Congratulations to Michaela Goade! She’s just been awarded the Caldecott Honor Award for her picture book Berry Song, which she both wrote and illustrated. Published in 2022 by Little, Brown, the book is a luscious feast of storytelling centered around a grandmother and her granddaughter picking wild berries. It celebrates the bounty of nature, the cultural and spiritual connections between people and their environment, and the continuity of Tlingit teachings about that relationship.

Not surprisingly, given Goade’s skills as an illustrator, the pictures are gorgeous, as lush, dreamy, and detailed as the rainforests of Southeast Alaska, where she grew up and lives. In 2021 Goade received the Caldecott Medal for her work in the book We Are Water Protectors, written by Carol Lindstrom, thus becoming the first Alaska Native and indigenous artist to win the prestigious award.

The text, too, is lovely. Rhythmic, with rich words, deliberate pacing, and concise phrasing, it subtly conveys an overall pattern and themes that reflect the values of the Tlingit Nation, of which she is a member. Gratitude and interconnectedness permeate the book; a recognition that we humans are not just part of nature, but live in a deeply reciprocal relationship with our environment. As Goade states in a two-page Note from the Author, “Berries hold great symbolic and spiritual significance. They connect us to land, community, and culture. They remind us of home.”

Though the main text is in English, a few Tlingit words are smoothly tucked into the narrative, such as gunalchéesh (thank you). Tlingit names for berries appear in an illustration, in the author’s note alongside photos of berries and, more extensively in both Tlingit and English, in the endpapers, which are beautifully illustrated with a variety of berries.

Goade’s work melds artistry with deep roots to landscape and culture that are life-affirming and heartening. Berry Song is a gift to readers. Gunalshéesh! Thank you for your work, Michaela Goade, and congratulations!

Baby Raven Reads Board Books

Sealaska Heritage continues to publish beautifully crafted books in Tlingit, Tsimshian, and Haida, the Native languages of Southeast Alaska. Three titles from 2019 provide engaging material for children under five and their families to learn about these languages and the cultures they express in that sturdiest of form, the board book.

Xanggáay: Learn the Colors in Xaad Kíl introduces readers to the Haida words for basic colors using examples from nature that children in Southeast Alaska will be familiar with: plants, animals, and the sun. Many of the illustrations, which were created by David Lang, employ a traditional formline style. The colors are vibrant and engaging. Words are presented first in Xaad Kíl, with English below. Skíl Jáadei (Linda Schrak) and K’uyáang (Benjamin Young) chose the words for the very simple text.

From the Sealaska Heritage website, a link to pronunciation can be heard here.

Xanggáay: Learn the Colors in Xaad Kíl

Similarly, Wilgyigyet: Learn the Colors in Sm’algyax, uses the same format and illustrations by Lang to present the Tsimshian words for colors. In this case, the Haayk Foundation contributed the text. The link to pronunciation is here.

Wilgyigyet: Learn the Colors in Sm’algyax

Cradle Songs of Southeast Alaska, illustrated by Crystal Kaakeeyáa Worl, is a more complex book. Not only is it tri-lingual, with three lullabies each in Lingit (Tlingit), Xaad Kíl (Haida), and Sm’algyax (Tsimshian), it includes English translations for each and comes with a CD. Some songs have been passed down from elders, some were adapted from older texts, and some are new creations.

Cradle Songs of Southeast Alaska

The artwork in Cradle Songs, while still appropriate for a board book’s young audience, is more complex. The style combines traditional and modern elements to compliment the snippets of story in each song. I particularly enjoy the illustration of a young girl, drawn in formline style, “packing something up the hill” — an armful of books!

I love the work that Sealaska Heritage is doing to create beautiful, engaging, and useful books that authentically represent Southeast Alaska Native cultures and promote these living languages. These and other books can be purchased from the Sealaska Heritage website, which contains an array of language materials in Tlingit, Tsimshian, and Haida.

Baby Raven Reads

I’m thrilled to see Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) filling a much-needed gap in Alaskan children’s literature with their well-designed, age-appropriate, culturally accurate picture books for kids.

Baby Raven Reads is a program implemented by Sealaska Heritage, a regional Native nonprofit corporation, through grant funding from the US Department of Education’s Alaska Native Education Program. Their goal is to promote “love of learning through culture and community.” Baby Raven Reads includes family events for young children, as well as the creation of an exemplary collection of picture books centered around Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian cultures in Southeast Alaska. In 2017 the Library of Congress recognized Baby Raven Reads as a “Best Practice Honoree” with their Literacy Award.

Their Raven series includes three stories adapted from the scholarly works of Nora and Richard Dauenhauer, who devoted much of their careers to transcribing oral accounts by Tlingit Elders. Raven and the Tide Lady, beautifully illustrated by Tlingit artist Michaela Goade (Tlingit name Sheit.een), was published in 2018. 

Raven and the Tide Lady,
illustrated by Michaela Goade.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

In the story, Raven forces the Tide Lady to allow low tides so animals and people can harvest food from the ocean.

The Tide Lady refuses Raven's approach.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

In Raven Makes the Aleutians, illustrated by Haida artist Janine Gibbons and published in 2018, a great flood leaves Raven exhausted from searching for land. 

Raven Makes the Aleutians,
illustrated by Janine Gibbons.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

Raven solicits the help of a sea otter to create the Aleutian Islands, thus providing Raven a place to rest as he flies back toward the mainland. The islands remain today as the homeland of the Unangan and Alutiiq people. Gibbons' bold illustrations emphasize the contrast between sea, land, and sky.

Raven tosses pebbles into the sea.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

In a third story, Raven Loses His Nose, published in 2018 and illustrated by Tsimshian artist David Lang, Raven’s legendary greed gets him into trouble, causing him to lose his nose.

Raven loses his Nose,
illustrated by David Lang.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

A selection of additional titles includes:

How Devil’s Club Came to Be by Miranda Rose Kaagwéil Worl, illustrated by Tlingit artist Michaela Goade, published in 2017. This original story is inspired by oral tradition but is not a traditional Tlingit tale. 

How Devil's Club Came to Be,
illustrated by Michaela Goade.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

In it, Raven’s niece sets out on a hero’s journey to save her village from a terrible illness. The illustrations are striking and evocative.

Raven's niece on her journey.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

The Woman Who Married the Bear, adapted by Frank Henry Kaash Katasse, was published in 2017 and illustrated by Haida artist Janine Gibbons.

The Woman Who Married the Bear,
illustrated by Janine Gibbons.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

Presented as a story-within-a-story, this Tlingit teaching tale cautions children to respect the bears and not to go into the forest by themselves at the berry-picking time of year.

The woman and the bear walk into the forest.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

Shanyaak’utlaax — Salmon Boy, published in 2017, is bilingual throughout in Tlingit and English. Illustrated by Tlingit artist Michaela Goade, it was adapted from oral tradition and edited by Johnny Marks, Hans Chester, David Katzeek, Nora Dauenhauer, and Richard Dauenhauer. A preface explains that this is a Kiks.ádi story, with variant versions owned by other Raven Clans. In this tale a boy is captured by the Salmon People for disrespecting the food they provide.

Shanyaak'utlaax -- Salmon Boy,
illustrated by Michaela Goade.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

He becomes a salmon, eventually returning to his home and family when the salmon migrate from the sea. His story illustrates the need for humans to respect and understand the relationship between humans and their environment.

Salmon Boy returns to his mother.
Courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

Shanyaak’utlaax — Salmon Boy received the American Indian Youth Literature Award for Best Picture Book in 2018.

The books include information about SHI and Baby Raven Reads, as well as notes about story sources. The Raven books include a foreword “Raven the Trickster” by Rosita Kaaháni Worl, Ph. D., President of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

With their rich cultural context, age-appropriate storytelling, quality artwork, and attractive design, the books are a gift not only to Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian children, but to all of us.

A complete list of Sealaska Heritage Institute books is here. All images are used with permission of Sealaska Heritage Institute.

Catching Up

It’s past time to highlight some of the new Alaska and northern books I’ve seen this past year. First up:

Fighter in Velvet Gloves
by Annie Boochever with Roy Peratrovich Jr.

At long last we have a biography about Elizabeth Peratrovich!

Fighter in Velvet Gloves: Alaska Civil Rights Hero Elizabeth Peratrovich, by Annie Boochever with Roy Peratrovich Jr., documents the life and work of this exceptional Tlingit woman. Her tireless efforts to end discrimination against Alaska Natives contributed significantly to passage of the first anti-discrimination law in the United States, right here in Alaska.

Thanks to Boochever, who grew up in Juneau (the setting for much of the book) and Roy Peratrovich Jr., the son of Elizabeth and her husband Roy, we now have an accurate historical account of Peratrovich’s life and legacy.

On February 16, 1945 Alaska’s Anti-Discrimination Act became law in what was then the territory of Alaska, a notable feat when we consider that it took nineteen more years for the U.S. Congress to pass the Civil Rights Act. While the work of Elizabeth and Roy Peratrovich, along with many others, was instrumental in creating change, Elizabeth’s eloquent speech before the Territorial Legislature was a decisive factor in striking this legal victory against discrimination. Boochever writes, “This book celebrates all their efforts by telling the story of a woman who exemplified courage and commitment throughout her life.”

Fighter in Velvet Gloves is published by Snowy Owl Books/University of Alaska Press for a teen audience “and their families.” Though the format of the book lacks the graphic sophistication that’s become prevalent among YA nonfiction produced by the Big Five publishers, Fighter is meticulously researched and respectfully written to honor the values of Tlingit traditions. The text includes Tlingit words and names, black-and-white photos, a timeline, bibliography, glossary, and notes by both authors. It sheds light on historical struggles for equality and justice that adults, as well as young people, may not be aware of. Fighter in Velvet Gloves may well inspire readers to make a difference, too.

$1 Coin Honoring
Elizabeth Peratrovich
Image: US Mint

In 2020 the U.S. Mint will issue a $1 coin with her image.

In 1988 the Alaska Legislature declared February 16 “Elizabeth Peratrovich Day” in honor of her accomplishments.

Little Whale

Little Whale by Roy A. Peratrovich, Jr. melds family history with imagination in this slim chapter book about 10-year-old Kéet, a young Tlingit boy who accompanies his father on a 200-mile journey by canoe from present-day Sitka to Ketchikan. Though fiction, the story is based on a voyage taken by Peratrovich’s Tlingit grandfather, Andrew Wanamaker, as a young child.

The book begins with a map of their route, a glossary of eight “words to know,” and an introduction that gives background information on the Tlingit people and their way of life, effectively setting the stage for the story that follows. The tale is thus able to unfold naturally, without excessive interruptions for explanations that would be necessary for young readers unfamiliar with Tlingit culture and Southeastern Alaska.

Kéet, whose name means “Killer Whale” in Tlingit, is the youngest and smallest member of his family. Normally left behind while his father and brothers hunt and fish, Kéet is thrilled when one morning his father takes him halibut fishing. On that excursion, they discover and successfully free a baby whale caught in a strange net, probably belonging to the “pale people” who have begun to appear in Tlingit country. Shortly after this brave and compassionate act, Kéet stows away in his father’s canoe, secretly joining a large party of men led by his father on a mission to seek recompense for a wrong committed by a member of the Ketchikan clan. Suffice to say, adventures involving weather, whales, and their reception in Ketchikan ensue.

Little Whale by Roy A. Peratrovich, Jr.
Published 2016, Snowy Owl Books
University of Alaska Press

While most of the story is told in a straightforward narrative style, one chapter contains an element of the fantastic, which Peratrovich identifies in his author’s note at the end of the book as his own embellishment.

Much of the interest of the story is found in the details of daily life, customs, tools, language, and attitudes among the Tlingit of that place and time. Peratrovich, who is the son of renowned Alaska Native civil rights leaders Elizabeth and Roy Peratrovich, thanks noted Tlingit scholar Rosita Worl for authenticating his inclusion of Tlingit words and customs. Blurbs by Dr. Worl and Tlingit leader Randy Wanamaker further support the high level of authenticity found in both the text and the drawings. 

Peratrovich’s drawings enhance the story, with most chapters containing one black-and-white spot illustration. While several of the drawings would benefit from cleaner lines and better contrast, the details they depict are informative and interesting.

Little Whale is a valuable addition to the small body of authentic literature for children about Tlingit people and culture. While the book has an educational tone, the author’s storytelling style is strong enough to convey a tale that should be of interest to most children ages eight to ten. As well, it offers numerous possibilities for discussion about topics such as the impacts of Western colonization upon Alaska Natives, subsistence living, settlement of disputes, survival at sea, and values such as courage, compassion, and respect.