Awards

• Long-listed for First Nations Communities READ 2022 (Canada)
• Short-listed for Manuela Dias Book Design and Illustration Awards, Children’s Illustration 2022 (Canada)
• Short-listed for Mary Scorer Award for Best Book by a Manitoba Publisher 2022 (Canada)

Overview

Based on Haida artist Robert Davidson's own experiences with Tsinii (his grandfather), this tender story highlights intergenerational knowledge and authentic learning experiences. Off the northern tip of Haida Gwaii, a boy goes fishing with Tsinii, his grandfather. As they watch the weather, jig for halibut, and row with the tides, the boy realizes there’s more to learn from Tsinii than how to catch a fish. Written by the creators of Potlatch as Pedagogy, this book brings the Sk'ad'a Principles to life through the art of Janine Gibbons.

Full Product Details

9781553799818

Table of Contents

Reviews

I love this story! Beautifully illustrated. Beautifully told. --Katherena Vermette, The Girl and the Wolf My father said once that we cannot forget the importance of Elders. He was worried that we don't respect them like we used to, and wanted that to change. This book is a love letter to Elders, who are our doorway to the past, to the traditions, languages, and ways of living that give us not just identity, but life. It is at once poetic and calming, in both its words and illustrations, and gifts knowledge to us from those that have been entrusted with it. --David A. Robertson, Governor General's Award-winning author

Among CBC Books The Best Canadian Picture Books of 2021 -- CBC Books Evocative and full of care, this beautiful book is an inspiring testimonial to the power of family relationships and the natural world. -- The Charity Report Among The Globe and Mail's Kids' Books Gift Guide -- The Globe and Mail Sara and Robert Davidson share a beautiful and tenderly written story that takes readers out for a day on the ocean with Robert and Tsinii (his grandpa). We are introduced to gaffs and jigging, the movements of the tides and skies, and the importance of traditional harvesting. Janine Gibbons's artwork poetically captures the coastal atmosphere, and the love and care between grandson and grandfather. Absolutely stunning. --Julie Flett, author/illustrator Birdsong I love this story! Beautifully illustrated. Beautifully told. --Katherena Vermette, The Girl and the Wolf My father said once that we cannot forget the importance of Elders. He was worried that we don't respect them like we used to, and wanted that to change. This book is a love letter to Elders, who are our doorway to the past, to the traditions, languages, and ways of living that give us not just identity, but life. It is at once poetic and calming, in both its words and illustrations, and gifts knowledge to us from those that have been entrusted with it. --David A. Robertson, Governor General's Award-winning author

"A heartwarming story that shares a piece of Davidson's life and culture with young readers. The writing is strong...pulling readers into the story. The illustrations are gorgeous [and] full of life. Highly Recommended. -- ""CM Association"" Among Top Recommended Reads for TD Summer Reading Club 2023-- ""TD Summer Reading Club"" Among CBC Books The Best Canadian Picture Books of 2021 -- ""CBC Books"" Evocative and full of care, this beautiful book is an inspiring testimonial to the power of family relationships and the natural world. -- ""The Charity Report"" Among The Globe and Mail's Kids' Books Gift Guide -- ""The Globe and Mail"" Sara and Robert Davidson share a beautiful and tenderly written story that takes readers out for a day on the ocean with Robert and Tsinii (his grandpa). We are introduced to gaffs and jigging, the movements of the tides and skies, and the importance of traditional harvesting. Janine Gibbons's artwork poetically captures the coastal atmosphere, and the love and care between grandson and grandfather. Absolutely stunning. --Julie Flett, author/illustrator Birdsong I love this story! Beautifully illustrated. Beautifully told. --Katherena Vermette, The Girl and the Wolf My father said once that we cannot forget the importance of Elders. He was worried that we don't respect them like we used to, and wanted that to change. This book is a love letter to Elders, who are our doorway to the past, to the traditions, languages, and ways of living that give us not just identity, but life. It is at once poetic and calming, in both its words and illustrations, and gifts knowledge to us from those that have been entrusted with it. --David A. Robertson, Governor General's Award-winning author"

Sara and Robert Davidson share a beautiful and tenderly written story that takes readers out for a day on the ocean with Robert and Tsinii (his grandpa). We are introduced to gaffs and jigging, the movements of the tides and skies, and the importance of traditional harvesting. Janine Gibbons's artwork poetically captures the coastal atmosphere, and the love and care between grandson and grandfather. Absolutely stunning. --Julie Flett, author/illustrator Birdsong I love this story! Beautifully illustrated. Beautifully told. --Katherena Vermette, The Girl and the Wolf My father said once that we cannot forget the importance of Elders. He was worried that we don't respect them like we used to, and wanted that to change. This book is a love letter to Elders, who are our doorway to the past, to the traditions, languages, and ways of living that give us not just identity, but life. It is at once poetic and calming, in both its words and illustrations, and gifts knowledge to us from those that have been entrusted with it. --David A. Robertson, Governor General's Award-winning author

Author Information

Sara Florence Davidson (she/her) is a Haida/Settler Assistant Professor in Indigenous Education in the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University. Previously, she was an educator working with adolescents in the K-12 system in British Columbia and Yukon Territory. Sara is the co-author of Potlatch as Pedagogy: Learning through Ceremony­, which she wrote with her father, and Magical Beings of Haida Gwaii, which she wrote with her stepmother, Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson. When she is not reading or writing, Sara can be found walking with her dog, drinking tea, or listening to stories and learning something new. Robert Davidson is one of the most respected and important contemporary artists in Canada. A Northwest Coast native of Haida descent, he is a master carver of totem poles and masks and works in a variety of other media as a printmaker, painter, and jeweller. A leading figure in the renaissance of Haida art and culture, Robert is best known as an impeccable craftsman whose creative and personal interpretation of traditional Haida form is unparalleled. He has also been recognized with many awards, including being named an Officer to the Order of Canada. Janine Gibbons, a Haida Raven of the Double-Fin Killer Whale Clan, Brown Bear House, is a multi-disciplinary artist and award-winning illustrator. Janine’s works are inspired by the waters and lands of the Pacific Northwest, and their myriad colours, energies, and languages. Janine graduated from the Art Institute of Seattle and Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. Janine has illustrated four books in the Sealaska Heritage’s Baby Raven Reads series, including Raven Makes the Aleutians, an AIYLA Honor Book, and most recently Nang Jáadaa Sg̱áana ‘Láanaa aa Isdáayaan (The Woman Carried Away by Killer Whales), which is entirely in the Haida language Xaad Kíl.

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