Nēhiyawēwin: paskwāwi-pīkiskwēwin

Nēhiyawēwin: paskwāwi-pīkiskwēwin/Cree: Language of the Plains
by Jean L. Okimasis
Published by University of Regina Press
Reviewed by Madonna Hamel
$24.95 ISBN 9780889778856

This new edition of Okimasis’ lab workbook is an indispensable companion to the recorded language labs available through the University of Regina Open Textbook program (https://www.uregina.ca/oer-publishing/).

As an eager learner of the Cree language I appreciate how this workbook works as a clear visual map to bridge the rich aural world of the historic language of the plains, reinforcing the fact that Cree is indeed alive and integral to both people and place. You begin to speak Cree and Cree begins to speak you, a great teacher once said, and it is true. Using this workbook, I see how my inherited languages of English and French are constructed in a less storied and inter-connective manner than the nehiyawewin way. It gives me a door into the opportunity to be spoken “by” Cree.

So much of a student’s ability to enter new territory lies in the efficacy and abilities of the teacher. Jean Okimasis is without a doubt the woman for the job of sharing this whole other world of Cree with the rest of us. Her books and CDs are used in language programs throughout western Canada and she is the driving force behind the formation of degree programs in Indian Languages in Cree and Saulteaux and Literature and is a contributor to the ongoing research project “21st Century Tools for Indigenous languages” which partners with the Universities of Alberta and Tromso in Norway. She is also a transcriber of recorders of the Elders.

THIS BOOK IS AVAILABLE AT YOUR LOCAL BOOKSTORE OR FROM WWW.SKBOOKS.COM