When the Trees Crackle with Cold: A Cree Calendar By Bernice Johnson-Laxdal and Miriam Körner Review by Michelle Shaw Published by Your Nickel’s Worth Publishing $12.95 9781927756935 Winner of the recent Saskatchewan Book Awards Children’s Literature Award, When the Trees Crackle with Cold: A Cree Calendar is a beautifully written and illustrated narrative of the author’s Cree childhood in northern Saskatchewan. Bernice Johnson-Laxdal comes from a large family of 14 children and grew up in the predominantly Métis community of Ile-a-la-Crosse, which is situated along one of Western Canada’s major fur trade routes. From an early age Bernice was involved in her family’s traditional activities: gathering, growing and preparing food, hunting, trapping and making clothing. Most of these activities were (and still are) dependent on the seasons of the year. The book beautifully combines story and image with Körner’s playful watercolors skillfully enhancing the simple word pictures. The narrative is based around the Cree calendar which consists of six seasons divided into twelve moons, which reflect the traditional knowledge of the natural cycle. I found the concept so much more enriching for my soul than the traditional Western calendar! I loved the way each of the 12 moons reflects the…

Herstory 2015: The Canadian Women’s Calendar by The Saskatoon Women’s Calendar Collective Published by Coteau Books Review by Keith Foster $15.95 ISBN 13:9781550505863 Herstory 2015 serves a dual purpose – combining a brief history of dozens of Canadian women with a daily calendar for 2015. The book follows a basic format – a photo and thumbnail sketch of a woman or activity on one page, and on the facing page, a seven-day calendar with an inspirational quote at the bottom. It is a book is chock full of stories of remarkable women and their accomplishments. Look at race car driver Kelly Williams, who “competed professionally for 15 years – 10 of these at the top level of Canadian motorsports.” Negativity didn’t daunt her. She simply turned it into a positive force and used it to fuel a win. Or look at the lumberjills, women who, like lumberjacks, rolled logs downriver. The Second World War required Canada to enlist women into jobs that were formerly primarily, if not exclusively, the domain of men. A 1943 National Film Board documentary lauded the lumberjills as handling timber like experienced lumberjacks. What about the Canadian Ninety-Nines? An association of female aviators with such notable…

Herstory 2014: The Canadian Women’s Calendar by The Saskatoon Women’s Calendar Collective Published by Coteau Books Reviewed by Jackie Blakely $15.95 ISBN 9781550505566 Herstory 2014: The Canadian Women’s Calendar offers a wonderful collection of stories highlighting the achievements of Canadian women throughout Canadian history. Each vignette in the calendar is crafted to bring to life each woman’s experience and influence, through thoughtful reflections on each of its subjects. From writers to artists and athletes, this compilation of women’s history is proof of the strength of Canadian women and their involvement in creating a great nation. This book is so much more than a functional calendar. It is a documentary of women’s stories that might otherwise be lost over time. Stories such as that of Annie Hanley, the first female council member in Nelson, British Columbia, a nurse, a teacher, a writer and a scholar, populate the pages and bring to life a Canadian history rich in feminine energy. The women profiled in the calendar come from all walks of life and various nationalities and backgrounds. Their impacts are felt from Canada’s historical inception to present day, and their stories are told to highlight their contributions. Stories are accompanied by photos…

First in Canada: An Aboriginal Book of Days by Jonathan Anuik Published by Canadian Plains Research Center Press Review by Chris Ewing-Weisz $24.95 978-088977-240-3 Every schoolchild has heard of La Vérendrye, but how many know the name of the Cree guide who made the canoe route map he relied on? We all know about the Plains of Abraham and Sir John A. Macdonald, but how many of us know about the numbered treaties, or when Native Canadians got the vote? Jonathan Anuik’s sumptuously illustrated, made-for-browsing book brings a hidden history to light. Hundreds of intriguing facts, arranged by date, alternate with photographs and short writeups about First Nations, Métis, and Inuit people across Canada, from earliest prehistory to the present. First in Canada celebrates Native achievements in every field: art, literature, music, architecture, politics, medicine, sports, religion, theatre, education, and more. Also noted are the darker elements of our shared history: conflicts from the North West Rebellion to Oka; Richard Cardinal’s suicide and David Marshall’s wrongful imprisonment; the long and tangled history of legislation and activism attempting to sort out the relationship between Native and more recently arrived Canadians. Many items are only briefly noted; readers will want to turn…