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Spotlight on: 2024/25 Selected Titles
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acâhkos nikamowini-pîkiskwêwina—The Star Poems: nêhiyawi-kîsik âcimowin—A Cree Sky Narrative
by Jesse Rae Archibald-Barber
The Star Poems creatively engages Cree oral tradition in a new way, connecting Indigenous spirituality and quantum physics to honour and adapt some of our most ancient stories about the origins of life and our place in the universe. Presented in both English and Cree, The Star Poems is a timely contribution to the revitalization of the Cree language—and the fascinating world of star stories.
The Creator:
Jesse Rae Archibald-Barber is from Regina, oskana kâ-asastêki (Saskatchewan), and is of Cree, Métis, and Scottish heritage. A professor of Indigenous Literatures at the First Nations University of Canada, his publications include stories and poems in The Malahat Review, The Canadian Journal of Native Studies, MBC Magazine, and mitewâcimowina: Indigenous Science Fiction and Speculative Storytelling. He also edited the award-winning anthology kisiskâciwan: Indigenous Voices from Where the River Flows Swiftly, and co-edited Performing Turtle Island: Indigenous Theatre on the World Stage.
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A Season in Chezgh'un
by Darrel J. Mcleod
James, a talented and conflicted Cree man from a tiny settlement in Northern Alberta, has settled into a comfortable middle-class life in Kitsilano, a trendy neighbourhood of Vancouver. He is living the life he had once dreamed of—travel, a charming circle of sophisticated friends, a promising career and a loving relationship with a caring man—but he chafes at being assimilated into mainstream society, removed from his people and culture.
The untimely death of James’s mother, his only link to his extended family and community, propels him into a quest to reconnect with his roots. He secures a job as a principal in a remote northern Dakelh community but quickly learns that life there isn’t the fix he’d hoped it would be: His encounters with poverty, cultural disruption and abuse conjure ghosts from his past that drive him toward self-destruction. During the single year he spends in northern BC, James takes solace in the richness of the Dakelh culture—the indomitable spirit of the people, and the splendour of nature—all the while fighting to keep his dark side from destroying his life.
The Creator:
Darrel J. McLeod is Cree from treaty eight territory in Northern Alberta. Before deciding to pursue writing in his retirement, he was a chief negotiator of land claims for the federal government and executive director of education and international affairs with the Assembly of First Nations. He holds degrees in French literature and Education from the University of British Columbia. He lives in Sooke, BC, and is working on a second memoir following the events in Mamaskatch. In the spring of 2018, he was accepted into the Banff Writing Studio to advance his first work of fiction.
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Fluffy and the Stars
by T'âanchâay Redvers (Author) and Roza Nozari (Artist)
Shay and their dog Fluffy are best friends. Through the years they are each other’s source of comfort and companionship in times of both sadness and joy. When Shay learns that Fluffy is sick and they must say goodbye, they feel angry and scared. But Fluffy offers a gentle reassurance—as she always has—and Shay reflects on the meaningful bond they have shared with their friend and the love for her that they will hold in their heart forever.
The Creators:
T'áncháy Redvers is a Dene/Métis two-spirit writer, creator, speaker, advocate and multidisciplinary performer belonging to Deninu K’ue First Nation in Treaty 8 territory. They have been nationally and internationally recognized for their work and advocacy across many forms. T’áncháy co-founded We Matter, a national Indigenous-led organization dedicated to Indigenous youth hope and life promotion. T’áncháy has recently been enjoying screenwriting youth content for networks such as Apple TV+ and PBS Kids. They can usually be found dreaming up diverse stories and cuddling on the couch with their partner and their dogs, Yákay and Mocha, in Tkaronto (Toronto).
Roza Nozari is a queer illustrator and writer of color. She is most known for her bold designs and diverse depictions of community and is a firm believer that we should all see ourselves meaningfully reflected in art. In her illustrations, she centers those often at the margins of the art world—BIPOC and 2SLGBTQ+ people, among others. Roza passionately illustrates on topics related to community, mental health and social justice. Through illustration, she envisions a world that is affirming, compassionate and uplifting to all. Roza lives in Tkaronto/Toronto with her partner, their quirky dog named Bones and their bonus kid, Ollie.
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Tauhou: a novel
by Kåotuku Titihuia Nuttall
A monster guards cultural objects in a museum, a woman uncovers her own grave, another woman remembers her estranged father. On rainforest beaches and grassy dunes, sisters and cousins contend with the ghosts of the past--all the way back to when the first foreign ships arrived on their shores. In a testament to the resilience of Indigenous women, the two sides of this family, Coast Salish and Måaori, must work together in understanding and forgiveness to heal that which has been forced upon them by colonialism.
The Creator:
Kotuku Titihuia Nuttall (Te Atiawa, Ngati Tuwharetoa, WSÁNEC) holds an MA from the International Institute of Modern Letters. She won the 2020 Adam Foundation Prize and was runner-up in the 2021 Surrey Hotel-Newsroom writer's residency award. She lives on the Kapiti Coast of Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Mind Over Matter: Hard-Won Battles on the Road to Hope
by Jordin Tootoo & Stephen Brunt
Following the bestselling success of the inspiring All the Way, pioneering Inuit NHLer Jordin Tootoo begins the process of healing in the wake of the suicide and violence that marks his family, only to discover the source of all that trauma in his father's secret past.
The Creator:
Jordin Tootoo is of Inuit and Ukranian descent and is both the first Inuk player and the first player to grow up in Nunavut to participate in the NHL. He plays right wing for the NHL New Jersey Devils and has also played for the Detroit Red Wings and the Nashville Predators.
Stephen Brunt is currently with Sportsnet, co-host on The FAN 590's Prime Time Sports with Bob McCown, and contributing writer for Sportsnet Magazine and sportsnet.ca. Previously, he was a columnist at The Globe and Mail. He is the author of the #1 national bestselling Searching for Bobby Orr; Gretzky's Tears; Facing Ali; The Way it Looks from Here; Second to None: The Roberto Alomar Story; and Diamond Dreams: 20 Years of Blue Jays Baseball.
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A Haida Wedding
by Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson & Robert Davidson
A visual and cultural celebration of a traditional Haida wedding ceremony, exploring its roots, rituals, symbolism, joyfulness, and contemporary significance for a thriving Indigenous Nation. In 1996, Terri-Lynn Williams and Robert Davidson celebrated their wedding with a traditional ceremony, the first in over a century that was legalized under Haida law. This book provides an intimate photographic window into that momentous day and marks the resurgence of a tradition that was nearly lost to colonial forces. Relying on recorded knowledge their ancestors had shared with ethnographers and anthropologists, and the few details living Elders could recall about the tradition of guud ‘iina Gihl (“becoming married”) in the time before the arrival of Christian missionaries, the couple carefully planned out a seven-part celebration. It involved a canoe procession, ceremony, feast, dancing, and dowry payment, signifying the coming together of two people, two families, and two clans. The occasion is lovingly and painstakingly recounted through imagery and text in this fascinating tribute to a resilient culture and the unbreakable bonds of love and family.
The Creators:
Robert Davidson is one of Canada’s most respected and important contemporary artists. Of Haida descent, he is a master carver of totem poles and masks and works in a variety of media as a printmaker, painter, and jeweler. A leading figure in the renaissance of Haida art and culture, Davidson is renowned as an impeccable craftsman whose creative and personal interpretation of traditional Haida form is unparalleled.
Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson is an activist through art and music, and also through law. Born in Haida Gwaii, Terri-Lynn has been a promoter of Haida music and culture since the age of thirteen. Since 1995, she has successfully represented the Haida Nation at all levels of court, including the Supreme Court of Canada. In 2014, she received the West Coast Environmental Law People's Choice Andrew Thompson Award for environmental advocacy. In 2000, she founded the Haida Gwaii Singers Society with other veteran Haida singers including her husband, artist Robert Davidson. For her music, she has received multiple Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards and several nominations for Aboriginal People’s Choice Awards, Canadian Folk Music Awards, a Western Canadian Music Award, and Native American Music Awards. An effective advocate, she integrates cultural knowledge and an Indigenous voice into her legal work.
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Adult/YA and Children's Selected 2024/2025 Titles
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And Then She Fell
by Alicia Elliott
When strange things start happening, Alice, a young Indigenous woman living in a posh Toronto neighborhood, starts losing bits of time and hearing voices she can't explain and discovers the picture-perfect life she's always hoped for may have horrifying consequences—and may be linked to the Haudenosaunee creation story.
The Creator:
Alicia Elliot is a Mohawk writer and editor living in Brantford, Ontario. She has written for The Globe and Mail, CBC, Hazlitt and many other publications. She's had numerous essays nominated for National Magazine Awards, winning Gold in 2017 and an honorable mention in 2020. Her short fiction was selected for The Best American Short Stories 2018 (by Roxane Gay), Best Canadian Stories 2018, and The Journey Prize Stories 30. Alicia was chosen by Tanya Talaga as the 2018 recipient of the RBC Taylor Emerging Writer Award. Her first book, A Mind Spread Out On The Ground, was a national bestseller in Canada. It was also nominated for the Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction and won the Forest of Reading Evergreen Award.
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Freddie the Flyer
by Fred Carmichael (Author), Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail (Author), and Audrea Loreen-Wulf (Artist)
When Freddie was young, he saw a plane up close for the first time when it dropped off supplies at his family's remote bush camp. He was instantly hooked. Freddie has flown for nearly seventy years, doing everything from supply runs to search and rescue to transporting dog teams to far-flung areas.
The Creators:
Frederick “Freddie” Carmichael split his childhood between the trapline and the town of Aklavik, Northwest Territories (NWT). He worked hard to become the first Indigenous commercial pilot in the Arctic, founded multiple aviation companies and has served the people of the Mackenzie Delta in the air and as a leader and Elder. Fred is a Member of the Order of Canada and Canada’s Aviation Hall of Fame, and he holds an Honorary Doctor of Laws from the University of Saskatchewan. Fred still flies his Cessna 170 from his home in Inuvik, NWT, where he lives with his wife, Miki, and their dog, Shadow.
Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail is a historian and a former Historian Laureate for the city of Edmonton, as well as a former president of the Canadian Aviation Historical Society. She has written For the Love of Flying: The Story of the Laurentian Air Services and Polar Winds: A Century of Flying the North, and edited In This Together: Fifteen Stories of Truth and Reconciliation. Her first book for children is Alis the Aviator. She lives in Edmonton, Alberta.
Artist Audrea Loreen-Wulf was born in the Tuktoyaktuk area and lived there as a young child. She now lives in Salmon Arm, BC. She expresses her deep love for the North through her paintings.
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