Book Review #4 Native American Literature

 Culture 4: Native American Literature

Dorris, Michael. Morning Girl. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. May 18, 1999. ISBN 9780786813582 

Summary: No matter if dusk or dawn, movement or silence, the culture that is portrayed in the book tells a story of a tribe that unfortunately falls under the conquest of Christopher Columbus and the brutal treatment that was to come. Though they face challenges, the children learn their way through the world, learning to process and persevere through with their teachings still guiding them through every decision they make. 

Cultural Analysis: Various perspectives are shown in the story, both rich in their own ways. No sibling is better than the other, in contrast, they are both essential to the story in order to get the full picture of a description of their life on their land and with their family. Through both of their chapter perspectives, we see that their culture is super interconnected with nature. Despite this all, her family, being so grounded with nature and their inner peace and spirits with the earth, finds a way to persevere, such as when her father says “Look into my eyes,’ he told me… Suddenly I saw two tiny girls looking back. Their faces were clear, their brows straight as canoes, and their chins as narrow and clean as lemons...'who are they?' ...'They are the answer to your question,' Father said. 'And they are always here when you need to find them.' Finding ways to depict the inner strength these families carried without telling, rather showing the reader through descriptive imagery.

Reviews: “Like the quiet lap of waves on the sand, the alternating introspections of two Bahamian island children in 1492. Morning Girl and her brother Star Boy are very different: she loves the hush of pre-dawn while he revels in night skies, noise, wind. In many ways they are antagonists, each too young and subjective to understand the other's perspective—in contrast to their mother's appreciation for her brother. In the course of these taut chapters concerning such pivotal events as their mother's losing a child, the arrival of a hurricane, or Star Boy's earning the right to his adult name, they grow closer. In the last, Morning Girl greets— with cordial innocence—a boat full of visitors, unaware that her beautifully balanced and textured life is about to be catalogued as ``very poor in everything,'' her island conquered by Europeans. This paradise is so intensely and believably imagined that the epilogue, quoted from Columbus's diary, sickens with its ominous significance. Subtly, Dorris draws parallels between the timeless chafings of sibs set on changing each other's temperaments and the intrusions of states questing new territory. Saddening, compelling—a novel to be cherished for its compassion and humanity.”

• Kirkus Reviews

Connections: Sibling differences is something that is definitely relatable in this book. While we may differ and view the world completely differently than one another, our cultures and values still run deep in our blood like the roots that ground us and hold us up to who we are. 

Driving Hawk Sneve, Virginia. Illustrated by Ellen Beier. The Christmas Coat: Memories of My Sioux Childhood. ISBN: 978-1-941813-25-6

Summary: The book starts off by Virginia walking to school in terrible weather conditions. These conditions show that she is sustaining challenges just to get through daily life and how she continues persevering. Still, Virginia dreams of a new coat to endure the conditions of school. Big sister duties. She waits for boxes that are to come with winter clothes. Virginia and Eddie never got first pick of the Theast boxes because they are the children of the priest and expected to pick last. This didn't stop Virginia from setting her eyes on a specific coat. Therefore, when her friends begin picking out the items in the boxes, she feels worried when her friend Evelyn picks out the one she has her eyes set on. However, as the time goes by, she comes to realize that maybe that coat wasn’t the best one; instead, she falls in love with the one her mom gifted her because it comes directly from her mom’s heart.

Cultural Analysis: Some term words such as “lapin” meaning rabbit in French, share the lexile awareness. There is a culture of selflessness and communal thoughts of a society, spreading the feel and cause of one person. Sharing and working together to help each other out. Inclusion of headdresses and dances. The gifts from Santa are little snacks of food like apples and peanuts. Parents who do anything for their children and find a way to get them the necessities and wants they need as well. The images stood out to me because even though they weren’t super detailed, the images were blurry and colorful, I could truly feel their emotions. I also enjoyed seeing the headdresses and gifts that Santa showed up with. The images here truly tie the story and feeling together. 

Reviews: “Virginia’s personality shines through in this poignant story that entertains and informs.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review) hav

“With its authentic portrait of a Sioux childhood and Christmas traditions and its eventual happy ending, this is a quiet but affecting picture book.”—Horn Book

“This richly descriptive narrative is well matched by detailed and expressive watercolors.”—School Library Journal

Connections: The family truly finds love and happiness in the little things of daily life. This culture depicted definitely teaches her to be selfless. Some cultures value selflessness and community feelings over their own dreams and values. The book also represents the parents who are observant and sacrifice anything for their children and are attentive of their wants and needs, and may I add, through actions rather than ]words. In some children's books there are parents telling their children how much they love them, but with this simple act, you are able to see the love.

Jones SaSuWeh, Dan. Stealing Little Moon: The Legacy of the American Indian Boarding Schools. Scholastic Focus. September 3, 2024. ISBN: 9781338889475

Summary: This book covers the history of how children were truly and plainly mis-educated and mistreated at such a young age just to make them fit into the “American” ways.

Cultural Analysis: very easily, well explained for a children’s literature book. Great job in detailing the method in which the American government took advantage of young children in assimilating them, rather than “wiping them out,” with military manpower because it was the “cheaper” option. Storytelling and the importance of it passing down to generations. Similar to immigrants who face identity struggles. Assimilation. Changing the name to sound more white or “English,” rather than honoring their name and saying it as it is said in their culture.

Reviews: “Relays the heart-wrenching experiences of the American Indian boarding school era.

This comprehensive and complex text by Jones (Ponca) follows four generations of his family’s education at Chilocco Indian Agricultural School, starting with the experience of his grandmother. In 1885, when she was just 4, government officials stole her from her family and drove her a great distance away by wagon for boarding school. Ponca Tribe members had already been forcibly relocated from their Nebraska homelands by the U.S. government to Oklahoma. Jones explains how the boarding schools erased Native culture from students’ lives to assimilate them into dominant white society. He details the cultural genocide and displacement of Native peoples, describing the poverty and other lingering effects through subsequent generations. Throughout the text, which combines general historical background with his family’s story, readers learn about the abuse of and systematic attacks on American Indian people over the centuries that the boarding schools were in existence…”

• Kirkus Reviews

Connections: Today, there are various groups and organizations fighting the good, hopeful cause of spreading awareness and advocating for the remaining Native American populations and Indians who still reside in their rightfully owned land.

Leitich Smith, Cynthia. Rain is Not My Indian Name. HarperCollins. July 31, 2001. ISBN: 0-688-17397-7

Summary: Rain is a young teenager who has a difficult time dealing with grief after the loss of her best friend/crush as of late, and as the story develops, we learn about her mom’s passing away as well. Rain tries to deal with all the pain and feels that she must retreat into herself and isolate from everyone else. As she experiences handling different emotions such as her brother being engaged and the relationship between his fiance and him, the youth camp that her tia is hosting and in charge of, and dealing with her dad being away in Guam. Ultimately, she tries to find her place and identity in the world that she is part of. She learns that 

Cultural Analysis: Her writing is journal type sometimes         there is and there isn’t cultural stereotypes for example, she says she wanted to be a native woman and “considered Sachagaweia..I chose politician Sherice Davids instead” (chapter 7). This gives the reader exposure to a                  . it’s good that she writes and acts like a “regular” person, rather than making everything about her struggle or challenge be that she is Native American. 

Review: “Tender, funny, and full of sharp wordplay, Smith’s first novel deals with a whole host of interconnecting issues, but the center is Rain herself. At just 14, Rain and her best friend Galen promise always to celebrate their birthdays; hers on New Year’s Day, his on the Fourth of July. They had just begun to see themselves not just as best friends but as girl and boy that New Year’s Eve night, when Galen is killed in a freak accident. Rain has already lost her mother and her Dad’s stationed in Guam. She’s close to her Grandpa, her older brother, and his girlfriend, who realize her loss and sorrow but have complicated lives of their own. Her response to Galen’s death is tied to her tentative explorations of her own mixed Native American and German/Irish heritage, her need and desire to learn photography and to wield it well, and the general stirrings of self and sex common to her age. Rain has to maneuver all of this through local politics involving Galen’s mother and the local American Indian Youth Camp (with its handful of local Indian teens, and Rain’s erstwhile “second-best friend” who is black). What’s amazing here is Rain’s insight into her own pain, and how cleanly she uses language to contain it”

• Kirkus Reviews

Connections: Something that I noticed throughout little parts of the book here and there was that their culture judges other cultures such as black people, or anyone different from them. This is unfortunately relatable because growing up, my aunts and uncles always made fun of me for being the darkest skin colored of all the grandkids. It’s engrained in our brains in the Latino community that having light complexions in skin color as well as eye color is a “better” thing, but this is merely a result of colonization and the thought process of inferiority with the oppressors for so many years. Another major connection was the child’s dealing with grief. I liked that this book had teenage grief exposure/representation.

Book Reviews Culture 3: Hispanic/Latino(a) Literature

 Culture 3: Hispanic/Latino(a) Lit

 

Alvarez, Julia. In the Time of the Butterflies. Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill. Chapel Hill, North Carolina. 1994. ISBN-13: 978-1-56512-038-9

Summary: This heartwrenching story follows 3 sisters who are battling family and societal expectations while trying to stand up for what’s right during the regime of the dictator Trujillo in the Dominican Republic. They face many challenges as sisters, daughters, wives, and mothers. Their roles in each of these parts of their life sometimes cause them to question their upbringings, their religion, their life choices, etc. but it doesn’t fail to still strengthen their sisterly bond.

Cultural Analysis: A big cultural aspect of the book was how education and women was not always a priority as mentioned “She looks at me, not understanding. So, she doesn't know directions. Can she read, I wonder?...I make a mental note that once I’m back, I’m going to make sure these girls are enrolled in school” (150). Women are basically meant to expect other things, education not being one of them. With education also comes a lack of political understanding and knowledge. Throughout the book there is a lot of political talk during a climate where people are mostly silent and expected to be silent, especially women: “There wasn’t much talk of politics, so as to not worry mama…And me, Patria Mercedes, like I said, I had settled down for life in my rocksure house. And eighteen years passed by” (149). The contrast of a politically oppressive government vs. traditional women's roles and expectations does not turn out well for women, and add the lack of education in the mix. Women have a huge challenge if they’re not paying attention to the world around them and thinking for themselves. But ultimately, as mentioned, “Women make the best of things” with all the issues and problems and burdens and weight of tending to the family of their own and their parents and siblings as well (181).

Reviews: “Brimming with warmth and vitality, this new novel by the author of How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents (1991) is a paean to the power of female courage. The butterflies are four smart and lovely Dominican sisters growing up during Trujillo's despotic regime…This is not Garc°a M†rquez or Allende territory (no green hair or floating bodies); Alvarez's voice is her own, grounded in realism yet alive with the magic of everyday human beings who summon extraordinary courage and determination to fight for their beliefs. As mesmerizing as the Mirabal sisters themselves.

• Kirkus Reviews

Connections: One thing that I connected with a lot in this book was the fact that boys aren’t correlated with anything “soft,” such as on page 36 when a little boy brings in flowers from the garden, they mention it’s not really something seen in real life. In Latino families, boys aren’t really expected to be kind and soft and anything that is “girly” will get you made fun of, unfortunately. I do think that things are improving a bit, it’s not as intense as it was before like when I grew up or especially when my dad grew up, but it’s still the norm. Another type of expectations, especially of women, in the book was to keep up with the catholic church. My dad, to this day, unspokenly expects me to go to church. He’ll ask me about it if I go, even though I am married and live on my own. The expectation for women to pray and keep close to church is so intense.

Medina, Meg. No More Seṅora Mimi. Candlewick Press, Somerville, Massachusetts. 2024

Summary: Ana is a young girl who is taken care of by her neighbor, Senora Mimi. Ana is excited that her Abuela will be moving in with her soon, which means she won’t have to worry about having to be babysat anymore. While this sounds like a great and fun idea, Ana soon realizes that means she won’t see Senora Mimi anymore, and this makes her sad. Senora Mimi, however, reassures her that she will miss Ana as well, but they promise to keep in touch and visit often, as they live close by each other. 

Cultural Analysis: I think this addresses a not so popular culture topic and that is of the babysitters and community village raising of children. There’s a sense of community and being there for each other without even having to ask or thank them. In the book, I love the Spanish words that were sprinkled in there, especially Abuela. I can’t think of reading about a Latina little girl and her saying “grandma,” it doesn't feel/sound right. I loved that the people in the book were brown, all different shades. It makes me happy that young kids will read about these types of characters and feel represented or at least understood. In the pictures, I loved that Senora Mimi had a trenza on, it was super spot on with growing up as a Mexican American, my mom would always make me a trenza. I hated it growing up, but now I see it as a staple! Another part of the pictures was that throughout the story, there are tools for tejer. Although it’s not as popular among the younger generations, it’s still a super important part of our culture; maybe it would’ve been more accurate if the grandma as the one tejiendo, but it’s still great to see that represented in the pictures!

Reviews: “A child prepares to say goodbye to a beloved babysitter…A compassionate consideration of caregivers, Medina’s careful, playful text blends spare dialogue with telling details that, piece by piece, build up Ana’s tender friendship with señora Mimí. Hints of other everyday adventures shared between child and caretaker believably tease out the central conflict, which comes to a suitably upbeat conclusion. Cicchese’s artwork boasts a rich palette of warm shades of yellows, oranges, and browns. The main characters are Latine; Ana’s community is diverse, and one classmate uses a wheelchair.

An affectionate shoutout to sitters. (Picture book. 4-8)

• Kirkus Reviews

Connections: Growing up, I always was under the care of anyone, mostly my mom’s many sisters, that could take care of us. My dad worked two jobs, and my mom was always on call. Therefore, my aunt often took care of us when necessary. When my mom got a better job, she would take care of all my cousins while their moms, my tias, went out to their jobs. In Mexico, you really use up your whole village to help raise your children, and people gladly help take care of them as their own.

Mora, Pat. Dizzy In Your Eyes. 

Summary: These collections of poems about the different stages of confusing love and intense emotions one feels as a young woman or teenager, the author is able to open up discussions and topics about one’s romantic relationships and family relationships, even friendships.

Cultural Analysis: These poems digged deep into the raw emotions of what it’s like to be part of both cultures. It is super relevant to today’s administration in the USA with the poem “Legal Alien.” I often think that I’m not from either side. One thing that these poems reminded me of is there was a hashtag on TikTok or the internet in general that said something about wanting to be loved “Mexicanly,” which referred to the big rose bouquets, the mariachi, the big church cathedral weddings, the cooking and tending to your husband and family, etc., but I found it to be super weird because as a Mexican American woman, I’ve been loved “Mexicanly,” and it isn’t always pretty. I think I was confused at the romanticizing of a culture that wasn’t painting the full picture, especially in a time right now where there are still so many “Marchas Feministas para las Mujeres” in Mexico for the disappearances of so many young women, for the many victims of abuse, etc. Violence against women is a big topic right now in Mexico, and for someone to use a hashtag that doesn't know about these situations, was a bit confusing. I shared these poems with my sister, as Mora discussed the sisterly topic in the poems, because I feel that no one else understands the family struggles in language, finances, society, etc. When your family is from another country. It’s like you’re all trying to learn together, yet that’s what drives y’all crazy with each other. Again, these poems raised great topics and discussion points that I could truly relate to.

Reviews: “The author employs an extraordinary diversity of poetic forms, from blank verse to a tanka, a cinquain to an anaphora, a haiku to a triolet and more, short notations adding a learning component for budding poets. The poems are complemented by abstract designs, the circles, rectangles and other geometric shapes repeating pleasingly. A must read for lovestruck teens, whether they’re poets or not. (Poetry. 12 & up)”

• Kirkus Revies

Connections: I loved the Spanish poem that talks about both sides of the Mexican American being hyphenated. Growing up, I was always in Mexico. I lived there up until about the age of 8 years old, then as I got older, I wouldn’t go visit as much. Now, I only go about twice a year. It makes me sad, and it always makes me think of this one phrase: Ni de aqui, ni de alla, which means, I am from neither here nor there. It’s so sad that most people, especially our Hispanic students feel an emotional attachment to their family and their home country, and don't know how to process that they are too Mexican for the Americans and too American for the Mexicans. It’s an internal battle that they must learn how to navigate through those emotions. Now, as an adult, I realize that it’s a blessing and a great attribute that I can relate and be part of both places, but students who are younger and have a ways to go in understanding their place in the world need that extra help and representation through literature.

Sanchez, Erika. I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter. Published by Alfred A. Knopf. New York, New York. 2017. ISBN 978-1-5247-0048-5

Summary: Julia experiences the heartbreaking news of her sister’s passing, which drives her to a depressive state. It’s difficult for her to go through life being the daughter of Mexican parents, meeting their expectations and trying to live up to Olga, her sister’s, perfection that her parents saw her through. Julia must learn to face the challenges of death in the family, her emotional and mental health, and her parents’ expectations. Throughout the story, she discovers various things about her sister, while discovering her own identity and trying to find her place in the world.

Cultural Analysis: I love the picture it paints on page. 37 of the people selling fruit and corn from carts. My favorite memories of living in Mexico when I was younger were of going to the plaza and everyone just sat around and talked and ate fruit and whatever else the vendor in the little cart was selling: gorditas, chalupas, etc. And the place smelled like frying chorizo” that part made me LOL because everytime I hear the word or see the word chorizo, I think of my grandma. Speaking of my grandma, on page 63, I love that it mentioned that no matter the risks, people still make the journey to see their loved ones. No matter what. When my grandma passed away, her daughter, my dad’s sister, living in Dallas for 8 years on an expired visa, had to cross back into Mexico and is now waiting for an appointment with customs to reapply for a new visa. She had to give up her current life in the US of 10 years, she had a little ranch and a boyfriend and her 3 pet dogs, but she had to give that all up and cross back into Mexico to see her mom before she passed. Latinoamericans, I feel, are born with the gene of sacrifice and pain in their blood and veins. As mentioned throughout the book, we suffer a lot. We learn to sacrifice and move on and take what life gives us and keep moving forward. Moving on to something lighter, another part that made me laugh out loud was on page 26 when she says that her mom doesn’t let her close the door. This is very true! I never closed my door in my room and was surprised to hear that some people did, mostly the ones that grew up with more American parents. Something else that was funny, but awkward was on page 56, it talks about how some women get old and can’t fathom the idea of having friends or being out and having a life outside of your family and kids. I’ve encountered older women who give a sort of judgy look when I say I go out to eat dinner and get dinner drinks with my girlfriends, but then I say I’m not financially ready or mentally ready to have a baby. Another big issue here with cultural analysis is the type of women expectations pg.322 Some references seem genuine like the Juanga reference, but others like “What’s wrong mija, you look like you just saw El Cucuy,” make me feel like huh? No one says that…or maybe they do in various parts of Latinoamerican countries and not here? Maybe I’ve read it too much in literature that now by this point I’m like okay here’s yet another Cucuy reference? Overall, this was a super fun and relatable read!

Reviews: “After the death of her dutiful older sister, Olga, Julia must deal with grieving parents and the discovery that her sister was keeping secrets…An abrupt plot development involving self-harm and mental illness feels forced, as does a magically life-changing trip to Mexico in the third act.

This gritty contemporary novel about an unlikable first-generation Mexican-American teen fails to deliver as a coming-of-age journey. (Fiction. 14-17)”

• Kirkus Reviews

Connections: battling with doing your own thing and doing what would make your parents happy and proud. Battling between telling your parents the truth of how you feel and what your dreams are and just staying quiet to avoid hurting their feelings or just not being understood. Pg. 338-339 322 Some Mexican parents, especially dads, are very far detached from their children, not knowing anything about their favorite colors or who their friends are or what music they’re into. Pg.155 on page 22 she says about the church saying women should obey their husbands. Something similar happened to me. At church, the priest said that if you’re married and don’t have kids, you're borderline sinning because the purpose of marriage is to procreate and bring god’s children to the world, so if you’re not doing that, then what are you doing? It’s hard to leave your loved ones to chase your own dreams.