reviewed - Katrina

Illustrations and text show aspects of the lives of the many varied native peoples across North America.

Too brief - some children, and teachers, will think that 'oh, we read that, we're done.' Way too much 'Noble Savage' - First Americans are not heroes of the past, they are people. Some individuals are good, some are bad, and many live in America here and now, usually wearing more than a breech-clout. ( )

In my opinion, “Many Nations: An Alphabet of Native America” is a fantastic multicultural picture book for young readers. This book includes many details about the lives of several different Native Americans. One of the best parts of this story is its organization in regards to its writing style and language. This picture book goes through all of the letters in the alphabet while teaching readers all about the different groups of Native Americans and how they lived. The writing is organized to separate the book into individual components. Each page provides a new letter that stands for something related to the Native Americans. Along with the given letter and word, an illustration that connects to the particular topic is represented. For example, “I is for Iroquois people planting a tree of peace.” For this example, there is a picture of three Iroquois Indians planting a tree. All of the illustrations in the book are organized to properly correspond with what is happening on each page. The illustrations consist of notable depictions made out of pastels and paint. The story challenges students to broaden their perspectives about living modestly like the Native Americans. The big idea is to teach young readers about the Native American’s unpretentious, yet satisfying way of life. ( )

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