Canada

Materials from Canada

Tuk And The Whale

During the early 1600s, there was an active whaling industry in Canada. Whale oil was used to light the streets and buildings of European cities and to manufacture leather, wool, and soap. The baleen was used to make everything from carriage springs to corsets. Told from the point of view of a young Inuit boy named Tuk, this story imagines what might have happened if the people of Tuk’s Baffin Island winter camp had encountered European whalers, blown far from their usual whaling route. Both the hunters and the whalers prize the bowhead whale for different reasons. Together, they set out on a hunt, though they are all on new and uncertain ground. Scrupulously researched and vetted, this early chapter book inspires discussion about communication between two groups of people with entirely different world views, early whaling practices, and a productive partnership that also foreshadows serious problems to come. Simply and beautifully told, Tuk and the Whale includes a glossary, historical note, and recommendations for further reading.

People of the Trail: How the Northern Forest Indians Lived

Describes the family life, games, hunting and fishing techniques, homes, clothing, beliefs, and means of travel of the Indians of the Northwest.

Salmon Boy: A Legend of the Sechelt People

Simple and compelling First Nations drawings illustrate this dynamic story that teaches respect for the environment and describes the life cycle of the salmon.

Skysisters

Two Ojibway sisters set off across the frozen north country to see the SkySpirits’ midnight dance. It isn’t easy for the younger sister to be silent, but gradually she begins to treasure the stillness and the wonderful experiences it brings. After an exhilarating walk and patient waiting, the girls are rewarded by the arrival of the SkySpirits — the Northern Lights — dancing and shimmering in the night sky. This powerful story, with its stunning illustrations, captures the chill of a northern night, the warmth of the family circle and the radiance of a child’s wonder.

Halfbreed

“I write this for all of you, to tell you what it is like to be a Halfbreed woman in our country. I want to tell you about the joys and sorrows, the oppressing poverty, the frustration and the dreams. . . . I am not bitter. I have passed that stage. I only want to say: this is what it was like, this is what it is still like.” For Maria Campbell, a Métis (“Halfbreed”) in Canada, the brutal realities of poverty, pain, and degradation intruded early and followed her every step. Her story is a harsh one, but it is told without bitterness or self-pity. It is a story that begins in 1940 in northern Saskatchewan and moves across Canada’s West, where Maria roamed in the rootless existence of day-to-day jobs, drug addiction, and alcoholism. Her path strayed ever near hospital doors and prison walls.It was Cheechum, her Cree great-grandmother, whose indomitable spirit sustained Maria Campbell through her most desperate times. Cheechum’s stubborn dignity eventually led the author to take pride in her Métis heritage, and Cheechum’s image inspired her in her drive for her own life, dignity; and purpose.

How The Robin Got Its Red Breast: A Legend Of The Sechelt People (Legends Of The Sechelt Nation)

These traditional teaching legends come straight from the oral traditions of the Sechelt Nation. Simple enough to be understood by young children, yet compelling enough for adults, they are gentle, beautifully presented cautionary tales. You’ll want to read them again and again – and you’ll learn a few words of the Shishalh language while you’re at it. Charlie Craigan is a young Sechelt artist who works in a tiny studio set up in his bedroom. He studied traditional wood carving with Sechelt Nation carvers, but learned to draw and paint by studying books.

My Name Is Seepeetza

Her name was Seepeetza when she was at home with her family. But now that she’s living at the Indian residential school her name is Martha Stone, and everything else about her life has changed as well. Told in the honest voice of a sixth grader, this is the story of a young Native girl forced to live in a world governed by strict nuns, arbitrary rules, and a policy against talking in her own dialect, even with her family. Seepeetza finds bright spots, but most of all she looks forward to summers and holidays at home. This autobiographical novel is written in the form of Seepeetza’s diary.