BOOK MARKED
Celebrate Native
American Heritage
Month with Reading
8 Books for Cultural Learning
BY JENNIFER ROTHSCHILD, YOUTH SERVICES LIBRARIAN FOR
ARLINGTON PUBLIC LIBRARIES
Celebrate Native American
Heritage Month with these books
by and about Native Americans
and First Nations Canadians. From
historical fiction to lunch room
drama, history to epic fantasy,
water protests to kid detectives,
these titles help showcase a vast
range of experiences and lives
of Indigenous peoples, past and
present. PICTURE BOOKS
“Forever Cousins”
by Laurel Goodluck, illustrated by
Jonathan Nelson
Kara and Amanda are cousins and best friends
– they love dancing together at the powwow
and think chokeberry jam is the best. When
Kara’s family moves from the city back to the
Rez, will video chats and postcards be enough
to keep their friendship going until they can
see each other again next summer at the fam-
ily reunion? A reassuring story full of cultural
details about the power of family and friend-
ship, despite the distance.

“Kiss by Kiss / Ocêhtowina: A
Counting Book for Families”
by Richard Van Camp, translated by
Mary Cardinal Collins
Written in English and Plains Cree, this
adorable rhyming board book counts kisses
between babies and their caregivers. Full
color photographs illustrate different loving
moments featuring a wide range of families,
making a great book to share while snug-
gling with little ones.

EARLY READERS
“Red Bird Sings: The Story of
Zitkála-Šá, Native American
Author, Musician, and Activist”
by Gina Capaldi and QL Pearce
Born in 1876, Zitkála-Šá left her reservation
in South Dakota at the age of 8 for an Indi-
ana Boarding School. After school, she moved
east to be a teacher in Pennsylvania and Mas-
sachusetts. In the 1920s, she came to D.C. to
fight for Native American and women’s rights.

When in D.C., the renowned musician, play-
wright and activist lived in Arlington—there is
now a park named after her that you can visit!
in Canada, four cousins are so insepara-
ble they’re known as the Mighty Muskrats.

When an archeologist hired by a nearby
mining company disappears, the four decide
to investigate on their own, using overheard
gossip and their knowledge of the reserva-
tion and surrounding land. From worried
elders to an environmental protest, the
four investigate every lead as they work
to find the missing man. The first in a fun
mystery series.

“We are Water Protectors”
by Carole Lindstrom, illustrated by
Michaela Goade
Inspired by the many Indigenous-led move-
ments, notably Standing Rock, to protest
oil pipelines and other threats to water
sources, this gorgeous picture book starts
by explaining the importance of water. A
lush river flows through the pages before
being threatened by a black snake, where a
young girl leads many community members
to stand up and protect the river that has so
often protected them.

TEEN READERS
MIDDLE GRADE
“The Birchbark House”
by Louise Erdrich
In 1847, Omakayas lives with her with her fam-
ily on an island in Lake Superior. As the year
progresses, they move to the birchbark house,
the fishing camps, the rice camps, the win-
ter cabin and back. She helps her mother with
the chores and struggles with an occasionally
mean older sister and an almost always annoy-
ing little brother. But when smallpox visits the
island, no one is safe and Omakayas’ life will
be changed forever. The first in a series about
Ojibwe life as white settlers moved further
and further into their lands.

“The Case of Windy Lake”
by MIchael Hutchinson
On the Windy Lake First Nations Reserve
“Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Life
in Native America”
by David Treuer, adapted for young
readers by Sheila Keenan
This history of Native American life starts
pre-contact and goes up through today.

Along the way, it deconstructs common
falsehoods about native culture and his-
tory. It especially focuses on the many ways
Native Americans have continued to pre-
serve their history and culture since the
1890 massacre at Wounded Knee. Based on
Treuer’s award-winning book for adults,
this edition offers more background infor-
mation and context for younger readers.

“If I Ever Get Out of Here”
by Eric Gansworth
Lewis Blake feels like he lives in two dif-
ferent worlds. There’s his home on the
Tuscarora Reservation in upstate New York,
and there’s his life at school where he’s one
of the few American Indian students, some-
thing that makes him an outcast. George
Haddonfield has grown up all over the
world, thanks to his Air Force father. As a
new student, he ignores the racial divides
with the reservation kids and the two slowly
become friends. But when the bullies start
to target Lewis, he’s unsure if the friendship
can survive. T
WashingtonFAMILY.com 31