featuring:  The land is our storybook

The first two books in this series by and about the people of the NWT were published in April 2008 to critical acclaim. Told in a uniquely diverse range of northern voices, with a child-centred approach, the 10 books in The Land Is Our Storybook series highlight the languages and cultures of the NWT.
 

Proud to Be Inuvialuit: Quviahuktunga Inuvialuugama

James Pokiak and Mindy Willett

James Pokiak is proud to be Inuvialuit, which means "real people." The Inuvialuit are the most westerly Canadian Inuit. He lives in the hamlet of Tuktoyuktuk, NWT, which is above the Arctic Circle on the shore of the Arctic Ocean. The community is often just called Tuk to save time. Even though he lives in town now, James grew up on the land, learning the traditional values and survival skills of his people. more...

Come and Learn With Me: Éwo, séh Kedįdįh

Sheyenne Jumbo and Mindy Willett

Nine-year-old Sheyenne lives in Sambaa K’e, Northwest Territories - that’s Trout Lake in English. Come learn with her as she takes you on a journey to her community in the fall, the season of moose. The fourth book in the popular series “The Land Is Our Storybook” features the Dehcho region of the Dene. more...
  

Living Stories: Godi Weghàà Ets' eèda

Mindy Willett, Therese Zoe and Philip Zoe,

Therese Zoe is a Tlicho woman from Gamèti in the Northwest Territories. She is a community health representative, a mother and grandmother, as well as a champion of ancestral skills and stories. In Living Stories, Therese shares her love for her community and translates the sacred stories and traditional wisdom of her brother-in-law, Philip Zoe, and his sister, Elizabeth Chocolate. As Therese writes, “You might look at our lands and think they are empty, but we do not go hungry. The land gives us our food and our shelter. It holds our stories and our histories. It gives us everything we need.” more...

The Delta is My Home

Tom McLeod and Mindy Willett

Tom McLeod is an 11-year-old boy from Aklavik who is a gifted storyteller heard frequently on CBC Radio North. He is of mixed cultural heritage—Gwich’in  and Inuvialuit. Tom says, “Northerners have always hunted ducks, muskrats, and other animals for survival. We are careful about how we use the land. To be good hunters we need to pay attention to what is happening on the land around us—that’s why it’s important for us to be out there. We are the first to know if the land and animals are changing.” more...

We Feel Good Out Here

Mindy Willett and Julie-Ann André,

Julie-Ann André is a Gwichya Gwich’in from Tsiigehtchic in the Northwest Territories. She is a Canadian Ranger, a mother of twin daughters, a hunter, a trapper, and a student. In We Feel Good Out Here, Julie-Ann shares her family’s story and the Story of her land – Khaii luk, the place of winter fish. As Julie-Ann says, “The land has a story to tell, if you know how to listen. When I travel, the land tells me where my ancestors have been. It tells me where the animals have come and gone, and it tells me what the weather may be like tomorrow.” We Feel Good Out Here introduces readers to Julie-Ann’s world: her family, the land, and the stories that shape them. more...