Picture Books: The Natural World

Native people believe their livelihood comes directly from the earth. Nations use the term Mother Earth or Grandmother Earth, and believe that she gives us gifts, like food, medicine, shelter, and other necessities, all the things we need. If we (humans) respect these gifts and take responsibility to care for them. Mother/Grandmother Earth shares with us and teaches us the values of reciprocity and generosity.

Indigenous people recognize all things thrive in cycles, in balance. People live and interact within these circles on earth. Examples include: Life—birth, childhood, adulthood, old age; Sun and Moon move in circular orbits; Four seasons—spring, summer, winter, fall; Four elements—earth, wind (air), fire, water. Life goes on in cycles. Think of the old saying, “What goes around, comes around.” Indigenous people feel a strong family bond, or kinship, with things in nature. Nature is treated with love, compassion, and respect.

Book cover of Be A Good Ancestor

Be a Good Ancestor

Author

Leona Prince (Lake Babine Nation/Nak’azdli Whu’ten) and Gabrielle Prince (Lake Babine Nation/Nak’azdli Whu’ten)

Illustrator

Carla Joseph (Cree)

Summary

Indigenous teachings encourage readers to consider the ways in which they live in connection to the world around them. Addressing environmental issues, animal welfare, self-esteem and self-respect, and the importance of community, the authors deliver a poignant and universal message in an accessible way: Be a good ancestor to the world around you.

Readers are encouraged to look at their connection to the world around them and think about how they behave in the environment. The text’s voice and pattern, along with the accompanying illustrations, demonstrate a deep connection to the natural world.

Cover of the picture book Berry Song

Berry Song

Author

Michaela Goade (Tlingit/Haida)

Illustrator

Michaela Goade (Tlingit/Haida)

Summary

On an island at the edge of a wild sea, a Tlingit girl and her grandmother gather gifts from the earth: salmon from the stream, herring eggs from the ocean, and in the forest, a world of berries. Through the seasons, they sing to the land as the land sings to them. In every step of their journey, they forge a deeper kinship with both the earth and the generations that came before, joining in the song that connects us all.

Throughout the story, Grandmother explains how they speak to the land when they sing, and the land speaks back to them through sights, sounds, and smells. The land is connected to their lives. This is an intergenerational story about caring for the earth and forging a connection with the land.

Book cover of Nibi's Water Song

Nibi’s Water Song

Author

Sunshine Tenasco (Anishinabe)

Illustrator

Chief Lady Bird (Rama First Nation)

Summary

When Nibi, an Indigenous girl, turns the tap in her house, only mucky brown water comes out. That starts her on a search for clean water to drink. Though she must face polluted rivers, unfriendly neighbors, and her own temporary discouragement, Nibi’s joyful energy becomes a catalyst for change and action as her community rallies around her to make clean drinking water available for all.

Together with her friends and community, they sing and dance together, and eventually find clean water, which Nibi generously shares with all her friends. This story brings awareness to how precious clean water is and how humans should work together to ensure it for all.

Book cover of The First Blade of Sweetgrass: A Wabanaki Story

The First Blade of Sweetgrass

Author

Suzanne Greenlaw (Maliseet) and Gabriel Frey (Passamaquoddy)

Illustrator

Nancy Baker

Summary

A modern Wabanaki girl accompanies her grandmother for the first harvest of sweetgrass for basket making. She learns to distinguish sweetgrass from other salt marsh grasses and gathers sweetgrass as her ancestors have done for centuries, leaving the first blade she sees to grow for future generations. This story demonstrates how a child learns about natural resources from her grandmother, how to respect these resources, and how to value reciprocity.

Book cover of The Grizzly Mother

The Grizzly Mother

Author

Hetxw’ms Gyetxw/Brett D. Huson (Gitxsan Nation)

Illustrator

Natasha Donovan (Métis)

Summary

This title explores the life cycle of a grizzly bear by showing how an ecosystem’s animals, people, and seasons are intertwined. The book uses lyrical language and poetry to bring information about the Xsan ecosystem to life, and it shows readers learn how life and nature are connected.

Book cover of We All Play

We All Play

Author

Julie Flett (Cree–Métis)

Illustrator

Julie Flett (Cree–Métis)

Summary

Animals and kids love to play. This book celebrates playtime and the connection between children and the natural world. The illustrations show birds who chase and chirp, bears who wiggle and wobble, whales who swim and squirt, and a diverse group of kids who love to do the same. Throughout the story, we see the interaction and connection between humans and living things in nature.

Book cover of We Are Water Protectors

We Are Water Protectors

Author

Carole Lindstrom (Anishinaabe/Métis, enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe)

Illustrator

Michaela Goade (Tlingit/Haida)

Summary

Water is an important resource in the natural world and this book brings awareness of how close and connected Indigenous people are with water. Through lyrical text, this story is a call to action to safeguard the Earth’s water from harm.

The book itself was inspired by the Indigenous-led movements across North America, especially those calling to protect water and to defend the earth’s resources.

Book cover of Wild Berries

Wild Berries

Author

Julie Flett (Cree–Métis)

Illustrator

Julie Flett (Cree–Métis)

Summary

Spend the day picking wild blueberries with Clarence and his grandmother. Meet ant, spider, and fox in a woodland landscape—and the ancestral home of author and illustrator Julie Flett. This book is written in both English and Cree, in particular the Swampy Cree dialect from the Cumberland House area.

This story demonstrates the love between a grandmother and grandson as well as teaches respect and reciprocity for our relatives in nature. Grandson learns language from Grandma while he observes other animals around them. Before he leaves with grandma, he leaves a handful of berries behind for the animals.

Conclusion

Stories included in this category demonstrate the many ways Indigenous cultures relate to elements in nature, things that Indigenous peoples feel a strong connection with, similar to the love for a relative or family member. Important lessons learned from these stories are love, compassion, generosity, reciprocity, responsibility, and living life in balance with Mother/Grandmother Earth.

Headshot of author Andrea Page

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.