Summary
We are water Protectors written by Carole Lindstrom and illustrated by Michaela Goade is full of rich words and text that show the reader the struggle between indigenous people and the pipeline that has destroyed their clean water supply. The main character is an unnamed girl, who leads her people in the fight against the "black snake". The girl and her people believe that water is sacred, precious, and must be stewarded well. The black snake comes, the girl and her people mourn the loss of their clean water, but continue to fight so that one day they may have clean water again.
Link to the author's website:
Link to the illustrator's website:
My Thoughts
This book is filled with gorgeous illustrations and would be great to read with students of all grade levels. This book has so many applications and opportunities to segue into more information about the environmental issues, protests, and legislation associated with the Dakota Access Pipeline or the other pipelines being built across America. There is little text on each page, but the author's carefully chosen lyrics and the illustrator's eye-catching illustrations are what make this book accessible and intriguing to all. If you teach grades k-5, this book could be used to begin talking with students about their role in being a good steward of their environment and how to preserve nature (depending on your group of students, they could be ready for deeper learning on this topic and you can use the book as a segue). If you teach middle or high school this text would be a great introduction into having students research and learn about environmental law, preservation, and the history of indigenous people. Your students may be in high school, but they are never too old to have a children's book read to them, they will appreciate you reading to them more than you'd think.
Evaluation
Carole Lindstrom is an #OwnVoices insider in regards to the text and the fight for clean water for indigenous people. She has attended protests to share her voice on the matter and decided that writing this book would be one of the best ways to share with the world what is going on and why we have to save the water. Lindstrom is a citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe. Being an indigenous person herself, Lindstrom's words, representations, and use of native language gives the text validity and authenticity. Her work with the illustrator to incorporate traditional artwork of indigenous people adds to the authenticity of the characters and ideas presented in the text. The combination of the two gives us a text that we can trust to accurately represent a people group and the issue they are voicing.
Comentarios