The Secret Pocket (Peggy Janicki)

 

The author is Dene, from BC.

My favorite part: Now, as a great-grandmother, I look back at the time and see what sweet little geniuses we were. In the full face of genocide and cruelty, we secured our families' path for generations to come. We sewed our survival into every stitch. We come from a strong line of artists and geniuses, so we stitch with easy skill. 

...We were geniuses. We are geniuses. We will always be geniuses.

Goodreads says:
 “Captures the sympathy of readers and holds their attention...An age-appropriate telling by an Indigenous creative team of a tragic historical period.”― School Library Journal , starred review The true story of how Indigenous girls at a residential school sewed secret pockets into their dresses to hide food and survive. Mary was four years old when she was first taken away to the Lejac Indian Residential School. It was far away from her home and family. Always hungry and cold, there was little comfort for young Mary. Speaking Dakelh was forbidden and the nuns and priest were always watching, ready to punish. Mary and the other girls had a genius drawing on the knowledge from their mothers, aunts and grandmothers who were all master sewers, the girls would sew hidden pockets in their clothes to hide food. They secretly gathered materials and sewed at nighttime, then used their pockets to hide apples, carrots and pieces of bread to share with the younger girls. Based on the author's mother's experience at residential school, The Secret Pocket is a story of survival and resilience in the face of genocide and cruelty. But it's also a celebration of quiet resistance to the injustice of residential schools and how the sewing skills passed down through generations of Indigenous women gave these girls a future, stitch by stitch.

I Lost My Words (Rita Joe)

 

There is a reverence that happens when we read First Nation's stories. The students seem to really empathize with the stories. 

Goodreads says:

I lost my talk
The talk you took away
When I was a little girl
At Shubenacadie school.

One of Rita Joe’s most influential poems, “I Lost My Talk” tells the revered Mi’kmaw Elder’s childhood story of losing her language while a resident of the residential school in Shubenacadie, Nova Scotia. An often quoted piece in this era of truth and reconciliation, Joe’s powerful words explore and celebrate the survival of Mi’kmaw culture and language despite its attempted eradication.

A companion book to the simultaneously published I’m Finding My Talk by Rebecca Thomas, I Lost My Talk is a necessary reminder of a dark chapter in Canada’s history, a powerful reading experience, and an effective teaching tool for young readers of all cultures and backgrounds. Includes a biography of Rita Joe and striking colour illustrations by Mi’kmaw artist Pauline Young. 

Indian No More (Charlene Williams McManis)

 

I'd heard a lot of people talking about having this book on their TBR list. I didn't like the cover and that may have put me off for a while. I also thought the title was kind of odd. However, with so many people talking about it, I figured I should read it. 

I loved the story behind how this book came together (manuscript lost and discovered by someone down the line and then published) but I'm sorry to say that I didn't love it. I found the writing to be uncaptivating and the story was just a little too didactic for me. I do think the topic is important and more people need to know these stories. Perhaps because we are so pushed to learn about these things as teachers, it didn't hit me the same. I actually didn't finish it.

Goodreads says:

Regina Petit's family has always been Umpqua, and living on the Grand Ronde reservation is all ten-year-old Regina has ever known. Her biggest worry is that Sasquatch may actually exist out in the forest. But when the federal government signs a bill into law that says Regina's tribe no longer exists, Regina becomes "Indian no more" overnight--even though she was given a number by the Bureau of Indian Affairs that counted her as Indian, even though she lives with her tribe and practices tribal customs, and even though her ancestors were Indian for countless generations.

With no good jobs available in Oregon, Regina's father signs the family up for the Indian Relocation program and moves them to Los Angeles. Regina finds a whole new world in her neighborhood on 58th Place. She's never met kids of other races, and they've never met a real Indian. For the first time in her life, Regina comes face to face with the viciousness of racism, personally and toward her new friends.

Meanwhile, her father believes that if he works hard, their family will be treated just like white Americans. But it's not that easy. It's 1957 during the Civil Rights Era. The family struggles without their tribal community and land. At least Regina has her grandmother, Chich, and her stories. At least they are all together.

In this moving middle-grade novel drawing upon Umpqua author Charlene Willing McManis's own tribal history, Regina must find out: Who is Regina Petit? Is she Indian? Is she American? And will she and her family ever be okay?

When We Were Alone (David A Robertson)

I started out by asking my students what they knew about Orange Shirt Day. No one really knew anything except for one student. His brother had read something about Orange Shirt Day and he had quite a lot of knowledge. I started off by telling them that this was historical fiction. The characters in this story might not be real, but what happened to them was real. As we read the story my class  became more and more troubled. We have been learning about integrity and how to stand up for something when no one else does. Learning about racism, segregation and residential schools is troubling but necessary. Like Number the Stars as a great way to introduce WWII, the holocaust and all that happened then, this is a similar gentler way to introduce the topic to children.

Goodreads says:

When a young girl helps tend to her grandmother's garden, she begins to notice things that make her curious. Why does her grandmother have long braided hair and beautifully colored clothing? Why does she speak another language and spend so much time with her family? As she asks her grandmother about these things, she is told about life in a residential school a long time ago, where all of these things were taken away. When We Were Alone is a story about a difficult time in history and, ultimately, one of empowerment and strength. 

Fatty Legs (Chisty Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton)

Education is in a bit of a change and we are moving towards a greater expectation to teach issues and history around First Nations so I'm always looking for books that bit the bill. I have had this one on my shelf for a while. I read the first couple of chapters when considering it for grade three book club and decided not to have it as a book suggestion because I was worried it would get into uncomfortable issues around residential schools. However, now that I have finished it, I realize I'd be quite comfortable reading it with my class. I think if we don't do it for book club I might see if I could find a way to do it as a novel study. It seems to have enough of the issues but not get into sexual abuse. I really like her focus on wanting to learn to read. There are lots of good topics for discussion in this book.

Goodreads says:

The moving memoir of an Inuit girl who emerges from a residential school with her spirit intact.

Eight-year-old Margaret Pokiak has set her sights on learning to read, even though it means leaving her village in the high Arctic. Faced with unceasing pressure, her father finally agrees to let her make the five-day journey to attend school, but he warns Margaret of the terrors of residential schools.

At school Margaret soon encounters the Raven, a black-cloaked nun with a hooked nose and bony fingers that resemble claws. She immediately dislikes the strong-willed young Margaret. Intending to humiliate her, the heartless Raven gives gray stockings to all the girls -- all except Margaret, who gets red ones. In an instant Margaret is the laughingstock of the entire school.

In the face of such cruelty, Margaret refuses to be intimidated and bravely gets rid of the stockings. Although a sympathetic nun stands up for Margaret, in the end it is this brave young girl who gives the Raven a lesson in the power of human dignity.

Complemented by archival photos from Margaret Pokiak-Fenton's collection and striking artwork from Liz Amini-Holmes, this inspiring first-person account of a plucky girl's determination to confront her tormentor will linger with young readers.