Horn Book Herald: October 2024

(3) K-3 An Indigenous girl is distraught when the dress she’s making for a special ceremony rips. Bizzy’s grandmother shows her the regalia the girl’s great-grandmother wore, pointing out a problem with the beading: “...it’s the Pomo way to leave one little flaw in everything you make.” She advises the girl to “dance fast” to keep others from noticing the mistake. Gibbons’s message about avoiding perfectionism is not heavy-handed, and her digital illustrations are humorous. A note about the Pomo people is appended.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(3) K-3 I Like to Read series. A grandfather tells his grandson about two small animals who love Tewa'á:raton (lacrosse). Mouse and Squirrel are rebuffed when they ask to join Team Four Legs and Team Wings. But Eagle has an idea that lets the flightless duo soar, leading Team Wings to victory and to Mouse’s and Squirrel’s new names: Bat and Flying Squirrel. Crisply rendered illustrations reward repeat readings. Mohawk author-illustrator David (Who Will Win?, rev. 3/23) offers beginning readers another entertaining Indigenous tale; helpful information precedes the story.

Reviewer: Kitty Flynn

(3) YA The summer before sophomore year, Tre Brun is grieving the accidental death of his older brother as well as living in his shadow -- Jaxon was beloved and idolized for his varsity basketball stardom within the Brun family and throughout the entire Red Lake Reservation. Tre is also on a mission: dedicating himself to rigorous training in hopes of making varsity and, alongside Jaxon’s former teammates, bringing their rez team to the Minnesota State Basketball Championships. Ojibwe author Graves's Morris– and AILA YA Award–winning debut is at once an exhilarating sports thriller, an underdog story, a grieving-family portrait, and a relatable high-school social dramedy. That it is set on a contemporary Native reservation is both a casual detail and a noteworthy aspect of the book, thanks to Graves's authentic depictions of the socioeconomic, racial, and cultural specifics of Tre's lived reality. A YA novel with massive commercial appeal that also opens windows -- hell, wide, welcoming gates -- to an underrepresented community.

Reviewer: Katrina Hedeen

(3) K-3 Illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight. A contemporary girl describes all the tasks and details leading up to her Cherokee community’s wild onion dinner at the start of spring. From her grandmother stitching a tear dress to the girl tending the chickens to gathering the onions together as a family, then cooking, serving, and enjoying the meal at the community center, an appreciation for tradition, and the child’s thankfulness for abundance, comes through. Clear, colorful, digital-looking illustrations set a warm and congenial scene. An author’s note, three recipes, and a glossary are appended.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(3) PS Translated by Dorothy Thunder. Illustrated by Delreé Dumont. Calm and gentle bilingual text, in Plains Cree and English, serves as a soothing lullaby for the baby in this narrator’s arms and as a tribute to the land and natural world around them: “This land is a lullaby your heart already knows. / You carry the song from a lifetime ago.” Gorgeous-hued, landscape-sweeping, textured illustrations depict the flora and fauna, spirits and ancestors using swaths of color and pointillist techniques.

Reviewer: Elissa Gershowitz

(4) K-3 Illustrated by Joseph Erb. A boy with “a towering body” has trouble keeping up with his teammates in this story about stickball, a popular sport in Cherokee communities that resembles lacrosse and basketball. Despite Vann’s lack of speed, encouragement from his coach and fellow players gives him the confidence to assist in the winning play. Sorrell’s lively text is paired with Erb’s cartoonish digital illustrations with stylized proportions. A glossary of Tsalagi (Cherokee) words and author’s notes about the language and stickball are appended.

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