We celebrated Indigenous People’s Day last week, but really, every day should be Indigenous People’s Day. I wanted to share some of my favorite books that also happen to be by Indigenous authors. As a white person, I make no claim on behalf of any Indigenous person and seek only to respectfully uplift Indigenous voices in the ways I can. These books are all pretty recently published, and the genres range from nonfiction to fiction, from poetry to a young adult illustrated book. There should be something for everyone to enjoy, with even more recommendations at the end of the article.
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer
I would deem Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer one of the most important books I have ever read. Kimmerer is a botanist, a mother, a professor and an enrolled member in the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. In Braiding Sweetgrass, she braids together stories of plants, animals, and places, and draws the reader’s attention to the boundless connections we share with the natural world. Take your time with this book. Savor how Kimmerer walks with you through cedar groves and grassy meadows and shows you how life can be lived differently than most of us are taught. Please, please, please read this book; you will laugh and you will cry, and you will absolutely deepen your relationship to Earth and all of the beings we share this planet with.
A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger
Darcie Little Badger is Lipan Apache, with a Ph.D. in oceanography, and her second fantasy novel, A Snake Falls to Earth tells the story of two different worlds that are actually very connected. The main characters in the book are Nina, a young Lipan Apache girl, and Oli, a cottonmouth snake spirit. The narrative layers together the two different voices of Oli and Nina beautifully, each reflecting upon the reality of a changing world. A Snake Falls to Earth contains themes of the importance of language and storytelling, as well as climate change, which Little Badger blends to make the story both relevant and hopeful.
An American Sunrise: Poems by Joy Harjo
Joy Harjo served as the twenty-third U.S. poet laureate, the first Native American Poet Laureate, and is a member of the Mvskoke Nation and belongs to Oce Vpofv (Hickory Ground). She released An American Sunrise: Poems in 2019, which explores her own personal life, as well as her tribal and land histories. Two standout poems in this collection are “Honoring” and “For Those Who Would Govern.” The latter poem is especially poignant as we head into election season and encourages us to look closer at what our elected officials actually stand for. If you’re reading this and aren’t registered to vote, please register, then vote!
I will also mention Harjo’s poetic autobiographical Poet Warrior: A Memoir, which contains the poem “For Calling the Spirit Back from Wandering the Earth in Its Human Feet.” Her poetry and prose in this memoir are incredibly lyrical and very poignant.
Notable Native People: 50 Indigenous Leaders, Dreamers, and Changemakers from Past and Present by Adrienne Keene with illustrations by Ciara Sana
Along with captivating and detailed illustrations by Ciara Sana, a Chamoru artist, Adrienne Keene writes vividly about Native people in a very accessible way in Notable Native People. Those featured are varied in profession, tribe, and age, but all are important: some are brilliant artists, others activists of the past and present, one a Hawaiian monarch, as Keene breaks down the historical and current colonization of the kingdom of Hawai’i by the United States government. Keene is a member of the Cherokee nation, and her book is a must-read to better understand the positive and far-reaching impacts Indigenous people have made, and are making, all over the world.
There There by Tommy Orange
There There by Tommy Orange, a citizen of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes of Oklahoma, weaves together a large cast of Native Americans living in California. This book is very heavy, and before reading it, I would wholeheartedly encourage research of the trigger and content warnings the book contains. There There is absolutely unforgettable and shines an unflinching light on the history, and nuanced present, of Native American lives.
Here are a few more recommendations from my To Be Read list:
- Love After the End: An Anthology of Two-Spirit and Indigiqueer Speculative Fiction edited by Joshua Whitehead
- The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson
- Birdie by Tracey Lindberg
- Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
- The Lost Journals of Sacajewea by Debra Magpie Earling (Releasing in May, 2023)
- Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger
- Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer
These books are ones I’ve read and enjoyed, and this is by no means a complete or all-encompassing list of books by Indigenous writers. The links in this article are largely Amazon-based, but please try to support Indigenous-owned bookstores, or buy directly through the books’ publishers. Milkweed Editions is a great publisher to support, and a list of books by Indigenous authors they sell can be found here. As with any book, make sure to look up the content warnings to be sure the book is right for you. Enjoy these selections!