Update from Curtis Acosta and the shut-down of TUSD's Mexican American...
Editor's note: Late last week, Curtis Acosta wrote to me, asking if I'd share his open letter regarding his work. I'm glad to do it. If you are completely new to what happened in Tucson last year, one...
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Susan Cooper on GHOST HAWK: "The only major liberty I've taken is..."
In the Author's Note of Susan Cooper's Ghost Hawk, she says "The only major liberty I've taken is in copying for John Wakeley the whipping inflicted by the Massachusetts Bay Colony on the Baptist...
View ArticleDear Jon Scieszka: I've got a bone to pick with you...
July 15, 2013Dear Jon Scieszka,I've got a bone to pick with you. Are you following the recent news story about the names of the pilots of the Asiana flight that crashed in San Francisco? Someone made...
View ArticleInitial Thoughts about Helen Frost's SALT: A STORY OF FRIENDSHIP IN A TIME OF...
Helen Frost's newest book, Salt: A Story of Friendship in a Time of War is getting a lot of good press, but I'm having trouble articulating what it is that doesn't work for me as a reader.The novel is...
View ArticleWhere would we be without whites who like Indians? Or, a critical look at...
As expected, Susan Cooper's Ghost Hawk is a contender for the Newbery Medal (2:26 PM Note: I do not have inside knowledge of the Newbery Committee's deliberations. My post is about Ghost Hawk being...
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President Obama, Mascots, Children's Literature, and American Indians
Listen to President Obama's remarks regarding the Washington Redskins:At the :43 mark, President Obama says "I think all these mascots and team names related to Native Americans... Native Americans...
View ArticleBeverly Slapin's review essay of Helen Frost's SALT
Editor's Note: Beverly Slapin submitted this review essay of Helen Frost's SALT. It may not be used elsewhere without her written permission. All rights reserved. Copyright 2013. Slapin is currently...
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"Benny's Wigwam" by Mrs. Mary Catherine Lee
In 1883, D. Lothrop & Company published a book called Wide Awake Pleasure Book consisting of several volumes of a children's magazine called Wide Awake. There are several items in it that I'll...
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Vanity Fair's "Favorite" Halloween Costumes
Having my coffee this morning, my twitter feed included a link to a Vanity Fair slideshow of "favorite" costumes at an event that took place last night (Halloween). I wondered if Hamish Robertson (the...
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Encounter in an antique store: "We pay taxes!"
Last week my mom, sister, and niece were visiting me in Illinois. They wanted to go to antique shops, so we set out to visit some. For the most part, we had a good time. But... At one, my mom spied a...
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Presidential Proclamation: National Native American Heritage Month, 2013
Let me preface my sharing of President Obama's proclamation by saying (again) that I don't think teachings about any particular group ought to be done in a specific month. American Indians are part of...
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Trailer for FREE BIRDS
Thanks to Ernest Whiteman of Adobe Youth Voices, I just took a look at the trailer for the new movie, Free Birds. In it, turkeys travel back in time to 1621 to get turkeys off the Thanksgiving menu. I...
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SLJ's 2013 Focus On "Resources and Kid Lit about American Indians"
School Library Journal has a "Focus On" series in its Collection Development category. Each "Focus On" is devoted to a single topic. This month, I'm the author of the Focus On column. For it, I...
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DVD Review: CANES OF POWER
By a presidential proclamation, November is National Native American Heritage Month. A good many teachers and librarians are doing all they can to provide students with substantive information about...
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Looking for Children's Books about Thanksgiving? (Part 1)
(Editor's Note, November 8, 2013: I've been casting about trying to find words to explain what is wrong with the idea that the Pilgrims and Wampanoag's sat down together and had a wonderful meal...
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Marcie Rendon's POWWOW SUMMER: A FAMILY CELEBRATES THE CIRCLE OF LIFE (2013)
Back in the 1990s when I started graduate school, I read Marcie Rendon's Powwow Summer: A Family Celebrates the Circle of Life. Originally published by Carolrhoda Books in 1996, I'm delighted to see...
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ORIGINAL LOCAL: INDIGENOUS FOODS, STORIES, AND RECIPES FROM THE UPPER...
Heid Erdrich's Original Local: Indigenous Foods, Stories, and Recipes from the Upper Midwest is a treat! I mean that literally (reading the recipes makes my mouth water!) and spiritually, too.The...
View ArticleTaylor (5th grader): "Do you mean all those Thanksgiving worksheets we had to...
This morning I received an email from a teacher who wrote to share what Taylor, a fifth grader, wrote in response to having studied a speech written by a Wampanoag man, Wamsutta (Frank B.) James.Some...
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Art Coulson's THE CREATOR'S GAME: A STORY OF BAAGA'ADOWE/LACROSSE
Wow! I just blazed through Art Coulson's The Creator's Game: A Story of Baaga'adowe/Lacrosse. Coulson has a way with words. English ones, and Ojibwe ones, too, as he tells this story about Travis, a...
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Online Video: INJUNUITY - TWO SPIRIT
Have you heard of the INJUNUITY project? It consists of a series of short videos about Indigenous people. The one I'm pointing you today is called Two Spirit. Here's some screen captures that convey...
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