Children's Book Suggestions | Native American Heritage Month

This list shares some of our favorite chapter books for readers in Grades 2-8.

For younger readers, see our Native American Heritage Month Scavenger Hunt book list.

Traditional Indigenous stories are shelved in Children's Nonfiction under the number 299.7

Information about federally registered tribes both historically and in the present day is shelved in Children's Nonfiction under the number 973.0497


Updated October 25, 2023
LINCC (Libraries in Clackamas County) Oregon City Public Library
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Rez dogs
Bruchac, Joseph
Stand-alone player

This award-winning novel in verse about a young girl's experiences living with her grandparents in 2020 is also on the 2023 OBOB list. (Wabanaki, Children's Fiction Grades 3-5)

We still belong
Day, Christine
CD

Pacific Northwest-based author Day tells a modern story about an Indigenous middle schooler navigating her heritage alongside ordinary school drama on Indigenous People's Day. (Upper Skagit, Young Teen Fiction Grades 5-7)

Two tribes
Bowen Cohen, Emily
Paper Book
In her poignant debut graphic novel inspired by her own life, Emily Bowen Cohen embraces the complexity, meaning, and deep love that comes from being part of two vibrant tribes. Mia is still getting used to living with her mom and stepfather, and to the new role their Jewish identity plays...

A contemporary girl with Jewish and Muscogee Creek heritage embarks on an unsanctioned cross-country bus trip to visit her father in Tulsa. (Young Teen Graphic Novels Grades 5-7)

The storyteller
Hobson, Brandon
Paper Book

A tween boy's search for his mother is aided by animals and other beings from Cherokee lore, highlighting the epidemic of missing women in Native American communities. (Young Teen Fiction Grades 5-7)

Eagle drums
Hopson, Nasug raq Rainey
Paper Book
**A NEWBERY HONOR BOOK** A magical middle grade adventure about a boy in the Arctic who faces a series of challenges presented to him by a family of eagle gods. Through this, he learns important lessons about respecting nature, building compassion, and bringing a community...

Hatchet fans will love the outdoor adventures in this retelling of a traditional Inupiaq story. (Children's Nonfiction Age 8-12)

Mascot
Waters, Charles
Paper Book
What if a school's mascot is seen as racist, but not by everyone? In this compelling middle-grade novel in verse, two best-selling BIPOC authors tackle this hot-button issue. A perfect book for future changemakers and activists seeking contemporary stories about systematic racism and...

Five students, including a girl of Cherokee descent, represent the many voices disagreeing over the status of their school's mascot. (Young Teen Fiction, Grades 5-7)

Of all tribes : American Indians and Alcatraz
Bruchac, Joseph
Paper Book
In Of All Tribes, Abenaki children's book icon Joseph Bruchac tells the stirring history of the 1969 occupation of Alcatraz by Native Americans, which established a precedent for Indian activism. "Alcatraz is not an island. It's an idea." --activist Richard Oakes...

A story of a famous Civil Rights-era protest movement led by Indigenous North Americans, the 1969 occupation of Alcatraz. (Children's Nonfiction Age 10-14)

Jim Thorpe : original All-American
Bruchac, Joseph
Paper Book
Jim Thorpe was one of the greatest athletes who ever lived. He played professional football, Major League Baseball, and won Olympic gold medals in track & field. But his life wasn't an easy one. Born on the Sac and Fox Reservation in 1887, he encountered much family tragedy, and was sent as a young...

A lightly fictionalized biography of Olympic athlete Jim Thorpe, written in the first person to convey the thrilling sports action as Jim succeeds at football, baseball, and track and field. (Sac and Fox, Children's Nonfiction Ages 10-14)

The birchbark house
Erdrich, Louise.
Paper Book
For use in schools and libraries only. Omakayas, a seven-year-old Native American girl of the Ojibwa tribe, lives through the joys of summer and the perils of winter on an island in Lake Superior in 1847.

A classic from a National Book Award winning novelist, this is a great choice for fans of Little House on the Prairie who are interested in learning more about upper Midwest life in the nineteenth century. (Ojibwe, Children's Fiction Grades 3-5)


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