WELCOME TO AUSTRALIAN USED HOMESCHOOL BOOKS!
HISTORICAL FICTION - AMERICAN INDIANS
PICTURE BOOKS
Brother Eagle, Sister Sky (Susan Jeffers) $6 PB EC The story is an adaptation of a speech delivered by Chief Seattle at treaty negotiations in the 1850s. Like other great speeches that have stood the test of time, his remarkably relevant message has endured because it comes from the heart and is imbued with passion--here, passion born of love for the land. Jeffers has paired Seattle's eloquence with her dreamy, meticulous illustrations and the resulting images are haunting. First, readers see Native Americans living in harmony with nature, but gradually the images grow bleaker--ugly swaths of land stripped of their timber. The story comes full circle as a Caucasian family plants new trees on the barren land in a gesture that signifies hope and renewal. Together, Seattle's words and Jeffers's images create a powerful message; this thoughtful book deserves to be pondered and cherished by all. 6-11 YO http://www.amazon.com/Brother-Eagle-Sister-Susan-Jeffers/dp/0803709692
People Of The Breaking Day (Marcia Sewall) $4 PB VGC Tells the story of The People of the Breaking Day, the Wampanoag nation of Massachusetts, before the English settlers on the Mayflower arrived. All aspects of life within the tribe and the place of each member within the close-knit society is described along with details of hunting, farming, and survival skills. Recreational and spiritual activities, and seasonal and generational cycles are used to create a colourful prose poem about these native people and their rich cultural heritage. Vibrant, almost impressionistic paintings, set against a stunning backdrop of New England wilderness, capture the very essence of these proud, industrious people. 6-10 YO http://www.amazon.com/People-Breaking-Day-Marcia-Sewall/dp/0689314078
White Bead Ceremony (Sherrin Watkins) $3 HBDJ VGC Four-year-old Mary's grandmother decides it's high time that the child receives her Shawnee name, and the task of selecting just the right one is entrusted to the elder women of the family. They focus on the horse-name group--helpful, hard-working, beautiful horses, the reader learns, were an important part of Shawnee culture--and choose Wapapiyeshe (it means "white-necked, moving"). The book provides a welcome glimpse at how tribal traditions are woven into the fabric of modern-day life; its educational value is enhanced by the inclusion of Shawnee vocabulary cut-out "flashcards" and a thumbnail-sketch history of the Shawnee people. 6-11 YO http://www.alibris.com/search/books/qwork/7201378/used/White%20Bead%20Ceremony
CHAPTER BOOKS & NOVELS
Thunder Rolling in the Mountains (Scott O’Dell) $3 PB FC A poignant story as told by Sound of Running Feet, the daughter of Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce people. In her clear, unflinching voice, she tells of the long, tearful, bloody trail that her people were forced to follow from their beloved home in Wallowa Valley, Oregon, to their final confrontation with the American soldiers at the Bear Paw Mountains in Montana. 10+ http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-media/product-gallery/0440408792/ref=cm_ciu_pdp_images_1?ie=UTF8&index=1
A Lasting Peace (Carol Lynn Pearson) $4 PB EC It’s 1856. The Ute Indians and the settlers in Utah Valley are heading toward war. But, unexpectedly, sol McAllister, a twelve year old, finds himself in a situation to prevent that war. But what can someone so young do, especially when the Ute chief doesn’t trust the settlers? 10+ http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/p/carol-lynn-pearson/lasting-peace.htm
Miracle in the Wilderness (Paul Gallico) $5 HBDJ VGC This is rather lovely. It is a Christmas story, set in the America of colonial times. A couple and their baby are captured by an Indian tribe; the story is about the miracle that happened to save them. Lots of lovely illustrations. 7-11 YO http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/g/paul-gallico/miracle-in-wilderness.htm
Amazing Indian Children Series “Pathki Nana – Kootenai Girl Solves A Mystery” (Kenneth Thomasma) $6 PB EC Pathki Nana never felt she was as good as the other girls in her Kootenai village. Her sister, Red Willow seemed to do everything right. Many people called this eight year old “The Sad One.” Then it is her turn to follow the tribal custom of going into the mountains to seek her personal guardian guide, but no one could foresee the life and death struggle that would occur there. 10+ A SONLIGHT GO-ALONG to Naya Nuki. http://www.christianbits.co.uk/product.php?id=0801089026
Walk Two Moons (Sharon Creech) $4 PB GC While on a six-day journey with her eccentric grandparents, Gram and Gramps, Salamanca Tree Hiddle, a native American Indian, faces and comes to terms with her life as it is and not as she expected it to be. Sal has been, and is, facing challenges that many thirteen-year-olds can identify with and yet, some that are out of the ordinary. The book is multi-layered with three main stories. The first is the story of her trip with her grandparents. The second is the story of Phoebe Winterbottom's family and Phoebe's mother's disappearance. The third story that underlies Phoebe's story is Sal's story of the loss of her own mother. 11+ http://www.amazon.com/Walk-Two-Moons-Sharon-Creech/dp/0064405176#reader_0064405176
A Brown Bird Singing (Frances Wosmek) $4 PB EC Left by her father to be raised by his white friends in a small Minnesota town, a Chippewa Indian girl is afraid he will return and take her away from the only family she remembers. 10+ http://www.franceswosmek.com/images/brown-bird.jpg (Cover different)
Eagle Feather (Clyde Robert Bulla) $3 PB VGC (Minor cover crease and two small areas of colour missing) Eagle Feather owes a debt to his father's cousin, and must work it off during the summer. His father's cousin mistreats him, and finally Eagle Feather can bear it no longer and runs away. Can the eagle feather he finds along the way really give him the bravery to endure the long and hungry journey? 6-10 YO http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-media/product-gallery/0140367306/ref=cm_ciu_pdp_images_0?ie=UTF8&index=0
Stone Fox (John Reynolds Gardiner) $5 HB GC Tells the story of a boy determined to win a dog sled race to save his grandfather's farm. No one has ever beaten Stone Fox, an imposing and silent Native American, but little Willy trains daily for the race with his beloved dog, Searchlight. It seems like Willy might even win the race until heartbreaking tragedy strikes. This is a wonderful testimony of determination and love. 8+ http://www.amazon.com/Stone-Fox-John-Reynolds-Gardiner/dp/0064401324
Red Wind And Thunder Moon (Max Brand) $4 HBDJ VGC (Ex lib) Thunder Moon's herd of fine horses were the pride of the Suhtai band of the Cheyenne. Taken by Thunder Moon in a daring raid on his people's fiercest enemies, the Comanches, the horses were the living proof of Thunder Moon's great bravery. When Walking Horse, war chief of the Omissi band, paid a mysterious visit to the Suhtai, Thunder Moon's father proudly displayed the horses given to him by his son, little realizing what dangers lay ahead. Feigning a desire to buy the horses, Walking Horse cleverly struck a bargain with the old chief--over Thunder Moon's strenuous objection--that obliged the young warrior to accept an unknown gift. Though everyone else was delighted with the deal, Thunder Moon saw trouble brewing. What was the "gift" that Walking Horse had promised--and why was he so eager to be rid of it? 11+ http://www.amazon.com/Red-Wind-Thunder-Moon-Brand/dp/0803212682%3FSubscriptionId%3D0ACM1RC83GP83JK10M02%26tag%3Dspeculativefic05%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D0803212682
Indian Captive: The Story Of Mary Jemison (Lois Lenski) $6 PB GC In this classic frontier adventure, Lois Lenski reconstructs the real life story of Mary Jemison, who was captured in a raid as young girl and raised amongst the Seneca Indians. Meticulously researched and illustrated with many detailed drawings, this novel offers an exceptionally vivid and personal portrait of Native American life and customs. 10+ NEWBERY HONOR MEDAL http://www.amazon.com/Indian-Captive-Story-Mary-Jemison/dp/0064461629
Sing Down The Moon (Scott O’Dell) $4 PB GC The promise of a rich harvest was shattered in the Canyon de Chelly when the Spanish slavers came and later when the white soldiers burned the crops, destroyed the orchards, and forced the Navahos from their homes. Through the eyes of Bright Morning, a young Navaho girl, we see what happens to human beings who are uprooted from the life they know. She is first captured by slavers, then forced with her people on the "Long Walk." The walk covered more than 200 miles, ending at Bosque Redondo--a reservation that was little more than a prison camp. This is also the story of proud and able Tall Boy, who is maimed not only by a physical wound but by a spiritual wound as well. 10+ NEWBERY HONOR MEDAL http://www.amazon.com/Sing-Down-Moon-Scott-ODell/dp/0440979757
The Dark Way (Robert J. Conley) $3 HBDJ VGC (Ex lib) Few writers portray Native American life and history as richly, authentically, and insightfully as Robert J. Conley, an important voice of the Cherokee past. The novels in his Real People series combine powerful characters, gripping plots, and vivid descriptions of tradition and mythology to preserve Cherokee culture and history. 12+ http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/c/robert-j-conley/dark-way.htm (Cover slightly different)
The Birchbark House (Louise Erdrich) $4 PB BRAND NEW 7-year-old Ojibwa girl Omakayas, or Little Frog, so named because her first step was a hop is the sole survivor of a smallpox epidemic on Spirit Island. Omakayas, then only a baby girl, was rescued by a fearless woman named Tallow and welcomed into an Ojibwa family on Lake Superior's Madeline Island. We follow Omakayas and her adopted family through a cycle of four seasons in 1847, including the winter, when a historically documented outbreak of smallpox overtook the island. Readers will be riveted by the daily life of this Native American family, in which tanning moose hides, picking berries, and scaring crows from the cornfield are as commonplace as encounters with bear cubs. The author's softly hewn pencil drawings infuse life and authenticity to her poetic, exquisitely wrought narrative. 10+ http://www.amazon.com/Birchbark-House-Louise-Erdrich/dp/0786814543/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1196567034&sr=1-1
Anpao – An American Indian Odyssey (Jamake Highwater) $4 PB VGC This book is an excellent resource for learning about Native American culture. It is a collection of traditional stories compiled from several Native American nations and woven into a story about one boy's quest to find wisdom and eventually earn the privilege of marrying the girl he loves. …….NEWBERY HONOR MEDAL 11+ http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780064404372/Anpao/index.aspx
The White Calf (Cliff Faulknor) $3 PB GC (Minor cover wear) The calf was not the muddy yellow of most buffalo babies, but pure white with eyes as pale as a winter sunrise. Eagle Child is sure that the little buffalo he has rescued is a spirit sent by the Above Ones to help his tribe. But who will believe him? And how can he protect the calf when starvation and danger face the band? 10+ http://becausenooneasked.com/2008/05/15/speaking-of-piegan-warriors/ (Cover different)
Sees Behind Trees (Michael Dorris) $3 PB EC Walnut, a young American Indian boy can't see very well and has difficulty meeting the challenges, especially feats of skill with bow and arrow, that prove he is ready to receive a new name and become an adult. When a sympathetic uncle invents a new contest to "see what can't be seen," the boy's other senses bring success and earn him the name Sees Behind Trees. 9+ http://www.amazon.com/Sees-Behind-Trees-Michael-Dorris/dp/0786813571/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1196566604&sr=1-1
(Last update February, 2011)
