Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants
by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Nov 2022
304 pages
Genre: Science, Health and the Environment
Paperback Original.
Publication Information
Drawing from her experiences as an Indigenous scientist, botanist Robin Wall Kimmerer demonstrates how all living things - from strawberries and witch hazel to water lilies and lichen - provide us with gifts and lessons every day in her bestselling book Braiding Sweetgrass.
Adapted for young adults by Monique Gray Smith, this new edition reinforces how wider ecological understanding stems from listening to the earth's oldest teachers: the plants around us. With informative sidebars, reflection questions, and art from illustrator Nicole Neidhardt, Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults brings Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge, and the lessons of plant life to a new generation.
"In this young readers adaptation of the 2013 adult bestseller of the same name by Potawatomi botanist Kimmerer, Smith, who is Cree and Lakota, breaks down myriad Indigenous nations' relationships with nature... Smith smartly streamlines language while staying true to the narrative's core concepts...Crisp pen and ink wash illustrations by Navajo artist Neidhardt provide visual interest; by depicting Skywoman's creation in comics spreads, Neidhardt both complements and elevates Smith's approachable prose." - Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"[P]owerful guidance...Additional art beautifully enhances teachings and tales from many nations, personal reminiscences, fascinating natural history, and other enriching content. Readers will feel as if they are in conversation with a caring, respected expert guide who offers a hopeful, nourishing vision. Both an urgent, essential call to action and an uplifting love letter." - Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"[I]deal for the classroom. The Indigenous lore and rituals described are among the most compelling aspects of the text; Nicole Neidhardt's beautiful illustrations...enhance these elements...Urging a look toward history and tradition to teach us how to answer the questions of the future, Gray Smith adapts Wall Kimmerer's wisdom for a new, hungry audience." - Foreword Reviews
"Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults is my new favorite book! What a great way for young people (and anyone, really) to learn about our healing medicines. So many teachings within the pages. I love the mix of photos, illustrations, and text boxes filled with reflective questions and translations. I will be purchasing boxes of this incredible book to share with loved ones! Chii miigwech!" - Angeline Boulley, #1 NYT Bestselling author of Firekeeper's Daughter
"Just as the original Braiding Sweetgrass offers a lifeline back to Indigenous teachings, this adaptation augments these stories with exquisite visuals such as Skywoman Falling and the Haudenosaunee Thanksgiving Address as an epic gathering of all beings, and it wraps key concepts and questions within a braid of sweetgrass. This beautiful, imaginative revisioning is a gift to our children that teaches them how to follow the path of our ancestors." - Diane Wilson, author of The Seed Keeper
This information about Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Robin Wall Kimmerer is a mother, scientist, decorated professor, and enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation. Her first book, Gathering Moss, was awarded the John Burroughs Medal for outstanding nature writing. Her writings have appeared in Orion, Whole Terrain, and numerous scientific journals. She lives in Syracuse, New York, where she is a SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Environmental Biology and the founder and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment.
Monique Gray Smith is an award winning, bestselling author, and professional consultant. She has written eight books including Speaking our Truth: A Journey of Reconciliation, My Heart Fills with Happiness, You Hold Me Up, Lucy and Lola, Tilly: A Story of Hope and Resilience, and When We Are Kind. Monique's most recent novel, Tilly and the Crazy Eights, was long listed for Canada Reads 2021. Monique is Cree, Lakota, and Scottish. She lives in British Columbia, Canada, with her teenage twins.
Nicole Neidhardt is a Diné (Navajo) artist of Kiiyaa'áanii clan. She received her MFA from OCAD University in Toronto, Ontario, and a bachelor of fine arts with a business minor from the University of Victoria. She is the cofounder of the Innovative Young Indigenous Leaders Symposium, alongside Gina Mowatt, and is the cofounder of Groundswell Climate Collective, a group that is fighting the climate crisis through resiliency and artwork. She currently resides in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
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