Kirkwood Public Library: Shannon's Hot Takes, November 2021: Native American Heritage Month

Press release from the Kirkwood Public Library:

Shannon McLean

Dec 4, 2021

Yes, I missed October’s blog. It might have been because I had the flu, or maybe because October is my favorite month and it was hard letting go. We’ll never know! But to make it up to my readers–all three of you–I am including a bonus review for November! And all 4 of them are by Native American/First Nations authors in honor of Native American Heritage Month.

I spent my childhood fascinated by Native American history and culture. I still have many of the books that I read and reread about the indigenous people of this continent before and after contact with Europeans. As I got older, I began to realize that many of these accounts romanticized Indians, and none of them were actually written by Native Americans. Some of them were plain wrong and based on outdated stereotypes. An individual would not be faulted for thinking that the Native people in these books were only something of the past and no longer existed, since many of them did not discuss anything past the 1970s–if that. But there are millions of Native people alive today! There are 574 federally recognized Indian Nations (variously called tribes, nations, bands, pueblos, communities, and native villages) in the United States. There are more than 630 First Nation communities in Canada, which represent more than 50 Nations and 50 Indigenous languages. And that doesn’t include the many, many Indigenous people living in South America today.

That is why it is so important that we read books by Indigenous authors! The books I review below take place in the present or the recent past (the early 2000s), and feature Native characters who will seem familiar to teen readers today. They have cell phones, play video games, and do many of the same things that teenagers of other ethnic and racial groups do. But they also have their own rich cultures, worldviews, and struggles that can only be understood by those who live them. That doesn’t mean they can’t share their stories with the world. In fact, I think we would all be better people if we listened to each others’ stories and learned to respect them. The Indians of this continent have endured. I hope that you will read these books. And if you would like more recommendations, please leave a comment below!

Healer of the Water Monster by Brian Young (Navajo)

Nathan is an eleven-year-old Navajo boy from Phoenix on the cusp of puberty, who decides he wants to spend the summer with his Nali, his paternal grandmother, at her mobile home on the reservation in New Mexico. He is still reeling from his parents’ divorce, and does not want to spend time with his dad’s new girlfriend in Las Vegas. He loves science, and tells his parents that he needs to spend the summer there so that he can do his next experiment on traditional versus modern corn-growing. The mobile home has no running water or electricity, but he figures toughing it out for a couple of months is better than sharing his dad with someone who is not his mother. Plus, he loves his Nali, and is excited to spend time with his troubled Uncle Jet when he arrives unexpectedly. One night, Nathan gets lost in the desert and comes across a Holy Being from the Navajo Creation Story–a Water Monster–who is very ill and needs his help. He agrees, and with the other Holy Beings he must face down his fears, and travel to places he never thought he could, to try and save his new friend.

This is technically a middle-grade novel (so written with 8-12 year old’s in mind) but I really enjoyed it and I’m an adult (at least that’s what they tell me). I think that this book is perfect for younger teens, and even older teens can appreciate the worldbuilding, adventure, and themes of this book. It deals with some heavy things, like veteran Uncle Jet’s PTSD, alcoholism, and the generational wounds that can be passed down from generation to generation–especially for Native Americans who have endured more trauma than most. But it is also full of joy and love for family and friends, as well as a certain character who I found hilarious (hint: he’s a Holy amphibian). The story is told from Nathan’s POV, and his voice was real and believable for an 11 year-old boy caught between two worlds–whether that be the white world and the Navajo one, or between childhood and adulthood, between his parents, etc. Brian Young also uses his native tongue throughout the novel, and provides a helpful glossary in the back for translation. I love when authors use their native languages in their books, even if they don’t provide translation, because it enhances the authenticity of the narrative. And if I really want to know more about what it says, I can always look it up! Indigenous languages are endangered, anyway, so I will always support Native authors using them in their work. One last thing: Young’s descriptions of the desert were so beautiful, and made me a bit homesick. The desert is a wondrous place!

I read our physical copy that you can check out from the Children’s Room, but Healer of the Water Monster is also available on Overdrive through the Libby app in audiobook format.

This non-fiction title is an updated and revamped version for younger readers of Dr. Treuer’s 2012 book of the same name. Dr. Anton Treuer is Executive Director of the American Indian Resource Center at Bemidji State University, and Editor of the Oshkaabewis (pronounced o-shkaah-bay-wis) Native Journal, the only academic journal of the Ojibwe language. He is the author of 9 books, and has received so many honors and grants that I am not going to list them here. He is a passionate advocate for Native language revitalization, and tours the country giving lectures on Indian culture and answering the kinds of questions that are in this book. He answers questions ranging from “What is a powwow?” to “Why is [blank] offensive to Native Americans?” to “Why are Indians so often imagined rather than understood?”

Hoopla Libby app.

This press release was produced by the Kirkwood Public Library. The views expressed here are the author’s own.