Publisher Description
Edited by award-winning and bestselling author Cynthia Leitich Smith, this collection of intersecting stories by both new and veteran Native writers bursts with hope, joy, resilience, the strength of community, and Native pride.
Native families from Nations across the continent gather at the Dance for Mother Earth Powwow in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
In a high school gym full of color and song, people dance, sell beadwork and books, and celebrate friendship and heritage. Young protagonists will meet relatives from faraway, mysterious strangers, and sometimes one another (plus one scrappy rez dog).
They are the heroes of their own stories.
Featuring stories and poems by: Joseph Bruchac Art Coulson Christine Day Eric Gansworth Carole Lindstrom Dawn Quigley Rebecca Roanhorse David A. Robertson Andrea L. Rogers Kim Rogers Cynthia Leitich Smith Monique Gray Smith Traci Sorell, Tim Tingle Erika T. Wurth Brian Young
In partnership with We Need Diverse Books
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
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“Kenny Ramos and DeLanna Studi narrate with warmth as they bring a memorable intertribal powwow to life…Ramos narrates the boys’ stories in a lively and youthful voice, capturing their nerves and excitement over joining the festivities. Studi expresses the energy and emotions of the girls and is especially skilled at portraying older loved ones. Both smoothly narrate words in multiple Indigenous languages…All will find much to love in this collection full of heart.”
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AudioFile
About the Authors
Cynthia Leitich Smith is the bestselling, acclaimed author of books for all ages, including Hearts Unbroken, which won the American Indian Library Association’s Youth Literature Award. She was named the 2021 NSK Neustadt Laureate. She is the author-curator of Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books, and serves as the Katherine Paterson Inaugural Endowed Chair on the faculty of the MFA degree program in writing for children and young adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation. Visit her online at www.cynthialeitichsmith.com.
Joseph Bruchac is a highly acclaimed children’s book author, poet, novelist, and storyteller, as well as a scholar of Native American culture. His work has appeared in hundreds of publications, from Akwesasne Notes and American Poetry Review to National Geographic and Parabola. He has authored many books for adults and children, including Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two, Skeleton Man, and The Heart of a Chief.
Colleen Delany has
been a sparkling jewel in the crown of Washington’s vastly talented acting
community for thirty-seven days now and will confidently challenge to a fierce
best out of three in “paper-rock-scissors” anyone wishing to topple her from
that lofty perch. Primarily a stage actress,—having played roles at Shakespeare
Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Arena Stage, Signature Theatre, Folger
Shakespeare Library, Studio Theatre, Olney Theatre, Woolly Mammoth, Theater J,
Washington Stage Guild, Theater of the First Amendment, and Source Theatre,
among others—Ms. Delany does a you-name-it of various acting jobs, including
audiobook narration.
Rebecca Roanhorse is the author of numerous novels of speculative fiction, science fiction, and fantasy. She has won the Nebula, Hugo, and Locus awards and was the recipient of the 2018 John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer. She graduated from Yale University and later earned her JD degree from the University of New Mexico School of Law, specializing in Federal Indian law.
About DeLanna Studi
Delanna Studi is an actress whose roles have included DreamKeeper , Edge of America, and Shameless. she is Native American, born in Oklahoma, and is the niece of the multiaward–winning actor Wes Studi. She was elected chairwoman of the President’s National Task Force for American Indians of the Screen Actors Guild. In 2007, she performed her one-woman show entitled “What’s an Indian Woman to Do?” in Los Angeles to rave reviews from LA Weekly and the Los Angeles Times.