2015) Talasi: A Story of Tenderness and Love! Published by Halo Publishing International.
  • Daniels, Danielle. (2015). Sometimes I Feel Like a Fox. Published by Groundwood Books.
  • DeFelice, Cynthia. (2015) Fort. Published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux.
  • Ellis, Carson. (2015) Home. Published by Candlewick.
  • Hites, Kati. (2015). Winnie and Waldorf. Published by Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins.
  • Hand, Cynthia. (2015) The Last Time We Say Goodbye. Published by HarperTeen.
  • Howath, Naomi. (2015) The Crow's Tale: A Lenni Lenape Native American Legend. Published by Frances Lincoln Children's Books, an imprint of Quatro.
  • Jenkins, Emily. (2015) A Fine Dessert. Published by Schwartz & Wade, an imprint of Random House.
  • Johnston, E. K. (2015) Prairie Fire. Published by Carolrhoda Lab.
  • Merriam-Webster Children's Dictionary (2015) Published by Dorling Kindersley.
  • Mayer, Mercer. (2015) Just A Special Thanksgiving. Published by HarperFestival, an imprint of HarperCollins.
  • Myers, Stephenie. (2015) Life and Death. Published by Little, Brown. 
  • Nelson, S.D. (2015) Sitting Bull. Published by Abrams.
  • Rex, Adam. (2015) Smek for President. Published by Hyperion Books for Children.
  • Rose, Carolyn Starr. (2015) Blue Birds. Published by G.P. Putnam, an imprint of Penguin.
  • Schlitz, Laura Amy. (2015) The Hired Girl. Published by 
  • Stirling, Tricia. (2015) When My Heart Was Wicked. Published by Scholastic. 
  • Strayhorn, Willa (2015) The Way We Bared Our Souls. Published by Razorbill, an imprint of Penguin Random House. 
  • Taylor-Butler, Christine. (2015) The Lost Tribes. Published by Move Books.
  • Valente, Catherynne M. (2015) Six Gun Snow White. Published by Subterranean Press.
  • Velasquez, Crystal. (2015) Hunters of Chaos. Published by Simon and Schuster.
  • White, Tara. (2015). Where I Belong. Published by Tradewind Books.
Not yet reviewed (N=20)
  • Bruchac, Joseph. (2015) Walking Two Worlds. Published by 7th Generation.
  • Bruchac, Joseph. (2015) Trail of the Dead. Published by Tu Books.
  • Burgan, Michael. (2015) Shadow Catcher: How Edgar S. Curtis Documented American Indian Dignity and Beauty. Published by Compass Point, an imprint of Capstone. 
  • Coleman, Wim. (2015) Sequoyah and His Talking Leaves. Published by Red Chair Press.
  • Cooper, Karen Coody (2015) Woodchuck Visits Algonquian Cousins. Published by Soddenbank Press.
  • Florence, Melanie. (2015) Missing Nimama. Published by Clockwise Press. 
  • George, Jean Craighead. (2015) Ice Whale. Published by Puffin Books.
  • Hicks, Nola Helen. (2015) Hurry Up, Ilua. Published by Inhabit Media. 
  • Goble, Paul. (2015) Red Cloud's War. Published by Wisdom Tales.
  • Guest, Jacqueline. (2015) Fire Fight. Published by 7th Generation.
  • Kristofic, Jim. (2015) The Hero Twins: A Navajo-English Story of the Monster Slayers. Published by UNM Press.
  • London, Jonathan. (2015) Desolation Canyon. Published by West Winds Press.
  • Lumbard, Alexis York. (2015) Pine and the Winter Sparrow. Published by Wisdom Tales.
  • Revelle, Rick. (2015) Algonquin Spring. Published by Dundurn Press.
  • Robinson, Gary. (2015) Billy Buckhorn: Paranormal. Published by 7th Generation.
  • Schwartz, Simon. (2015) First Man: Reimagining Matthew Hensen. Published by Graphic Universe. 
  • Silver, Sarah Dickson. (2015) Dream a Pony, Wake a Spirit: The Story of Buster, a Choctaw Pony Survivor. Published by Luminare Press. 
  • Tripp, Analisa. (2015) A Is for Acorn: A California Indian ABC. Published by Heyday Books.
  • Williams-Garcia, Rita. (2015) Gone Crazy in Alabama. Published by Harper.
  • Zobel, Melissa Tantaquidgeon (2015) Wabanaki Blues. Published by Poisoned Pencil. 
Posted by Debbie Reese at 10:31 AM
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Debbie--have you seen... Joseph Bruchac's THE LONG RUN

Update on Sep 30 2023: I (Debbie Reese) no longer recommend Bruchac's work. For details see Is Joseph Bruchac truly Abenaki?

Out this year from 7th Generation is Joseph Bruchac's The Long Run. It is in their PathFinders series.
Follow Travis Hawk on a cross-country trek as he escapes a world of brutality and uncertainty and puts his trust, and even his very life, in the hands of total strangers. Travis's story is one of struggle, survival, risk and resilience, navigating a solo journey of hundreds of miles to seek a safe haven far from the demons of his past.
I'll be back with a review!
Posted by Debbie Reese at 9:34 AM
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Debbie--have you seen... Michelle Modesto's REVENGE AND THE WILD

A reader sent me a copy of Michelle Modesto's Revenge and the Wild. Published in 2016 by HarperCollins, here's the synopsis.

True Grit meets True Blood in this delightfully dark and fantastical Western perfect for fans of Gail Carriger, Cassandra Clare, and Holly Black. This thrilling novel is a remarkable tale of danger and discovery, from debut author Michelle Modesto.
The two-bit town of Rogue City is a lawless place, full of dark magic and saloon brawls, monsters and six-shooters. But it’s just perfect for seventeen-year-old Westie, the notorious adopted daughter of local inventor Nigel Butler.
Westie was only a child when she lost her arm and her family to cannibals on the wagon trail. Seven years later, Westie may seem fearsome with her foul-mouthed tough exterior and the powerful mechanical arm built for her by Nigel, but the memory of her past still haunts her. She’s determined to make the killers pay for their crimes—and there’s nothing to stop her except her own reckless ways.
But Westie’s search ceases when a wealthy family comes to town looking to invest in Nigel’s latest invention, a machine that can harvest magic from gold—which Rogue City desperately needs as the magic wards that surround the city start to fail. There’s only one problem: the investors look exactly like the family who murdered Westie’s kin. With the help of Nigel’s handsome but scarred young assistant, Alistair, Westie sets out to prove their guilt. But if she’s not careful, her desire for revenge could cost her the family she has now.

When I get a chance to read it, I'll be back. I don't know if westerns are seeing an uptick of late. I'm definitely seeing them, but they may have been out there a long time and I didn't know about them. I don't mean historical fiction--I mean westerns, which as a genre, feel different to me than historical fiction.


Posted by Debbie Reese at 9:30 AM
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Debbie--have you seen... Sarah Dickson Silver's DREAM A PONY, WAKE A SPIRIT: THE STORY OF BUSTER: A CHOCTAW PONY SURVIVOR

Sarah Dickson Silver's Dream a Pony: Wake a Spirit: The Story of Buster, a Choctaw Pony Survivor, is on my to-read list this year. Published in 2015 by Luminare Press, here's the synopsis:
In the Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory, in the year 1900, friendships between children of white “intruders” and their Choctaw and Chickasaw schoolmates had to cross a deep cultural divide. It was also a time when public ignorance could make a mockery of the ambitions of a boy with dwarfism and a place where children had to grow up fast. Trouble begins when a beautiful wild stallion, a supposed man killer, is rescued by two adventurous young brothers. When the stallion is identified as a rare Choctaw horse, the question of who should own him threatens to destroy cherished friendships. Then a courageous decision by a young boy allows the ancient spirit of Buster, their Choctaw Pony survivor, to live on for future generations to love and respect.

 If I am able to read it, I'll be back with a review.
Posted by Debbie Reese at 9:26 AM
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Debbie--have you seen... Joseph Bruchac's BROTHERS OF THE BUFFALO

Out this year from Fulcrum is Bruchac's Brothers of the Buffalo: A Novel of the Red River War. Here's the synopsis:
1874, the U.S. Army sent troops to subdue and move the Native Americans of the southern plains to reservations.Brothers of the Buffalo follows Private Washington Vance Jr., an African-American calvaryman, and Wolf, a Cheyenne warrior, during the brief and brutal war that followed. Filled with action and suspense from both sides of the battle, this is a tale of conflict and unlikely friendship in the Wild West.

I'll put it in my to-read pile. It is being marketed as for kids in grade 7 and up.
Posted by Debbie Reese at 9:08 AM
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Wednesday, February 24, 2016

AICL's Recommended/Not Recommended Reads in 2015

This is a list of books I read in 2015, sorted into categories of Recommended (total of 16), and Not Recommended (47 in all). As you see, it is not a list of books that came out in 2015. Grand total: 60 (and counting). There is one writer on the recommended list who is not Native (Daniel JosĂ© Older) and one on the Not Recommended list who is Native (Tara White). Links go to my review on AICL, and some of the links go to my article at School Library Journal. 

This is not a comprehensive list. There are books that I bought or received but wasn't able to read or finish writing up. One example is Ann Martin's Claudia and the First Thanksgiving. That's a book in the Babysitters Club series. It was one that will end up with a Recommended tag when I write it up. 

Recommended



 Not Recommended



Here's my Recommended/Not Recommended List for 2014. Last year, there were 26 books on the Recommended list, and 35 on the Not Recommended list. Grand total then: 61.
Posted by Debbie Reese at 4:11 PM
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Sunday, February 21, 2016

Debbie--have you seen... J. Albert Mann's SCAR: A REVOLUTIONARY WAR TALE

A reader asked if I've seen J. Albert Mann's Scar: A Revolutionary War Tale published in 2016. A second reader sent me a copy. The publishing info is interesting. It says:
Calkins Creek
An Imprint of Highlights
When I look it up online using "Calkins Creek," I'm directed to Boyds Mills Press. Sometime I ought to find out how all this "imprint" thing works!

I'll read the copy I was sent, but for now it is in my "Debbie-have you seen..." series. Here's the synopsis:
Sixteen-year-old Noah Daniels wants nothing more than to fight in George Washington’s Continental Army, but an accident as a child left him maimed and unable to enlist. He is forced to watch the Revolution from his family’s hard scrabble farm in Upstate New York—until a violent raid on his settlement thrusts him into one of the bloodiest battles of the American Revolution, and ultimately, face to face with the enemy. A riveting coming of age story, this book also includes an author’s note and bibliography.

From the Kirkus review, I see that Scar is "a wounded Mohawk soldier allied with the British" and from SLJ's review, I see that it "sheds light" on the "Iroquois Confederacy's alliance with the British."

That's all I have for now. When I read it, I'll be back with a link to a review.
Posted by Debbie Reese at 1:00 PM
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Sunday, February 14, 2016

Maira Kalman's LOOKING AT LINCOLN

With President's Day upon us, people are pulling out picture books about Lincoln, like Maira Kalman's Looking at Lincoln. The child in the book reveres Lincoln. Most Americans do, I think, but what we know about him is... incomplete.

What do you know about Lincoln and Native peoples?

Most people do not know that he issued an order for the mass execution of 38 Dakota men. It was the largest mass execution in the United States. That is not included in Kalman's book.

Is mass execution not age appropriate? Violence is ok, as these pages demonstrate.

One page shows a uniform with a bullet hole in it:



And there's a page showing a numbered grave:



And Kalman includes a page about Lincoln's assassination:




So.... what to make of decisions of what to include, and what not to include. Of course, her book--or any book--can't include everything. True enough, but I wonder what we'd find if we started looking carefully. Would we find it in any books?

Earlier in the book, the little girl goes to a library and finds out there's over 16,000 books about him. I wonder how many of those are for children and young adults, and of them, I wonder if any of them include that mass execution?

What do you think about what is included, and what is not included?
Posted by Debbie Reese at 2:50 PM
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Thursday, February 11, 2016

THE CROW'S TALE by Naomi Howarth

The Crow's Tale by Naomi Howarth came out last year (2015) from Frances Lincoln Children's Books. That's a publisher in London.

The complete title of Howarth's book is The Crow's Tale: A Lenni Lenape Native American Legend. 

 In her "About the story" note, Howarth writes:
The Rainbow Crow -- a Pennsylvania Lenni Lenape Indian legend--is the perfect example of a story that was first told to explain the mysteries of the natural world. When I came across this beautiful tale, my imagination was immediately soaring with Rainbow Crow across wide winter skies and landscapes. The tale has been passed down through generations of Lenni Lenape Indians, mostly orally, and I have tried to remain true to the narrative, although I have visualized the Creator as the Sun, as I wanted to make the Sun a character in his own right.

On her website page for the book, I see this:
Inspired by a Lenape Native American myth, this beautiful debut picture book shows how courage and kindness are what really matter.

Yes, courage and kindness matter, but so do other things. Clearly Howarth felt that she was doing a good thing with this story.

I have several questions.

What is the source Howarth used for this story? She doesn't tell us, which means we can't tell if her source is legitimate, or, if it is amongst the too-many-made-up stories attributed to Native peoples. Without that information, teachers are in a bind. Can they use this book to teach students about Lenni Lenape people and culture?

Is Howarth's story a Lenni Lenape one if she changed a key part of it? She tells us that she visualized Creator as the sun. Could she (or anyone) do that--say--with the Christian God and still call that story a Christian one? Maybe, but I think most people would say that doing so would be tampering with a religion in ways that border on sacrilege. How do the Lenni Lenape people visualize Creator? Did she talk with them, to see if she could depict Creator as the sun?

By "them" I mean--did Howarth talk with someone who has the authority to work with her on this project? Increasingly, tribal nations are working to protect their stories by setting up protocol's researchers and writers should use if they're going to do anything related to their people, history, culture, etc.

As we might predict, Howarth's book is well-received in some places. This morning I read that this story is on the shortlist for a 2016 Waterstones Children's Book Prize. If you're in the UK, or if you know people in the UK who are on the committee, please ask them these questions. You could ask Howarth, if you know her, or her editor (I don't know who that is). Asking questions is what leads to change.

Published in 2015, The Crow's Tale by Naomi Howarth is not recommended.


Posted by Debbie Reese at 8:49 AM
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Evangeline Parsons-Yazzie on Winning the American Indian Library Association's 2016 Youth Literature Honor Award for Young Adults

I'm pleased to share Evangeline Parsons-Yazzie's response to the news that Her Land, Her Love had been selected by the American Indian Library Association for one of its honors.

~~~~~

Evangeline said:

On Friday February 5th, when I was first told by my publisher, Eric Lockard of Salina Bookshelf, Inc., that my novel had been selected by the American Indian Library Association as an Honor Book in the Young Adult category, I held my breath and asked Eric to repeat the news to me.  I wanted to hear the news several more times but my memory has been doing that for me.  

A heart-felt appreciation and deep gratitude is what I feel toward the awards committee who selected my novel, Her Land, Her Love as an Honor Book. I am still in awe of the beautiful blessing that the people on the committee have bestowed upon my novel.  

 Her Land, Her Love is my first novel and one that I cherished through the years as I wrote and rewrote it. To obtain the voice of Navajo elders, I began by turning toward the stories my maternal grandmother and my father told me regarding the Navajo Long Walk which is a painful time in Navajo history.  Not only has the committee blessed me, it has also blessed Navajo elders with whom I consulted to obtain the truth about the Long Walk.

I also praise and thank the Lord for the gift of writing that He instilled within me. It has been five days since I heard the news and I am still smiling!

Once again, I thank the American Indian Library Association's awards committee for the honor of their recognition for my work.  
Posted by Debbie Reese at 5:43 AM
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