November is National Native American Heritage Month here in the United States. This month gives us an opportunity to reflect on and strengthen the ways in which our teaching practices and materials honor the achievements and histories of American Indians and Alaska Natives, not only for the month of November, but all year long.
Dr. Debbie Resse, tribally enrolled at Nambé Pueblo and founder and writer of the website American Indians in Children’s Literature, reflected in a 2014 blog post, “Believe it or not, a lot of people express surprise to learn that we are still here. People think we were all killed or died of disease... gone from the face of the earth. Some people think we are still here, but that to be "real" Indians, we have to live like we did hundreds of years ago.” This list of chapter books features titles that focus on the lives of present day American Indians from many different areas and tribes and the diverse lives and experiences they lead.
These texts are all published within the past four years, and span a range of ages and interests. Each one is sure to entice readers and broaden their awareness of the diverse experiences, interests, and lives of Native Americans today.
Jo Jo McKoons: The Used-to-Be Best Friend by Dawn Quigley (Harper Collins 2021) Early Chapter Book Series Jo Jo Mckoons: The Used-to-Be Best Friend is the first book in a series of relatable and funny books about a 7 year old girl growing up on her Ojibwe reservation and attending school in a border town nearby. Jo Jo is a creative thinker who sees the world a bit differently from her mom, her kokum (grandmother), and her teacher. In this first story, Jo Jo worries over things like having her cat deflate when she gets her vaccinations and figuring out how to make more friends when she worries that her best friend at school, Fern, might not want to be friends any more. Readers will love Jo Jo’s strong narrative voice and will love being immersed in Jo Jo’s warm community at home and at school. Illustrator, Tara Audibert (of Wolastoqey and French heritage), brings the story to life with blackline illustrations throughout and author, Dawn Quigley (of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe), includes a glossary of Ojibwe and Michif words to help readers engage more fully with Jo Jo’s world. This is a great entry into chapter book reading and will especially entice readers in the middle elementary school years and makes for a wonderful whole class read-aloud or book club text.
I Can Make This Promise by Christine Day (Harper Collins 2019) Middle Grade
Set in contemporary Seattle, featuring a 12 year old Suquamish/Duwamish main character, I Can Make this Promise, tackles intense questions about adoption and family history. The main character, Edie, is biracial and has always known that her mother was adopted from her Native family into a white family. However, for Edie’s whole life she has been told that her mother knows little of her birth family or tribe. When Edie stumbles on a box of old photographs while working on a film project with friends, her resulting discoveries (she shares a name with one of the people in the photographs!) lead her to try to uncover the truth about her past. Throughout her attempts, Edie learns about herself as well as about larger cultural dynamics, such as the activism of the American Indian Movement and the misrepresentations of Native Americans in film. Christine Day (of the Upper Skagit tribe) writes a powerful story that will get middle grade readers thinking about justice and representation as well as the power of family histories and tribal identities. This text is a fantastic addition to discussions about family history and cultural identity.
Mascot by Charles Waters and Traci Sorell (Penguin Random House 2023) Middle Grade
This novel in verse from Charles Waters and Traci Sorell (Cherokee Nation) tells the story of a middle school grappling with the question of their school’s mascot. The story is told from alternating perspectives, each from a character with different backgrounds and beliefs informing their positionality on the topic. When an eighth grade English teacher assigns the class a debate on whether the mascot should stay or change, the students (and their larger community) must grapple with questions about identity, tradition, and what it means to be an advocate for change. This is an accessible and compelling text that will get readers thinking critically right from the start. Mascot is sure to spark meaningful discussions around the meaning and importance of cultural sensitivity and school policies.
Harvest House by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Candlewick 2023) Young Adult
Set in a rural Kansas town, Harvest House, is perfect for fans of scary stories and creepy mysteries. Harvest House centers on high school sophomore Hughie Wolfe (you might remember him as Louise’s younger brother from Smith’s 2018 novel Hearts Unbroken). Hughie, a member of the Muscogee Creek Nation, volunteers at a local haunted house attraction. However he quickly realizes that the attraction is intended to center on a local legend about an “Indian maiden” ghost and, even worse, the organizer wants Hughie to play an Indian ghost in the haunted burial ground portion of the attraction. As Hughie confronts racism at the haunted house, creepy and violent things begin to happen that echo the legend the house is based on. This novel tackles many contemporary issues including the plights of missing and murdered indigenous women and red face. Cynthia Leitich Smith’s (Muscogee Creek Nation) writing is sure to send chills down reader’s spines while also inviting them to think more deeply about racism in its many forms.
Rez Ball by Byron Graves (Harper Collins 2023) Young Adult
Rez Ball is sure to entice sports-loving teens with its basketball playing protagonist, Tre Brun, an Ojibwe sophomore from the Red Lake Nation Reservation in Minnesota. After losing his older brother, Jaxson, in a car accident, Tre struggles with grief and loss. He remains passionate about basketball as he navigates family expectations, racism, and the pressure of living up to his brother’s legacy on the court. Tre sees basketball as his future path and must fight to stay focused despite the grief as well as pressures at school and with his girlfriend Khiana. This is Byron Graves’ (Ojibwe) debut novel and its fast paced coming-of-age focused plot is sure to hook teen readers who love rooting for the underdog. It has also recently been adapted for a Netflix film (rated PG-13).
By featuring these books, educators can help dispel stereotypes and provide students with authentic representations of Native American life today. Celebrating Native American heritage and incorporating these perspectives should extend beyond November, enriching your curriculum throughout the year and this November marks a great time to review and update the collection of Indigenous voices in your classroom library.
A note on the language in this post: one question we often hear in classrooms is “which is the correct term— Native American? American Indian? Indigenous Person? We’ve found this guidance from the National Museum of the American Indian to be particularly helpful. Throughout this blog post we have aimed to refer to authors and characters using the terms used by the authors to refer to themselves and their tribal communities.