Birdie is the outstanding debut novel by Cree law professor and activist Tracey Lindberg. A member of the As’in’i’wa’chi Ni’yaw Nation Rocky Mountain Cree she has a doctoral degree in law as well as law degrees from the University of Ottawa, Harvard Law School and the University of Saskatchewan. She was awarded the Governor General’s Gold Medal, the most prestigious award given to a doctoral student in humanities. Currently at Athabasca University, where she is Chair of the Centre for World Indigenous Knowledge and the Canada Research Chair of Indigenous Traditional knowledge, Legal Orders and Laws, Professor Lindberg has published many legally based Arcticles in areas related to Indigenous law and Indigenous women. In addition to writing stories for literary journal this remarkable author is also a blues singer. The story main character is a big, beautiful Cree woman with a dark secret in her past, Bernice (“Birdie”) Meetoos has left her home in northern Alberta to travel to Gibsons, B.C. She is on something of a vision quest, looking for family, for home, for understanding. She is also driven by the leftover teenaged desire to meet Pat Johns--Jesse from The Beachcombers--because he is, as she says, a working, healthy Indian man. Birdie heads for Molly’s Reach to find answers, but they are not the ones she expected. With the arrival in Gibsons of her Auntie Val and her cousin Skinny Freda, Birdie begins to draw from her dreams the lessons she was never fully taught in life. Informed by the lore and knowledge of Cree traditions, Birdie is a darkly comic and moving first novel about the universal experience of recovering from tragedy. At heart, it is the story of an extraordinary woman who travels to the deepest part of herself to find the strength to face the past and to build a new life.

Theodore (Ted) Fontaine lost his family and freedom just after his seventh birthday, when his parents were forced to leave him at a residential school by order of the Roman Catholic Church and the Government of Canada. Twelve years later, he left school frozen at the emotional age of seven. He was confused, angry and conflicted, on a path of self-destruction. At age 29, he emerged from this blackness. By age 32, he had graduated from the Civil Engineering Program at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology and begun a journey of self-exploration and healing. In this powerful and poignant memoir, Ted examines the impact of his psychological, emotional and sexual abuse, the loss of his language and culture, and, most important, the loss of his family and community. He goes beyond details of the abuses of Native children to relate a unique understanding of why most residential school survivors have post-traumatic stress disorders and why succeeding generations of First Nations children suffer from this dark chapter in history. Told as remembrances described with insights that have evolved through his healing, his story resonates with his resolve to help himself and other residential school survivors and to share his enduring belief that one can pick up the shattered pieces and use them for good.

This curriculum aims to increase awareness of the residential school system as a major part of the European colonizing effort against Indigenous peoples, resulting in significant intergenerational impacts.

Honour Water is a singing game for healing water featuring songs in Anishinaabemowin by Sharon Day, the Oshkii Giizhik Singers, and elders at the Oshkii Giizhik Gathering with design, art, and writing by Elizabeth LaPensée.

For five consecutive generations, from roughly 1880 to 1980, Indigenous children in the United States and Canada were forcibly taken from their families and relocated to residential schools. The stated goal of this government program was to "kill the Indian to save the man." Half of the children did not survive the experience, and those who did were left permanently scarred. The resulting alcoholism, suicide, and the transmission of trauma to their own children has led to a social disintegration with results that can only be described as genocidal. "This book is essential reading for anyone concerned with the ravages of settler state colonialism or the effects of transgenerational trauma." - -Natsu Taylor Saito, Professor of Law, Georgia State University

Dealing with such as suicide, small pox, sexual abuse, alcoholism, and the nature of residential school life, this is not poetry for the faint of heart. It is a testament to a lost and alienated culture.

Misty Lake: A Play is co-written by Dale Lakevold and Darrell Racine about residential school experiences. The main characters in the drama are Patty, 25-year-old Métis journalist, and Mary, a 43-year-old Dene woman, who survived her residential school experiences. Their connections bring up distant and painful memories of childhood and broken families, but they also bring forth laughter amid the tears. Each character finds her way back from the pain to begin a path of healing. The play is based on the lived experiences of Elizabeth Samuel who attended Guy Hill Indian Residential School in The Pas, Manitoba. The 82-page book contains an afterword from Darrell Racine, excerpts from his interview with Elizabeth Samuel, notes about the 4 characters, and photographs of Guy Hill Residential School. It was first performed in 1999. This is the fourth edition of this title.

Two years ago, Margaret left her Arctic home for the outsiders’ school. Now she has returned and can barely contain her excitement as she rushes towards her waiting family—but her mother stands still as a stone. This strange, skinny child, with her hair cropped short, can’t be her daughter. “Not my girl!” she says angrily. Margaret’s years at school have changed her. Now ten years old, she has forgotten her language and the skills to hunt and fish. She can’t even stomach her mother’s food. Her only comfort is in the books she learned to read at school. Gradually, Margaret relearns the words and ways of her people. With time, she earns her father’s trust enough to be given a dogsled of her own. As her family watches with pride, Margaret knows she has found her place once more. Based on the true story of Margaret Pokiak-Fenton, and complemented by evocative illustrations, Not My Girl makes the original, award-winning memoir, A Stranger at Home, accessible to younger children. It is also a sequel to the picture book When I Was Eight. A poignant story of a determined young girl’s struggle to belong. It will both move and inspire readers everywhere. Books for Kids & Teens, starred selection, Canadian Children’s Book CentreStorytelling World AwardUSBBY Outstanding International Books Honor ListEric Hoffer Award, Honorable MentionSkipping Stones Honor Awardda Vinci Eye Award finalistInformation Book Award finalist, *ChildrenChocolate Lily Award finalist, B.C. Young Reader’s Choice

A personal and inspiring story about a young Métis woman with a history of abuse who triumphed over a harsh start in life. Josie Penny’s life as part of a loving Métis family in an isolated corner of Labrador changed dramatically when she was taken away to a residential school. Abused by the students, Josie became increasingly angry and isolated from her family and community as she grew into her teens. At seventeen she left for Goose Bay to make her fortune and start her own life. On the Goose is the story of how Josie came to terms with her feelings of helplessness and isolation as she began to understand why she could not feel or express love. Josie Penny’s memoir is an inspiring true story of how love and hard work helped one woman triumph over adversity.

An Indigenous healing journey to find peace, strength and a good mind. A quest of empowerment, self-care and coping with complex emotions. A spiritual awakening and a deeper understanding of purpose. Eahwahewi’ is a survivor of violence, abuse and sexual assault – this is her story.