Forever Our Home / Kâkikê Kîkinaw (Dual Language (English & Plains Cree))
by Tonya Simpson (Author) Carla Joseph (Illustrator)
A lullaby of reconciliation and reclamation, celebrating the ancestral relationship between Indigenous children and the land that is forever their home.
Under glowing morning sun and silvery winter moon, from speckled frogs croaking in spring to summer fields painted with fireweed, this meditative lullaby introduces little ones to the plants and animals of the Prairies and the Plains.
Written in both Plains Cree and English and featuring stunning artwork by celebrated artist Carla Joseph, Forever Our Home / kâkikê kîkinaw is a beautiful and gentle song about our spiritual connection to the land.
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School Library Journal
PreS-K--Simpson's debut picture book, written in both English and Plains Cree, is a tribute to her homeland in the prairies and plains. Adapted from a lullaby she wrote for her newborn son, the lyrical text highlights the wildlife of the area while affirming her family's ancestral place in the land. "My sweet, beautiful child," she writes, "home is where the hawks hunt and the foxes run wild. This, my love, is where you are from." Simultaneously, Joseph's vivid spreads center the plants and animals of the area as the most visually important elements on the page, with the family frequently pictured as passing through in the distance, or on some pages absent entirely. It's a lovely reminder that our homelands belonged to so many more before us. With a continuing dearth of Indigenous voices, this solemn and serene volume should be considered a first purchase. VERDICT Essential for most collections, and with its wildlife-centric art, it's also a perfect read-aloud for Earth Day.--Lindsay Loup
Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.Review quotes
Tonya Simpson is of Scottish and Cree ancestry. She is a member of Pasqua First Nation and was born and raised in central Alberta. Tonya completed the MA program in anthropology at the University of Alberta and now works as a research assistant. Her first picture book, Forever Our Home, introduces readers to the animals and plants of the Prairies and the Plains. Tonya lives with her family at Pigeon Lake in Westerose, Alberta.
Delreé Dumont (Wapiski Kihew Esquao / White Eagle Woman) is a proud member of Onion Lake Cree Nation, Saskatchewan. She paints in the pointillism style, depicting the natural world blended with her teachings and experiences as an Indigenous woman. She also creates smudge fans, dreamcatchers and pine-needle baskets, and she is a traditional powwow dancer. Delreé lives and works at her home studio near Revelstoke, British Columbia.
JUV030090 - Juvenile Fiction | People & Places | Canada - Native Canadian
Stories in rhyme
Nature
Indians of North America
Canadians
Prairie ecology
Nature fiction
