Description
Kevin Maillard, an enrolled member of the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, is a contributor to the New York Times and a professor of law at Syracuse University. He is the author of Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story, a picture book illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal, which won the Sibert Medal and the American Indian Youth Literature Honor. He lives with his family in Manhattan and Vermont. Sibu T P was born and raised in New York, and is a first-generation child of immigrants.
A Native American "city kid" explores the idea of belonging and "who came first" after a surprising encounter with a country bear.
Every year, Aabanya visits her grandfather Big Jimmy at his cottage on Early Mountain.
During the day, they gather corn, beans, and squash to make stew. In the evenings, Aabanya listens to her grandfather’s tales of the mountain and of Turtle Island.
When they venture into town, Aabanya feels out of place. The Earlies, a family who named Early Mountain generations ago, seem to look at her with questions in their eyes.
Who are you? Where are you from? Why are you here?
Her grandfather tells Aabanya that these are the very same questions her family and their people asked when the Earlies first came.
One night, Aabanya wakes to a scratch at her window and discovers... a bear! Fearful, she runs to her grandfather, who helps her remember that the bears… are the ones who came before.
Interwoven with indigenous concepts about land and the natural world with rich and vibrant illustrations that come together in this contemplation of heritage, ancestry, sharing space, and belonging. Audience: Ages 4-8.