Overview

With lyrical verse and powerful emotion, Dawn Quigley (Ojibwe) tells the story of urban Native kids who find strength in connection with those who came before and in the hope that lets them take flight. Ariel and Tomah have lived in the city’s intertribal housing complex all their lives. But for both of them, this Dagwaagin (Autumn) season is different than any before. From his bench outside the front door of his building, Tomah watches his community move around him. He is better at making people laugh than he is at schoolwork, but often it feels like his neighbor Ariel is the only one who really sees him, even in her sadness.  Ariel has always danced ballet because of her Auntie Bineshiinh and loves the way dance makes her feet hover above the ground like a bird. But ever since Auntie went missing, Ariel’s dancing doesn’t feel like flying. As the seasons change and the cold of winter gives way to spring’s promise, Ariel and Tomah begin to change too as they learn to share the rhythms and stories they carry within themselves. This first middle grade novel by Dawn Quigley is a tour de force. She is known for her American Indian Youth Literature Award–winning Jo Jo Makoons chapter book series and young adult novel Apple in the Middle. Give Red Bird Danced to readers who love Jasmine Warga and Christine Day!

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9780063223622

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Reviews

"""Heartbreaking yet heartening. Even as the tweens confront personal challenges, they remain committed to bettering their surroundings in a moving narrative that highlights issues relating to the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women crisis while celebrating the healing power of art--including dance, folklore, music, and poetry--and the solace one can find in connecting with one's heritage."" -- Publishers Weekly (starred review) ""A captivating, exquisitely penned story of hope and survival."" -- Kirkus Reviews (starred review)"

Author Information

Dawn Quigley is a citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe, North Dakota. Her debut YA novel, Apple in the Middle, was awarded an American Indian Youth Literature Honor. She is a PhD, education university faculty member, and a former K-12 reading and English teacher, as well as Indian Education program codirector. You can find her online at www.dawnquigley.com. She lives in Minnesota.

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