i am graffiti by Leanne Betasamosake Simpson

Leanne Betasamosake Simpson's "i am graffiti" is a poem written in response to the closing address of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Despite the ending of the commission in 2015, the author disagreed with the idea that Canada had reached “reconciliation”. Instead, with the thoughtful, and slightly sarcastic, motif of a bright pink eraser, she bitterly addresses the continued erasure of Indigenous experiences by the government. Moving from anger towards governmental actions to strength in her resolve, the poem sends a message on the resilience and survival of Indigenous peoples: their experiences and culture will not be erased.

I Am Not A Number by Jenny Kay Dupuis and Kathy Kacer

Based on the true experiences of author Jenny Kay Dupuis' grandmother, I Am Not a Number recounts the story of eight year-old Irene Couchie. Upon being forcibly removed from her parents, Irene is told to forget her name and is only given one identifying number at residential school. Irene fights to remember her identity and her family amidst the demeaning environment she is placed in. Written to encourage dialogue about the first hand experience of children who attended residential schools, the story explores the dehumanising effect of diminishing one's identity to a single number.

Jenny Kay Dupuis is an Indigenous author, artist, and educator. As a teenager, she helped draft a proposal that was later adopted by the World Youth Forum of the United Nations System. With her knowledge, she has helped numerous NGOs and educational institutions develop a holistic understanding of Indigenous experiences.

Poem for Duncan Campbell Scott by Armand Garnet Ruffo

Duncan Campbell Scott was the head of the Government agency that devised and supervised residential schools. His poetry influenced the attitudes of generations of Canadians. His policies contributed to the Genocide perpertraded upon the Indiginous people of Canada. We should not read the poetry without considering the man. Writing prompt: Is there an author whose viewpoints have caused you to reevaluate their work?

Give-Away Song by Gwen Westerman

“Gwen Nell Westerman is the author of Follow the Blackbirds (Michigan State University Press, 2013), a poetry collection written in Dakota and English. The Poet Laureate of Minnesota, she is a Professor at Minnesota State University, Mankato, and lives in rural Blue Earth County.” - from Poets.org

Zoe and the Fawn by Catherine Jameson

“Zoe and her father are delighted to come across a fawn in the forest. But the fawn is alone-where is its mother? Join Zoe on her quest for the deer, as she encounters animals and learns their Okanagan (syilx) names along the way.

Repetition of phrased questions will enhance success for beginning readers while creating a playful rhythm for young listeners.

This sweet story is by Catherine Jameson, a mother who studied Children''s Fiction Writing at the En''owkin Centre''s Indigenous Creative Writing Graduate Program.” - from chapters.indigo.ca

Secret of the Dance by Andrea Spalding and Alfred Scow

For many First Nations in the Pacific Northwest, the potlatch is an important ceremony that marks births, deaths, weddings, and other significant events. Potlatches often last for many days and feature dancing, feasting, and the giving of gifts, names, and stories. From 1884 to 1951, the Canadian government made potlatches illegal in their effort to erase traditional First Nations culture and replace it with European, Christian values. In Secret of the Dance, Alfred Scow recounts the tale of how his family defied the government to hold a potlatch when he was very young, even though they could have been arrested for doing so.

When he grew up Alfred Scow went on to become the first Aboriginal person to graduate from law school in British Columbia. He worked as a respected lawyer and judge for many decades. AndreaSpalding has written over thirty books, many focused on the need for understanding and respect among different cultures.

Usually, we think breaking the rules is a bad thing, but sometimes the rules are unfair or unjust to begin with. Can you think of a time in your life when you broke a rule for a good reason? Can you think of any book or movie characters who broke a rule for a good reason?

Unlike Any Other Day by Joseph A. Dandurand

Joseph A. Dandurand is a Kwantlen Aboriginal poet and playwright, whose work extends into archeology. His plays include “Where Two Rivers Meet” and “Shake”, and his poetry is anthologized in three collections, including “dead and scratching for the poor”. His poem “Unlike Any Other Day” is rooted in the west coast landscape Dandurand calls home, tying the long, deep history of his people, both tragic and triumphant, to the land itself.

Consider the place you live. What connects you to it? What makes it your home?

Stand Like a Cedar by Nicola I. Campbell

“Nicola Campbell is Nłeʔkepmx, Syilx and Métis from the Nicola Valley, British Columbia. She is the author of, Shi-shi-etko, Shin-chi’s Canoe,and Grandpa’s Girls. A Day With Yayah, published by Tradewind Books is her most recent children’s book. A Day with Yayahshares a story of a grandmother passing on important land-based cultural teachings about harvesting traditional foods and medicines to her grandchildren. Nicola writes adult and children’s free-verse poetry, fiction and non-fiction prose and has two books forthcoming in Fall 2019 and 2020. Campbell is a finalist for numerous children’s literary awards and was recipient of the 2009 TD Canadian Children’s literature award, 2009 USBBYOutstanding International Books Listand shared the 2006 Anskohk Aboriginal Children’s Book of the Year Award. Currently a student at UBC Okanagan, her Ph.D. research is draws upon Indigenous scholarship with a focus on contemporary and traditional Indigenous storytelling practices.” - from Vancouver Public Library

Sometimes I Feel Like A Fox by Danielle Daniel

What animal do you feel most like? This picture book explores the Anishinaabe First Nation’s tradition of totem animals. These creatures can guide us and help us better understand ourselves and others.

Danielle Daniel is a Métis author who lives in the traditional territory of the Atikameksheng Anishnaabeg, (Sudbury, Ontario, Canada). Her first novel for kids, Forever Birchwood, is coming out in 2022.
What totem animal would you choose? Explain why that animal represents who you are.

(Good) Girls Dont Hitchhike by Selina Boan

Based out of Vancouver, Selina Boantter.com/selina_boan?lang=en has been a standout on the Canadian poetry scene since she was shortlisted for the 2016 CBC Poetry Prize. Since then she’s repeated that feat and published a collection of poems titled “Undoing Hours”. She claims white settler-nehiyaw identity, and her work has engaged with both of those heritages. Her poem "(Good) Girls Don’t Hitchhike” is an unflinching look at the horrific history of the “Highway of Tears” in northern British Columbia.

Sometimes the things that make us angry are things that happen to us, but because we are empathetic creatures, we often feel anger about injustices done to others. What’s something that makes you mad not on your own behalf, but on behalf of others? Why?

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai

Inside Our and Back Again follows the story of Ha, a girl who grew up in Saigon but was forced to leave Vietnam and immigrate to Alabama after the Fall of Saigon. The story follows her journey as they flee the country and embark on a journey to America. This is a great story that explores a difficult transition in a young girl's life.

What is a time where you had to face a difficult transition?

Thao by Thao Lam

“Thao Lam has been creating pictures for as long as she can remember. For her, drawing has always felt as natural as breathing. She has an insatiable love for coloured and textured papers, which she uses to create her exuberant collages.

Passionate about children’s books, Thao is especially interested in visual storytelling. She draws inspiration from the stories she hears, from the beauty in everyday things, and from the work of the many illustrators she admires. As an art buyer for an educational publishing company, she has the opportunity to work with thousands of different artists from all around the world.

Since studying illustration for three years at Sheridan College in Toronto, Thao has developed her dual careers of illustrating and art buying. Her art works have appeared in publications such as Cricket and Highlight magazines. In 2008, she won the Highlights Five Pewter Plate award for verse illustration of the year. She has twice been chosen for the American Illustration Awards.” from Thaolam.com

Love Hate and Other Filters by Samira Ahmed

Love, Hate, and Other Filters tells the story of seventeen-year-old Maya Aziz, an Indian-American-Muslim high school student. Maya struggles against her parent's wishes of having her marry a proper Muslim boy and of attending a nearby college in Chicago versus her own wishes of going to film school in New York and pursuing the boy she is interested in. Amidst this, she must battle Islamaphobia in the aftermath of a horrific terrorist attack that reveals the bigotry that was lying just under the surface of her hometown.

Samira Ahmed was born in Bombay, India and grew up in Illinois. After graduating from the University of Chicago, she taught English in high schools and become an advocate of funding for public schools. Love, Hate, and Other Filters was her first novel and received numerous awards including a Seventeen Magazine Best YA Book of 2018, a School Library Journal Best Book of 2018, and a Goodreads Choice Awards Semifinalist in 2018.

Share about a time where you and your parents disagreed on your future.

Spirits of the Railway by Paul Yee

Paul Yee is a highly-regarded writer of Canadian literature and winner of multiple recognitions and awards, including the Governer General's Award for English language children's literature in 1996 for "Ghost Train". He also writes history, notably the story of the Chinese in Vancouver, called "Saltwater City". His story "Spirits of the Railway" reckons with Canada's troubled, racist history of immigration and the building of the railroad. It injects a little of the supernatural into the story, heightening both the spookiness and the tragedy of the tale.

Writing prompt: Ghosts can be a great metaphor in a story about past injustice, regret or unhealed wounds. Try your hand at writing a ghost story where the ghost represents some aspect of an unresolved past.

The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi

In The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi, a Korean girl arrives at school in North America. The kids at school struggle to say her name and start suggesting new names for her. In the end, she chooses to keep her own name.

Yangsook Choi grew up in Korea and now lives in New York. She is an author and illustrator and started telling stories at age four to try and scare her grandma!

Write down the story of how you got your name. Does your name have a meaning in a different language? Is it the same name as one of your ancestors? Why did your parents choose that name for you?

Front Desk by Kelly Yang

Front Desk follows the story of Mia and her parents, immigrants who moved from China to the US and are now responsible for cleaning and managing the front desk of a motel in order to make ends meet. Her parents help hide immigrants in empty rooms of the motel for free, but must keep it a secret from the mean motel owner, Mr. Yao. Mia discovers a passion for writing, but is advised against pursuing such a path due to the fact that English is her second language. This is a story of determination, passion, and drive.

What do you have a passion for?

These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong

These Violent Delights is a re-telling of Romeo and Juliet set in 1920's Shanghai amidst two feuding gangs, the Scarlet Gang led by Juliette Cai and the White Flowers led by their heir, Roma Montagov. However, when a mysterious sickness tears through Shanghai, Juliette and Roma must put aside their differences to save their home city before a Monster, and their feelings for each other, devours them all.

Chloe Gong wrote These Violent Delights while studying English and International Relations at the University of Pennsylvannia. These Violent Delights was listed as a ALA/YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults - Top Ten book as well as a Buzzfeed Best Young Adult Book of 2020. Its sequel, Our Violent Ends was released in November 2021.

What reimagining of a Shakespeare story have you enjoyed?

Ojichan's Gift by Chieri Uegaki

Ojichan's Gift explores the relationship between a grandfather, Ojichan, who lives in Japan and a grandaughter, Mayumi, who lives in North America. When Mayumi was born, Ojichan built a garden for her, one that they tend together every summer when Mayumi visits Japan. When Ojichan gets too old to care for both his home and garden, Mayumi hasto find a way to keep their tradition alive.

What is a responsibility you have that started at a very young age?

I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo

I Believe in a Thing Called Love tells the story of hard-working high school senior, Desi Lee, who is successful in all her academic pursuits, but has never had a boyfriend. Determined to capture the heart of her crush, Luca, Desi decides to do what she does best, study. Desi creates her "K Drama Rules for True Love" and attempts to win Luca over through imitating techniques and tropes found in Korean Dramas.

Maurene Goo has written several YA novels including Somewhere Only We Know and The Way You Make Me Feel. She has also written for the Silk series in the Marvel universe. I Believe in a Thing Called Love was a Kirkus Best Teen Books of the Year, NPR Best Book of the Year, and Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year.

If you could recommend one non-English TV show for a friend to watch, what would it be?