Children's Book Suggestions | Native American Heritage Month 2026

Some of our favorite books by Indigenous authors from 2025. For more books, view our lists from 2024 and 2023 (picture books and chapter books) or browse the library catalog.

In our nonfiction section, Native American history is shelved in 973.0497, traditional stories in 299.7, biographies by subject last name in 921, and languages in 497.

More great books are honored in even years with the American Indian Library Association's Youth Literature Award.

Updated January 30, 2026
LINCC (Libraries in Clackamas County) Oregon City Public Library
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Children's Book Suggestions | Native American Heritage Month 2026

Some of our favorite books by Indigenous authors from 2025. For more books, view our lists from 2024 and 2023 (picture books and chapter books) or browse the library catalog.

In our nonfiction section, Native American history is shelved in 973.0497, traditional stories in 299.7, biographies by subject last name in 921, and languages in 497.

More great books are honored in even years with the American Indian Library Association's Youth Literature Award.

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My friend May
Flett, Julie
Paper Book
From the winner of the New York Times Best Illustrated Book Prize and the American Indian Youth Literature Award I'd like to tell you a rather true story about a big black cat who started out gray. Her name was May. Margaux and her cat May...

Picture Book (Age 4-8)

Moon song
Goade, Michaela
Paper Book
Cuddle up with this celebration of winter and explore the wonders of nature's light with Moon Song from Caldecott Medalist Michaela Goade. On an island at the edge of a silvery sea, when the moon rises and night falls, a girl spins a story for...

Picture Book (Age 4-8)

For a girl becoming
Harjo, Joy
Paper Book
A baby girl is welcomed to the breathing world by generations of her family and set on the magnificent journey of becoming. As she grows, she is reminded of her connections to the natural world; to her family, her ancestors, her neighbors; to the source of all magic and sorrow--and of her...

Picture Book (Age 4-8)

Bud finds her gift
Kimmerer, Robin Wall
Paper Book
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Braiding Sweetgrass comes a beautiful and lushly illustrated tale celebrating gratitude, reciprocity, and finding our place in the natural world, ideal for sharing with the youngest readers. When young Bud sees people...

Picture Book (Age 4-8)

Grandmother Moon
Lamb-Cason, Wunneanatsu
Paper Book
"Nohhum, doesn't it look like the moon is following us?" During her weekly car ride with her grandmother from the city to the reservation, a young Native girl ponders the moon that seems to follow them. Each week, she looks forward to listening to her grandmother's warm, soothing voice as...

Picture Book (Age 4-8)

The gift of the great buffalo
Lindstrom, Carole
Paper Book
Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year Good Housekeeping Kids' Book Award Winner In this beautiful and dramatic story, bestselling author Carole Lindstrom and illustrator Aly McKnight show readers how life was lived by Indigenous communities,...

Picture Book (Age 4-8)

The trickster shadow
Pawis-Steckley, Joshua Mangeshig
Paper Book
From an acclaimed Ojibwe artist comes a story that offers an empowering universal message about finding inner strength.   Zoon's shadow is always in his way. It makes a mess of...

Picture Book (Age 4-8)

Firefly season
Smith, Cynthia Leitich
Paper Book
Written by the award-winning, bestselling author of Jingle Dancer, Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee), and filled with tender illustrations by Kate Gardiner (Nipmuck), this unforgettable, warmhearted picture book is for family and the friends who become family. Piper...

Picture Book (Age 4-8)

The summer of the bone horses
Sneve, Virginia Driving Hawk
Paper Book
A Lakota child spends a summer with grandparents at their home on the Rosebud Reservation in this young chapter book, illustrated in full-color This charming chapter book follows a present-day Lakota child connecting with extended family, embracing new experiences, and growing...

Bridging Fiction (Grades 2-4)

Wolf Club
Bird, James
Paper Book
The Breakfast Club meets Hatchet in this middle-grade novel about three kids who ditch detention to search for an elusive white wolf, who may have the magical powers they need to face their challenges and heal their hearts. A story of adventure and friendship from...

Young Teen Fiction (Grades 5-7)

Origin
Cardozo, Nat
Paper Book
Portraits of Indigenous children and their communities from around the world in a stunning presentation emphasizing community and a connection to the land and the environment We are all one. We all inhabit the same planet, and we all have a common human origin. This is the...

Children's Nonfiction (Age 8-12)

The Navajos
Sneve, Virginia Driving Haw
Paper Book
In this new and updated edition, award-winning author Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve introduces young readers to the Navajo peoples. Did you know that Navajo children were given their own lambs to signal their transition into adulthood? Learn about the Navajo's creation story,...

Children's Nonfiction (Age 8-12)

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https://librarian.syndetics.com/syndeticsunbound/lp/292.400/list/7237

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