Featured Title
We are Still Here! Native American Truths Everyone Should Know by Traci Sorell
Discover (or rediscover) the modern laws, policies, struggles, and victories in Native life. This book offers an honest and inspiring introduction to all of the ways Native Nations have faced and overcome challenges, punctuating each section with the refrain: We are still here! (ages 7 and up)
Books for Elementary Students
The Birchbark House and The Game of Silence by Louise Erdrich
Follow Omakayas and her family through traditional lives and changing seasons, in this award-winning series. As the family faces the challenges of life in the 1860s, readers get a culturally accurate historical account along with a bewitching and nuanced story. Ages 8-12.
Children of Native America Today by Yvonne Wakim Dennis and Arlene Hirschfelder
A gorgeously-photographed journey through childhood contemporary Indian Country visits children from 26 Nations, including Native Hawaiians and urban Indians. Ages 8-12.
Counting Coup: Becoming a Crow Chief on the Reservation and Beyond by Joseph Medicine Crow
History comes to life in this remarkable autobiography, detailing the life of Crow tribal historian Joseph Medicine Crow. Ages 5-9.
Navajo Long Walk: Tragic Story of a Proud Peoples Forced March From Homeland by Joseph Bruchac
Beautiful paintings add emotional depth to this detailed exploration of the shameful treatment of the Navajo people, and the ways in which this history continues to impact their communities.
Ages 8-12.
The Unbreakable Code by Sarah Hoagland Hunter
This is the inspiring story of how the Navajo language was used as a military code to save thousands of lives during WWII. Ages 6-8.
Books for Young Adults
Moccasin Thunder: American Indian Stories for Today by Lori Marie Carlson
The ten short stories from contemporary American Indian writers connect past, present, and future hopes of Native young people. Ages 12 and up.
The Absolutely True Story of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
This semi-autobiographical tale of a teen growing up on a reservation tells the story of Indian identity, both tribal and personal. It's also a laugh-out-loud account of a richly drawn, resilient young man coming of age. Ages 12 and up.
The North American Indians Today Series by various authors from Mason Crest Publishers
The fifteen books in this young adult series provide a broad and detailed portrait of modern Native American life. Ages 12 and up.
Like a Hurricane: The Indian Movement from Alcatraz to Wounded Knee by Paul Chaat Smith and Robert Allen Warrior
This historical account offers a nuanced introduction to the challenges, setbacks, and successes of the Indian movement in the last half of the twentieth century. Though it has the heft of a textbook, it is a compelling and engaging read. Ages 14 and up.