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Children's Fiction Native Canadian

Sharing Our Truths

Tapwe

by (author) Henry Beaver & Mindy Willett

with Eileen Beaver

photographs by Tessa Macintosh

Publisher
Fifth House Books
Initial publish date
Jun 2019
Category
Native Canadian
  • Hardback

    ISBN
    9781927083529
    Publish Date
    Jun 2019
    List Price
    $19.95

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Recommended Age, Grade, and Reading Levels

  • Age: 8 to 12
  • Grade: 3 to 7

Description

Henry and Eileen Beaver and their family live in Fort Smith, on the Slave River between Lake Athabaska and Great Slave Lake in the Northwest Territories. They have a mixed indigenous heritage of Nehiyaw or Cree and Dene Dedline or Chipewyan.

Join the authors as they lead the children and parents through important cultural experiences, tell stories, and share their wisdom and truths with compassion. Learn the protocols for building a tipi, trapping a beaver, laying the grandfather stones for a fire, smudging, and harvesting salt from the Salt Plains in Wood Buffalo National Park.

In Cree, tapwe means "it is so," or "the truth." In this, the ninth book in This Land Is Our Storybook series, Henry writes, "We can't tell you what to do with the truths we share in this book, but we hope that reading our story will help you get to know us a little better so that together we can make this nation a place we can all be proud of."

About the authors

Henry and Eileen Beaver are respected Elders who live in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories. They have written many books with the South Slave Divisional Education Council, starred in a film called Three Feathers, and generously share their knowledge of language, culture, and spiritual practices.

Henry Beaver's profile page

Mindy Willett lives in Yellowknife, the capital of the Northwest Territories. She is a teacher at heart although no longer in the classroom. She first came north to Rankin Inlet, Nunavut in 1987 and most recently taught in Kugluktuk, Nunavut from 1996 to 2000. Mindy stopped being a classroom teacher when she had her son Jack. To remain home as much as possible, she started her own home-based business, writing educational materials.

Mindy Willett's profile page

Eileen Beaver's profile page

"Tessa Macintosh is an award-winning northern photographer who raised her family in Yellowknife. In 35 years she has been fortunate to photograph many wonderful northerners and fantastic places across the North. Her photos illustrate the 7 other books in The Land is Our Storybook series, and her work is included in Canadian Shield (2011). She has fond memories of previous visits to Great Bear Lake, beginning 30 years ago, toddler in tow, to photograph Elders making snowshoes."

Tessa Macintosh's profile page

Editorial Reviews

"The importance of teaching as a vehicle for transmitting culture suffuses the narrative. . . An intimate gateway to learning about the Cree First Nations people from the perspective of its elders."
Kirkus Starred Review

"This book clearly shares how Cree people live in today's world. I also like how the book had a scrapbook feel with layered photographs.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars"
Youth Services Book Review

"Sharing Our Truths Tapwe " is unreservedly recommended for family, school, and community library Native American collections."
Midwest Book Review

"Filled with appealing and illuminating text and photographs. . . So many lessons taught and learned together is at the heart of this remarkable book."
Sal's Fiction Addiction

"Highly Recommended."
CM Magazine

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