New Titles
We are always adding new material to our library, so stay tuned to this space for more new titles!
By Marcia G. Anderson
Bandolier bags, or gashkibidaaganag-the large, heavily beaded shoulder bags made and worn by several North American Indian tribes around the Great Lakes-are prized cultural icons here and around the world. From the 1870s to the present day, Ojibwe bead artists of Minnesota have been especially well known for their lively, creative designs. Neighboring Dakota people would trade a pony for a beautiful beaded bag.
Over the years, non-Indian collectors and ethnographers, struck by the bags' cultural significance and visual appeal, bought them up. Today, there are hundreds of bags in museums around the world, but not so many in the hands of community members. In A Bag Worth a Pony, Marcia G. Anderson shares the results of thirty years of study, in which she learned from the talented bead artists who keep the form alive, from historical records, and from the bags themselves.
Anderson examines the history, forms, structure, and motifs of the bags, giving readers the tools to understand a bag's makeup and meaning. She also offers a tour of Minnesota's seven Ojibwe reservations, showing the beautiful beaded bags associated with each along with the personal insights of seven master beadworkers.
Published by Minnesota Historical Society
by Hetxw'ms Gyetxw (Brett D. Huson) | illustrated by Natasha Donovan
Hetxw'ms Gyetxw (Brett D. Huson) is from the Gitxsan Nation, an Indigenous people from an unceded territory in the Northwest Interior of British Columbia, Canada. For the past decade, Brett has worked in the film and television industry, and has volunteered for such organizations as Ka Ni Kanichihk and Indigenous Music Manitoba. Growing up in a strong matrilineal society, Brett experienced and learned about the culture, land and political landscape he was born into. From this came a passion to create and share the knowledge and stories of his people, which reflect the importance of environmental balance and a cultural knowledge that spans thousands of years.
To the Gitxsan people of Northwestern British Columbia, the sockeye salmon is more than just a source of food. Over its life cycle, it nourishes the very land and forests that the Skeena River runs through and where the Gitxsan make their home. The Sockeye Mother explores how the animals, water, soil, and seasons are all intertwined.
Published by Highwater Press
By Cherie Dimaline
Humanity has nearly destroyed its world through global warming, but now an even greater evil lurks. The indigenous people of North America are being hunted and harvested for their bone marrow, which carries the key to recovering something the rest of the population has lost: the ability to dream. In this dark world, Frenchie and his companions struggle to survive as they make their way up north to the old lands. For now, survival means staying hidden - but what they don't know is that one of them holds the secret to defeating the marrow thieves.
Published by Cormorant Books
