My Friend May

My Friend May

My Friend May

My Friend May by Julie Flett

A gentle and touching story about friendship, memory, and the changing seasons. Told with simple, thoughtful language and beautiful illustrations, the book explores how connections can continue even when someone is no longer physically present. Flett’s use of nature and quiet moments helps young readers understand feelings of loss in a calm and reassuring way. It is a heartfelt book that encourages reflection, empathy, and appreciation for the bonds we share.

Abalone Woman

 

Abalone Woman

By Teoni Spathelfer

Abalone Woman is the third book in the Little Wolf series for young readers. Here, Little Wolf has a bad dream but it reminds her to learn more about Indigenous culture and the importance of passing on knowledge to the new generation. When Little Wolf encounters injustice in her community, she turns to her family for the strength to fight back.

Local author Spathelfer has all three picturebooks at the Richmond Public Library:

Wild Berries

By Julie Flett

Author Illustrator Julie Flett delivers a picture book set in both English and Cree. There are actually two editions: a bilingual English-Cree dialect version and one in a Cree dialect. In the English-Cree version, one Cree vocabulary word is highlighted on each page. A pronunciation guide follows at the end of the story.

Clarence and his grandmother have always gone blueberry picking together. Here they are, on a typical trip to the woods, picking both sweet and sour blueberries together and meeting the woodland animals. It is a very simple and content tale.

Browns, blacks and yellow-greens with a strong pop of salient red make up Flett’s stylistic images. The warm, muted colours and tones as well as the simplicity lend a peaceful and calming essence to the book. Her illustrations are done in collage and are reminiscent of printmaking.

Awards: First Nation Communities READ (2014-2015)

The Barren Grounds

The Barren Grounds

By David A. Robertson

 

Morgan is a thirteen-year-old foster kid who was taken away from her mother when she was only three. She has lived with many different families, none of whom have ever made her feel truly at home.  By the time she moves in with Katie and James, she is just plain angry.

Eli is about a year younger than Morgan, but he was only taken from his family recently.  He remembers everything about them and his Indigenous community.  He misses them desperately, but now he must live with Katie and James too.

The good news is, Katie and James really want to be good parents and try their best to welcome Morgan and Eli into their home.  But when they buy Morgan a pair of moccasins to help her connect with her First Nations culture, Morgan loses her cool.  What do these white parents know about her culture anyway?

As Morgan and Eli try to find their footing in their new home, they discover a secret passageway in the attic.  After Eli disappears through the portal, Morgan goes after him.  Plunged into a blizzard, Morgan has no idea where to go.  When Ochek appears, he guides her to his home village where she finds Eli warm and dry.

But Ochek’s village is dying.  His world, known as Aski, is in perpetual winter, and there’s nothing left to eat.  As Morgan and Eli get to know Ochek, a fisher (who wears clothes and talks) and his squirrel companion, Arik, they decide to stay and help them get back to the Green Time, when the sun shone and game was plentiful.

Told as an allegory about the loss of Indigenous lands and culture, The Barren Grounds is a riveting fantasy novel.  Not only do the characters go on a quest through a wondrous landscape, but they also learn valuable lessons about their own strength of character and their own culture.  By the time Morgan and Eli return to their foster home, they are changed people, connected to the land, to their Indigenous communities and to each other.

The Barren Grounds is book one of the Misewa Saga.  Highly recommended!

The Case of Windy Lake

The Case of Windy Lake

By Michael Hutchinson

Sam, Otter, Atim and Chickadee live on the Windy Lake First Nation.  Although they are just kids, these four cousins love to solve mysteries.  They’ve been nicknamed The Mighty Muskrats for their intelligence and tenacity.

When an archeologist visits their community, many of the people are worried he will try to dig up some of their sacred sites.  But when he disappears in the bush, the Mighty Muskrats jump into action, hoping to solve the mystery despite the involvement of the local police and the RCMP.  Time is running out as the archeologist spends many days alone in the bush.

Meanwhile, the Muskrats’ older cousin Denice chains herself to a dock to protest a local mine that threatens the environment.  The cousins’ grandpa says that she is on a vision quest, and the Muskrats try to support her through her ordeal.  But her activism is preventing work from getting done, and the mine manager, Mr. Makowski, is furious.

All of this takes place against a backdrop of a First Nations community and culture where people respect the land and the Elders.  Will the Muskrats be able to solve the mystery and help find the missing archeologist?

The Case of Windy Lake reminds me of classic children’s mysteries like the Famous Five and Nancy Drew, but with an indigenous twist!

This is the first book in the Mighty Muskrats series.