Truth and Reconciliation Reading List 2023
September 30th is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, when we remember the Indigenous children forced into residential schools and the impact the residential school system has had on the Indigenous people in Canada. Here are eight titles, four for kids and four for adults, covering a range of topics and genres, representing some of the best literary works by Indigenous creators.
Picture Books, Ages 4-7
Autumn Peltier, Water Warrior is narrated by Nibi, which is the Anishinaabe word for water and introduces two Indigenous water advocates, the late Grandmother Josephine, who founded the Mother Earth Water Walk, and Autumn Peltier, who at 12 years old addressed the Prime Minister about the need for the government to do more to protect water in Canada. Since then she has addressed the UN, among many other international organizations. Autumn has done so much in her young life and is an inspiring figure for young people and the book includes a foreward from her. This isn’t a straight up biography, it’s also a call to action, accompanied by gorgeous art, and I particularly love the refrain: “speak for the water, sing for the water, dance for the water.”
The Song That Called Them Home is an adventure story about two kids who are sucked into a watery portal to another world, inhabited by the little people or Memekwesewak, until their Moshom’s (grandfather) drumming calls them back to their own world. The story is based on Indigenous legends and Maya McKibbin’s artwork is lush and has a wonderful sense of movement. The book is epic in scope and cinematic, it feels like a movie- perfect for kids who love mythology, folklore and fairytales.
Middle Grade, Ages 9-12
Nish is a new series about Innu twins growing up in a remote community in Northern Quebec. The title North and South comes from a project the teens do comparing their life up North to what it’s like down South, which exposes some of the inequities in their community. This is an authentic slice of life book that covers a lot of ground, including first crushes, a parent dealing with a cancer diagnosis, the highs and lows of playing hockey, and a missing community member rumoured to be taken by a wolverine.
Shamus the Urban Rez Dog, P.I. is also a contemporary middle grade story, told from the unique perspective of the family dog. Shamus’ family is Cree and lives in an Urban Indigenous Housing Project in a city. When Mom is falsely accused of stealing jewellery from the shop she works at, the two kids and the dog set out to solve the mystery and clear her name. This is a warm and funny story told in short, swift chapters and hopefully there will be more mysteries for Shamus and the kids to solve.
Teens, Ages 13+
Funeral Songs for Dying Girls is the latest novel from Cherie Dimaline. This is a teen novel, but I think adults will enjoy it as well. It’s about Winifred, a teenager who is a loner and nursing a broken heart when she meets an actual ghost, Phil, in the cemetery she and her father live next to and take care of. The cemetery is in financial trouble, so Winifred thinks stirring up some publicity with an actual ghost will solve all their problems, but as she gets to know Phil and her story, that becomes more complicated. This is not the jump-scare, horror kind of ghost story, but a real tear-jerker about family, legacy, and love.
Adult Books
Truth Telling is a collection of short, powerful essays that explore the historical and contemporary experience of Indigenous people in Canada. This is a fantastic place to start educating yourself on the hard truths of Canada’s history- everything from the treaty system, the history of residential schools and the sixties scoop, missing and murdered Indigenous women, the rise of Indigenous literature and where we go from here. The University of Alberta offers a free online course called Indigenous Canada and this felt like a nice compliment to that program—it covers a lot of ground, but of course is more of a primer from which to go forth and learn more.
A Grandmother Begins the Story is about five generations of Metis women. This is a multi-perspective book that transcends life, time, and even the human perspective, including sections told from the point of view of a spirit in the afterlife, a buffalo, a dog, and the grasslands, all with a distinctive voice and a character. The sections are short and poetic and they all fit together like pieces of a puzzle or quilt to create a holistic, immersive read.
Double Eagle is the most recent book in the DreadfulWater mystery series featuring a Cherokee ex-cop who moves to the small town of Chinook and somewhat reluctantly ends up embroiled in local mysteries. Like all good mystery series, the DreadfulWater books have a fantastic cast of characters. Thomas King is an extremely witty writer and I love seeing how his characters grow and develop over the series. You can start here, but if you haven’t already, go back and start at the beginning, there is lots to love about this series.