A stirring tribute to Hopi culture, language, and resistance.
An Indigenous man passes on his culture of resilience.
Renowned Hopi carver Honyouti (Iswungwa) tells the true story of how his kwa’a (grandfather) Clyde survived the terror of residential boarding school. Despite his parents’ brave attempts to hide him from government agents, Clyde was taken to Keams Canyon, Arizona. He and the other Native children brought there were forced to cut their hair and assume “a good Christian name.” Yet every trauma the children endured was met with resistance. When they were punished for speaking Hopi, the kids “whispered to each other instead.” When Clyde and his friend were whipped for trying to run away from the school, they didn’t give up—they tried again to return to their families. Even the forced adoption of a new name became an act of rebellion. Though “Honyouti” became Clyde’s last name due to an agent’s misunderstanding of his real name, Honkuku, his family takes pride in the name’s meaning: “a pack of bears that are running together.” Honyouti’s rich wood carvings, painted with acrylics, beautifully illuminate this account of ancestral pride, Indigenous power, and intergenerational memory. The text is presented in both English and Hopilavayi and concludes with backmatter about Hopi history, Parra’s work translating the story, and Honyouti’s art. This powerful tale is a much-needed reminder that the stories of Indigenous peoples, despite being threaded with trauma, are marked by defiance and pride.
A stirring tribute to Hopi culture, language, and resistance. (Picture-book biography. 6-10)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9781646144570
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Levine Querido
Review Posted Online: Aug. 3, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2024
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses.
An NBA star pays tribute to the influence of his grandfather.
In the same vein as his Long Shot (2009), illustrated by Frank Morrison, this latest from Paul prioritizes values and character: “My granddad Papa Chilly had dreams that came true,” he writes, “so maybe if I listen and watch him, / mine will too.” So it is that the wide-eyed Black child in the simply drawn illustrations rises early to get to the playground hoops before anyone else, watches his elder working hard and respecting others, hears him cheering along with the rest of the family from the stands during games, and recalls in a prose afterword that his grandfather wasn’t one to lecture but taught by example. Paul mentions in both the text and the backmatter that Papa Chilly was the first African American to own a service station in North Carolina (his presumed dream) but not that he was killed in a robbery, which has the effect of keeping the overall tone positive and the instructional content one-dimensional. Figures in the pictures are mostly dark-skinned. (This book was reviewed digitally.)
Blandly inspirational fare made to evoke equally shrink-wrapped responses. (Picture book. 6-8)Pub Date: Jan. 10, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-81003-8
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Roaring Brook Press
Review Posted Online: Sept. 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
Heartfelt reflections on the importance of kinship with nature.
An Indigenous gardener matures—and vows to protect the environment.
The young narrator spends summer days with loving great-grandparents who impart important lessons: “These trees are our ancestors” and “We thank them with a song, a blessing, and a few drops of water.” From mountains to rivers, every part of nature is alive, and the child learns to listen to the plants, who offer food, promise to quench the little one’s thirst, and provide smoke to “lift your prayers to heaven.” As the youngster grows, so does the surrounding cityscape, silencing the animals and plants. The now-adult protagonist wanders, alone and lost—before coming across a tiny plant sprouting from the gray concrete. Inspired, the narrator decides, “From one, I would grow many.” Trees and flowers fill the pages. Later scenes show the protagonist with a young son, who also learns to listen to the wisdom of the plants. Hummingbird—a descendant from the Cahuilla nation of Southern California’s Inland Empire and the Apache nation of New Mexico—and Wasson matter-of-factly emphasize the importance of respect for the environment. Goodnight’s (Chickasaw Nation) realistic art complements this tender story. Soft, natural colors add warmth, while leaves and acorns adorn the endpapers, underscoring the themes of growth, compassion, and strength. In the backmatter, the authors note that plants, like animals, can go extinct; they leave readers with suggestions for growing native plants in their own homes and backyards.
Heartfelt reflections on the importance of kinship with nature. (resources) (Picture book. 4-8)Pub Date: April 16, 2024
ISBN: 9780063221284
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Harper/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2024
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