Written by: Nicola I. Campbell

Illustrated by: Julie Flett

For ages: 4-8 years

Language: English & Nte?kepmxín (Interior Salishan people)

Topics Covered: Indigenous Voices, First Nations, Family, Culture & Traditions, Nature.

Summary: This book follows Nikki and her Yayah (grandmother) along with a few other kids as they gather food in the forest.  Very vocabulary-heavy, this book also focuses on pronouncing  Nte?kepmxín words correctly.  At the bottom of each page are the new words used!  This book honors First Nations traditions as well as assists in continuing to teach languages that have deep personal meaning to so many First Nations and Indigenous people.

Side Note: We know that Nte?kepmxín having a question mark is incorrect spelling, we do not have the symbol that it represents on our keyboard.  It looks similar to a question mark without the dot at the bottom which is why we have chosen to represent it this way!

About the Author & the Illustrator:

Nicola Campbell is Nłe?kepmx, Syilx and Métis and is named after her home, BC’s Nicola Valley. She has a BFA and a MFA in creative writing and is currently working towards a doctoral degree focusing on contemporary Indigenous Storytelling at UBC Okanagan in Kelowna, BC. She is the author of four childrens books. A Day with Yayah (2017), published by Tradewind Books. Grandpa’s Girls, was a finalist for the 2012 Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Prize. Shin-chi’s Canoe received the 2009 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and is on the 2009 USBBY Outstanding International Books List. Shin-chi’s Canoe is the sequel to Shi-shi-etko and was a finalist for the 2009 Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award and a 2008 Governor Generals award for illustration. Shi-shi-etko was a finalist for the 2006 Ruth Schwartz Children’s Book Award, the 2006 TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award and the 2006 Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award. It was the co-winner of the 2006 Anskohk Aboriginal Children’s Book of the Year Award.

Julie Flett is a Cree-Metis author, illustrator, and artist. She has received many awards including the 2017 Governor General’s Award for Children’s Literature for her work on When We Were Alone by David Robertson (High Water Press), the 2016 American Indian Library Association Award for Best Picture Book for Little You by Richard Van Camp (Orca Books), and she is the three-time recipient of the Christie Harris Illustrated Children’s Literature Award for Owls See Clearly at Night; A Michif Alphabet, by Julie Flett, Dolphin SOS, by Roy Miki and Slavia Miki (Tradewind Books), and My Heart Fills with Happiness, by Monique Gray Smith (Orca Books).

Her own Wild Berries (Simply Read Books) was featured in The New York Times and included among Kirkus’s Best Children’s Books of 2013. Wild Berries was also chosen as Canada’s First Nation Communities Read title selection for 2014–2015.