Achimoona: Native Stories

by Maria Campbell (editor)

An Our Choice selection of the Canadian Children's Book Centre Achimoona, which means "stories" in Cree, is a collection of tales by Native writers for children ages eight and up These stories are full of magic and music, ranging from realism to fantasy, adventure to allegory, set in the present but replete with echoes of the past In The Hockey Game, a young Native boy boarding with a white family is trying to make sense of the new world in which he finds himself Naska, a powerful and poetic story written from the point of view of a northern pike, follows the fish as she hunts the South Saskatchewan River and listens to the tales the water tells her In The Pillars of Paclian Chuck takes a strange journey, with an earthworm as his guide, and learns important lessons about the interrelationships between people and nature In her introduction, Maria Campbell tells young readers about the changing role of storytellers in Native society, and of their continuing importance as teachers and historians Conscious of their responsibilities, these writers - Jordan Wheeler, Wes Fineday, Harvey Knight, and others- tell stories for today's children; they are contemporary tales, yet infused with the wisdom of traditional values With stories complemented by full-color reproductions of works by Native artists, including Allen Sapp, Gerald McMaster, Michael Lonechild, and others

98 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

Maria Campbell (born 6 of 26 Apr 1939 near Athlone, Edmonton) is a Métis author, playwright, broadcaster, filmmaker, and Elder. Campbell is a fluent speaker of four languages: Cree, Michif, Saulteaux, and English. Park Valley is located 80 miles northwest of Prince Albert.

Her first book was the memoir Halfbreed (1973), which continues to be taught in schools across Canada, and which continues to inspire generations of indigenous women and men. Four of her published works have been published in eight countries and translated into four other languages (German, Chinese, French, Italian).

Campbell's first professionally produced play, Flight, was the first all Aboriginal theatre production in modern Canada. Weaving modern dance, storytelling and drama together with traditional Aboriginal art practises, this early work set a stylistic tone that her most recent productions continue to explore. Two of her plays have toured extensively within Canada and abroad to Scotland, Denmark and Italy. From 1985 to 1997 Ms. Campbell owned and operated a production company, Gabriel Productions. She has written and/or directed films by the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) and Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), including My Partners My People, which aired on CTV for 3 years. She is coordinator and member of Sage Ensemble, a community theatre group for Aboriginal elders, and is actively associated with the Saskatchewan Native Theatre Company in Saskatoon.

In addition to her work in the arts, Maria is a volunteer, activist and advocate for Aboriginal rights and the rights of women. She was a founder of the first Women’s Halfway House and the first Women and Children’s Emergency Crisis Centre in Edmonton. She has worked with Aboriginal youths in community theatre; set up food and housing co-ops; facilitated women’s circles; advocated for the hiring and recognition of Native people in the arts, and mentored many indigenous artists working in all forms of the arts. Maria sits as an Elder on the Saskatchewan Aboriginal Justice Commission, and is a member of the Grandmothers for Justice Society. Academically, she has focused on teaching Métis history and Methods in Oral Tradition Research. She has worked as a researcher, meeting with elders to gather and record oral historical evidence of many aspects of aboriginal traditional knowledge, including medical and dietary as well as spiritual, social, and general cultural practices.

(from Wikipedia)