Gold Medal # 3: SISTERS OF THE NEVERSEA, by Cynthia Leitich Smith, a review by Alexis, 21 and Charlie, 18
Tick tock, Tick tock. It's already August, 2021. Last year seemed to go on forever. This one's speeding by. Some of us are back in college or school, at home or virtual. But it's also been a landmark year for Indigenous folks. We saw the first Native person, Michael Goade (Tlingit and Haida), win the Caldecott Medal for her illustration in the picture book We Are Water Protectors, written by Carole Lindstrom (Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe Indians). The book rocketed to # 1 on the New York Times bestsellers list and zinged up and down "the list" for months. Akimel O'odham/Pima librarian Naomi Bishop, who chaired the American Indian Youth Literature Awards from 2014-2018, was honored with an I Love My Librarian! Award from ALA and was recently named distinguished Alumni from the University of Washington ischool. Cynthia Leitich Smith of the Muscogee Creek Nation was the winner of the 2021 NSK Neustadt Prize for Children's Literature. She also launched...