I also appreciate that the art is by Indigenous creatives. And the art! Beautiful and worthy of dialogue on its own. The adaptation doesn’t include a couple essays that are in the original, but this is a plus if you’re looking for a shorter read to assign in classes with supplemental materials or if your community read is on a shorter timeline. An emphasis on key passages and discussion prompts is helpful for youth and adults alike.

However, this young readers adaptation is different.

I typically refrain from assigning young adult adaptations since I find most to be a bit too simplistic, even for young adults. This new edition will help affirm the identities and beliefs of Indigenous teens while also introducing non-Indigenous teens to Indigenous teachings and ways of understanding the natural world.Thank you to NetGalley and the authors for an advanced copy of this young adult adaptation of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s Braiding Sweetgrass.Īs a community college educator, I’m constantly looking for accessible, affordable, and challenging texts to assign in my ethnic and gender studies classes. “The themes that are interwoven throughout Braiding Sweetgrass align beautifully with both middle school and high school curriculum around social and emotional learning and environmental science. I will be purchasing boxes of this incredible book to share with loved ones! Chii miigwech!'- Angeline Boulley, #1 NYT Bestselling author of Firekeeper's Daughter I love the mix of photos, illustrations, and text boxes filled with reflective questions and translations. ' Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults is my new favorite book! What a great way for young people (and anyone, really) to learn about our healing medicines. 2023 NSTA/CBC Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12 winner.2022 Kirkus Best Teen Books of the Year winner.2022 Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year winner.With informative sidebars, reflection questions, and art from illustrator Nicole Neidhardt, Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults brings Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge, and the lessons of plant life to a new generation. Adapted for young adults by Monique Gray Smith, this new edition reinforces how wider ecological understanding stems from listening to the earth’s oldest teachers: the plants around us.

Drawing from her experiences as an Indigenous scientist, botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer demonstrated how all living things-from strawberries and witch hazel to water lilies and lichen-provide us with gifts and lessons every day in her best-selling book Braiding Sweetgrass.

Braiding sweetgrass for young adults