(1) YA "Those you are about to meet are real people, not stereotypes. They are women and men who truly were, through their words and their deeds, voices of the people." Bruchac’s (Abenaki) biographical poems provide chronological introductions to thirty-four notable Native Americans, from the Peacemaker, a Wendat (Huron) leader who united five warring nations around 1000 C.E., to twentieth-century activist Wilma Mankiller, who was the Cherokee Nation's first woman head chief. What stand out most, however, are the accompanying reproductions of artwork by different contemporary Native artists working in a variety of media. Bruchac explains his selection process: some artists were paired with biographical subjects from the same tribe; other artists' work "connects to the subject of the biography in an important way." An appended "More about the Voices" section provides short ­paragraphs of information about the people highlighted, and Bruchac includes a poem about his own life. Intended, per the author's note, to educate non-Native readers and to further inspire Native ones, this ambitious undertaking should encourage all people to learn more about the biographical subjects and to seek out work by the featured artists.

Reviewer: Nicholl Denice Montgomery | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2023

(2) K-3 Illustrated by Tonya Engel. Zoe loves baking cinnamon-swirl bread with her grandmother. As Grandma kneads the dough with a "push and pull," she recalls how her own mother taught her to make bread. When Zoe tries kneading, however, the dough bunches up and sticks to her hands; Zoe wonders "if they will ever move" like her grandmother's. Standing behind her, Grandma places her hands on top of Zoe's and guides the kneading "until it's just right." Engel's (Your Legacy, rev. 1/22) highly textured illustrations, with deep, rich colors, capture the closeness of the intergenerational bond described by Lyons (Dream Builder, rev. 3/20). While the dough rises, grandmother and granddaughter "sit and talk. [Grandma's] hands tell a story if you listen." The following double-page spread shows Grandma's lined palms and fingers up-close, labeled with different identities, including "teacher," "planter," and, most prominently, "mother." As Grandma talks about her own life, Zoe wonders where her own hands will go and what stories they will tell. Baking and reminiscing with Grandma help Zoe see the power and potential she holds in her own hands. A fine companion to Bingham's Soul Food Sunday (rev. 11/21), this story spreads joy like a dusting of flour on a freshly baked loaf.

Reviewer: Michelle H. Martin | Horn Book Magazine Issue: May, 2022