A TRUE TALE WITH
A CHERRY ON TOP
Roaring Brook Press
(MacKids)
(pub. 9.19.2023) 40 pages
Author: Carole Lindstrom
Illustrator: Bridget George
Character: Josephine Mandamin and Autumn Peltier
Overview:
" Indigenous women have long cared for the land and water, which in turn sustains all life on Earth―honoring their ancestors and providing for generations to come. Yet there was a time when their voices and teachings were nearly drowned out, leaving entire communities and environments in danger and without clean water.
But then came Grandma Josephine and her great-niece, Autumn Peltier."
Tantalizing taste:
" I remember...
how the Anishinaabe
cherished me,
loved me.
Speak for the water.
Sing for the water.
Dance for the water.
Over time, more people came.
Diminishing their voices.
Drowning out their message.
Those people didn't care for me.
Didn't cherish me.
Didn't love me.
As my voice grew quieter,
the women who cared for me
were forced to get louder."
And something more: The back matter explains that "At the age of eight, Autumn [Peltier] discovered that many First Nation Communities in Ontario were on boil-water advisories - some for several years - and she began speaking out about the importance of water on her reserve. She knew that clean water should be a right for all ...
In 2019, at the age of fourteen, Autumn was appointed Chief Water Commissioner for the Anishinaabek Nation, a position previously held by her great-aunt Josephine Mandamin. In her role, Autumn meets with leaders from different Tribal Nations, speaks nationally and internationally about Indigenous rights and water waters, and is instrumental in protecting the water that leads in and out of the Great Lakes."
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