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Here are some of our favorite books that depict Native American culture for children and teens. These books can all be found in the Easy, Juvenile, and Teen sections of the library, unless otherwise noted. Please note that the titles in the Teen section can be either Teen Middle School or Teen High School. |
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Fry Bread : A Native American Family Story
by
Kevin Noble Maillard
A celebration of the long-cherished Seminole Nation tradition of sharing fry bread during family meals combines evocative verses with vibrant artwork.
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I am Sacagawea
by Brad Meltzer
Sacagawea, the only Native American included in Lewis and Clark’s historic expedition, joins the inspiring list of heroes whose stories are told in this New York Times best-selling biography series. Please note, this title can be found in the Easy Non-fiction section of the library.
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Go Show the World: A Celebration of Indigenous Heroes
by Wab Kinew
This book shares some of the accomplishments of Indigenous heroes, including Crazy Horse, Net-no-kwa, and John Herrington. Please note, this title can be found in the Easy Non-fiction section of the library.
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Wild Berries: Pikaci-mīnisa
by Julie Flett
Clarence, a young Cree Indian, and his grandmother pick blueberries together as they sing, look out for the animals, and enjoy sampling the fruit.
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Sweetest Kulu
by Celina Kalluk
An Inuit mother sings to her Kulu--or baby--about animals and other elements in their Arctic world and the gifts they bring to the child, from the summer sun's warm light to Arctic hare's love, musk ox's power, and caribou's patience.
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First Laugh: Welcome, Baby!
by Rose Ann Tahe
A Navajo family welcomes a new baby into the family with love and ceremony, eagerly waiting for that first special laugh.
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We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga
by Traci Sorell
This book follows a full year of Cherokee celebrations and experiences, describing how the Cherokee Nation expresses thanks and reflects on struggles all year long. Please note, this title can be found in the Easy Non-fiction section of the library.
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When the Shadbush Blooms
by Carla Messinger
Illustrated by luminous paintings, this heartwarming story follows two Native American girls from different times--nearly four hundred years apart--as they each describe their family's lives through the seasons.
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Chukfi Rabbit's Big, Bad Bellyache: A Trickster Tale
by Greg Rodgers
Bear, Turtle, Fox, and Beaver agree to build Ms. Possum a new house, but Chukfi Rabbit says he is too busy to help until he hears there will be a Chocktaw feast afterwards and helps himself to a treat while the work is being done. Please note, this title can be found in the Easy Non-fiction section of the library.
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Raven: A Trickster Tale From the Pacific Northwest
by Gerald McDermott
Raven, a native American trickster, must figure out a way to steal the light from the house of the Sky Chief where it is hidden and bring it to the world. Please note, this title can be found in the Easy Non-fiction section of the library.
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Caribou Song: Ateek Oonagamoon
by Tomson Highway
Two Cree brothers in Manitoba go searching for caribou and wind up taking part in a magical adventure. Please note, this title can be found in the Easy Language Learning section of the library.
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Long Night Moon
by Cynthia Rylant
The stages of the moon throughout a full year are captured in a celebration of the seasons inspired by the Native American custom for naming all of the twelve full moons in a calendar year.
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Rabbit's Snow Dance : A Traditional Iroquois Story by James BruchacA whimsical wintertime fable finds Rabbit using a traditional Iroquois drum and song to perform a snow dance, irritating his fellow creatures by causing incremental snowfall amounts well into the spring.
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Moonstick : The Seasons of the Sioux by Eve BuntingFollowing a Sioux tradition, a young boy begins to make a mooncounting stick in order to keep track of the months, yet with each notch he places upon it, he also begins to learn more about life and the vast world surrounding him.
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The legend of the Indian paintbrush
by Tomie DePaola
Little Gopher follows his destiny, as revealed in a Dream-Vision, of becoming an artist for his people and eventually is able to bring the colors of the sunset down to the earth
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Red Cloud: A Lakota Story of War and Surrender
by S. D. Nelson
This portrait of the controversial Native American leader traces his mid-19th century opposition to white expansion into Native American territory and the military successes that rendered him a primary influence in U.S.-Native American relations. Please note, this title can be found in the Juvenile Non-fiction section of the library.
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Diamond Willow
by Helen Frost
In a remote area of Alaska, Willow helps her father with their sled dogs when she is not at school, wishing she were more popular, all the while unaware that the animals surrounding her carry the spirits of dead ancestors and friends who care for her
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Stone River Crossing
by Tim Tingle
When Martha Tom crosses the Bok Chitto River into the slave-owning plantation in Mississippi territory, she meets Lil Mo, an enslaved boy whose mother is about to be sold. Martha convinces Lil Mo's family to cross the river and be free.
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Hiawatha and the Peacemaker
by Robbie Robertson
Hiawatha, a Mohawk, is plotting revenge for the murder of his wife and daughters by the evil Onondaga Chief, Tadodaho, when he meets the Great Peacemaker, who enlists his help in bringing the nations together to share his vision of a new way of life marked by peace, love, and unity rather than war, hate, and fear.
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The Birchbark House
by Louise Erdrich
This tale chronicles the experiences of an Ojibwa girl, Omakayas, and her family as they live their lives quietly on an island in Lake Superior in 1847, until the white man comes and begins moving her entire tribe off their land.
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Buffalo Bird Girl : A Hidatsa Story by S. D. NelsonTraces the childhood, friendships and dangers experienced by Buffalo Bird Woman, a Hidatsa Indian born in 1839, whose community along the Missouri River in the Dakotas transitioned from hunting to agriculture. By the award-winning author of Black Elk's Vision.
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In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse
by Joseph Marshall
A mixed-race Lakota youth learns about his Native American heritage through the story of Crazy Horse, in an account that draws on oral traditions to recount his heroic advocacy of his people and how he lead a war party to victory at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.
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I Can Make This Promise
by
Christine Day
In a story based on the author’s real-life experiences, a girl uncovers a secret that connects her to her Native American heritage, throwing everything she believes about her family into question.
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The Sign of the Beaver
by Elizabeth George Speare
Left alone to guard the family's wilderness home in eighteenth-century Maine, a boy is hard-pressed to survive until local Indians teach him their skills.
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Hearts Unbroken
by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Breaking up with her first real boyfriend when he makes racist remarks about her Native American heritage, high school senior Louise Wolfe teams up with a fellow school newspaper editor to cover a multicultural casting of the school play and the racial hostilities it has exposed.
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Wolf Brother
by Michelle Paver
When evil strikes the land six thousand years ago, twelve-year-old Tourak and his faithful wolf cub are forced into a perilous journey to take on the destructive force and, with the help and guidance of strange characters along the way, find a way to change the horrific outcome the world seemed destined to endure.
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Some Kind of Courage
by Dan Gemeinhart
In 1890 Washington the only family Joseph Johnson has left is his half-wild Indian pony, Sarah. When she is sold by a man who has no right to do so, he sets out to get her back--and he plans to let nothing stop him in his quest.
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Walk Two Moons
by Sharon Creech
On a long car trip, thirteen-year-old Salamanca Tree Hiddle tells her grandparents the story of a friend who copes with a lunatic and the disappearance of her mother, a tale that reflects Sal's own experience with abandonment.
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Undefeated : Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football team
by Steve Sheinkin
A great American sport and Native American history come together in this true story of how Jim Thorpe and Pop Warner created the legendary Carlisle Indians football team. Please note, this title can be found in the Teen Non-fiction section of the library.
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My Name is Not Easy
by Debby Dahl Edwardson
Assuming an easier name when he enrolls at a distant boarding school because white students have trouble pronouncing his Iñupiaq name, Luke is forbidden from speaking his native language and is oppressed by a formidable headmaster while bonding with other outsiders who experience their own struggles with acclimating.
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Under the Mesquite
by Guadalupe Garcia McCall
Throughout her high school years, as her mother battles cancer, Lupita takes on more responsibility for her house and seven younger siblings, all while finding refuge in acting and writing poetry.
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Killer of Enemies
by Joseph Bruchac
In a world that has barely survived an apocalypse that leaves it with pre-twentieth century technology, Lozen is a monster hunter for four tyrants who are holding her family hostage.
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I Can Make This Promise
by
Christine Day
In a story based on the author’s real-life experiences, a girl uncovers a secret that connects her to her Native American heritage, throwing everything she believes about her family into question.
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