Picture Books: Connecting Past, Present, and Future Generations
Storytelling is an essential part of Indigenous culture. Oral tradition is a way of knowing, where values, traditions, and history about culture are passed from one generation to the next. Elders are the wisdom keepers who share their knowledge in the form of stories. Native/Indigenous/First Nation authors and illustrators pass down their perspective in books, connecting ancestors of the past with younger generations of today and in the future.
Buffalo Wild!
Author
Deidre Havrelock (Saddle Lake Cree Nation)
Illustrator
Azby Whitecalf (Plains Cree)
Summary
Since Declan was born, his kokum has shared her love of buffalo through stories and art, but Declan longs to see real buffalo. Then one magical night, herds of the majestic creatures stampede down from the sky—and that’s when things really get wild!
This book celebrates the return of the buffalo, and the author’s note provides additional context, explaining how the buffalo is important to Native cultures, both past and present.
Contenders
Author
Traci Sorell (Cherokee Nation)
Illustrator
Arigon Starr (Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma)
Summary
This book tells the true story of John Meyers and Charles Bender, who in 1911 became the first two Native professional baseball players to face off in a World Series. Charles Bender grew up on the White Earth Reservation in Northwestern Minnesota while John Meyers was raised on the Cahuilla reservation in Southern California. Despite their mutual respect for each other, the media was determined to pit them against each other. However, the two men continued to break barriers and went on to play a combined total of nine championships.
This untold story shows that people have different paths to follow in life and that perseverance through tough times is an important value to learn.
Greet the Dawn
Author
S.D. Nelson (Lakota, enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe)
Illustrator
S.D. Nelson (Lakota, enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe)
Summary
Pickup trucks and eagles, yellow school buses and painted horses, Mother Earth and Sister Meadowlark all join together to greet the dawn. They marvel at the colors and sounds, smells and memories that dawn creates. Animals and humans alike turn their faces upwards and gaze as the sun makes its daily journey from horizon to horizon.
Dawn is a time to celebrate with a smiling heart, to start a new day in the right way, excited for what might come. Each time the sun starts a new circle, we can start again as well. In this story, readers learn to begin their morning with a greeting and to savor the natural world that can be spiritual and connected.
I Sang You Down from the Stars
Author
Tasha Spillett-Sumner (Cree/Trinidadian)
Illustrator
Michaela Goade (Tlingit/Haida)
Summary
I Sang You Down from the Stars tells the story of a young mother addressing her unborn child and who shares the traditional beliefs of her Inniniwak heritage. It’s a love letter from an Indigenous mother to her new baby, depicting how passing along wisdom can create a strong bond between them.
Keepunumuk: Weeâchumun’s Thanksgiving Story
Author
Danielle Hill (Mashpee Wampanoag), Anthony Perry (Chickasaw), and Alexis Bunten (Yu’pik/Unangan)
Illustrator
Garry Meeches Sr. (Anishinaabe)
Summary
This story tells of the harvest feast in 1621, from the Wampanoag perspective. Told in a Native tradition, two kids from the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe learn the story of Weeâchumun (corn) and the first Thanksgiving.
Contemporary grandchildren dig in the garden with their grandmother and ask her to tell the story of the first Thanksgiving, or Keepunumuk, or the time of harvest. The children realize their elder’s teachings are different than what they learned in school about the same topic. Readers can see how wisdom is shared from one generation to the next.
My Powerful Hair
Author
Carole Lindstrom (Anishinaabe/Métis, enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe)
Illustrator
Steph Littlebird (Grand Ronde Confederated Tribes)
Summary
Our ancestors say our hair is our memories, our source of strength and power, a celebration of our lives. Mom never had long hair—she was told it was too wild. Grandma couldn’t have long hair—hers was taken from her.
But one young girl can’t wait to grow her hair long: for herself, for her family, for her connection to her culture and the Earth, and to honor the strength and resilience of those who came before her.
This story is an empowering book about family history and recovering from generational trauma. The younger generation can help the family heal through the self-expression of growing long hair and reclaiming their identity. Today, when the younger generation listens to the stories of their grandparents, and learn about the obstacles they’ve endured with fortitude, they can take action. Then, the healing process can begin together.
We Are Still Here
Author
Traci Sorell (Cherokee Nation)
Illustrator
Frané Lessac
Summary
Native American history is treated as a finished chapter instead of an ongoing story, but this book offers readers everything they never learned in school about Native American people’s past, present, and future. Twelve Native American kids present historical and contemporary laws, policies, struggles, and victories in Native life. Topics also include tribal activism, the Indian Child Welfare and Education Act, and language revival.
When the Shadbush Blooms
Author
Carla Messinger (Turtle Clan Lenape) and Susan Katz
Illustrator
David Kanietakeron Fadden (Akwesasne Mohawk)
Summary
When a Lenape Indian girl ventures to a stream to fish for shad, she knows that another girl did the same generations before her. Through the cycle of the seasons, what is important has remained: being with family, knowing when berries are ripe for picking, listening to stories in a warm home. Told by Traditional Sister and Contemporary Sister, each from her own time, this is a book about tradition and about change. Then and now are not so very different when the shadbush blooms.
This story shows how present-day Lenape people actively use the land throughout the seasons. A parallel illustration shows how Lenape ancestors acted in a similar way throughout the seasons.
Conclusion
Stories included in this category celebrate Indigenous cultures and communities, share history from a Native perspective, and show knowledge passed down from generation to generation. Connecting the past to the present may highlight untold stories or reinterpret history from a Native worldview. These stories begin to heal the generations of the past, present, and future generations.
About the Author
Andrea M. Page
Andrea M. Page (Hunkpapa Lakota) is a children’s author, educator and speaker. Her published book, Sioux Code Talkers of World War II (Pelican Publishing 2017) tells the story of seven Native American Code Talkers’ military service in the Pacific Theater. She also writes educator guides for publishers and works on projects for We Need Diverse Books.
Andrea serves as a Board member of the Children’s Literature Assembly (CLA) of the NCTE. She is a citizen of the Standing Rock Nation, and lives in Rochester, NY with her husband. Please visit www.WriterAndreaPage.com.