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Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome
Busy beavers have a family reunion in this story that celebrates Indigenous perspectives
It’s a special day for Amik the beaver and her little sister, Nishiime. Their cousins are coming to visit! Amik is excited, but Nishiime feels nervous about meeting new people, and when the cousins finally arrive, Nishiime disappears.
Lively, immersive illustrations show Amik and her cousins as they search the woods for Nishiime. Each creature they encounter, introduced to readers using their Anishinaabe names, reveals how beavers help the forest community. A fish thanks them for digging canals in the mud that they swim through. A deer thanks the beavers for cutting down trees so they can reach the tastiest leaves. None of the creatures have seen Nishiime, but keen-eyed kids will have spotted her hiding in the background throughout the story.
Eventually, Nishiime returns to the group, having overcome her shyness by learning an important despite being from different places, the beavers are all united by the ways they support the forest ecosystem. With the perfect blend of fact and fun, this salute to the industrious beaver is also an energetic celebration of Indigenous perspectives, languages, and diversity.
32 pages, Hardcover
Published March 15, 2023
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 14, 2023
What a delightful picture book introducing Native American words and concepts to readers, young and old!
Amik is a young beaver who is excited to host a gathering of her cousins at her river home. Her little sister Nishiime is curious but shy, and vanishes almost as soon as the others begin to arrive. While Amik is a little dismayed at Nishiime's disappearance, she's soon busy greeting her cousins, accepting their gifts, and showing them around the dam and surrounding areas. She keeps an eye out for Nishiime the entire time, asking passing animals whether they've seen her little sister. Some of her cousins are afraid of some of her scarier animal neighbors, but Amik is quick to assure them that all the animals, even the carnivores, appreciate what the beavers do for the environment.
Nishiime finally turns up as the cousins are preparing to leave, and confides in Amik the lessons she learned that day. They wave goodbye to their cousins, promising to return the visits when Nishiime is older. The book closes with a delightful glossary and pronunciation guide, as well as the information that each cousin's name came from their respective Nation's word for beaver.
Nancy Cooper's story is charming and engrossing, showing not only the importance of the beaver in maintaining a healthy ecosystem but also in allowing shy kids to warm up in their own time, even if it means they miss out on some of the fun. I wasn't sure how I would feel about Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley's art at first: the cover seems rather murky, even for a depiction of beavers in a dammed-up stream. Perhaps that's due to the color palette not translating well on my computer screen; I've certainly found that physical works tend to look at least 50% percent better than their digital counterparts.
But as the book continued, I found myself admiring how wonderfully his art complemented Ms Cooper's words. The colors are rich and the characters joyful, with tons of nods to Native culture in the details. The overall palette is still pretty dark, but the overall effect suits the story fine. Definitely recommended for any children's library.
Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome by Nancy Cooper and Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley was published today March 14 2023 by Owlkids and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
This review originally appeared at TheFrumiousConsortium.net.
Amik is a young beaver who is excited to host a gathering of her cousins at her river home. Her little sister Nishiime is curious but shy, and vanishes almost as soon as the others begin to arrive. While Amik is a little dismayed at Nishiime's disappearance, she's soon busy greeting her cousins, accepting their gifts, and showing them around the dam and surrounding areas. She keeps an eye out for Nishiime the entire time, asking passing animals whether they've seen her little sister. Some of her cousins are afraid of some of her scarier animal neighbors, but Amik is quick to assure them that all the animals, even the carnivores, appreciate what the beavers do for the environment.
Nishiime finally turns up as the cousins are preparing to leave, and confides in Amik the lessons she learned that day. They wave goodbye to their cousins, promising to return the visits when Nishiime is older. The book closes with a delightful glossary and pronunciation guide, as well as the information that each cousin's name came from their respective Nation's word for beaver.
Nancy Cooper's story is charming and engrossing, showing not only the importance of the beaver in maintaining a healthy ecosystem but also in allowing shy kids to warm up in their own time, even if it means they miss out on some of the fun. I wasn't sure how I would feel about Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley's art at first: the cover seems rather murky, even for a depiction of beavers in a dammed-up stream. Perhaps that's due to the color palette not translating well on my computer screen; I've certainly found that physical works tend to look at least 50% percent better than their digital counterparts.
But as the book continued, I found myself admiring how wonderfully his art complemented Ms Cooper's words. The colors are rich and the characters joyful, with tons of nods to Native culture in the details. The overall palette is still pretty dark, but the overall effect suits the story fine. Definitely recommended for any children's library.
Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome by Nancy Cooper and Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley was published today March 14 2023 by Owlkids and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
This review originally appeared at TheFrumiousConsortium.net.
March 16, 2023
Amik is a beaver. He and his younger sister Nishiime are expecting cousins to visit them today. But when the cousins show up, Nishiime is nowhere to be found. As Amik shows her cousins around their part of the woods, they learn a lot.
A bear is nearby. but she is not a threat. She likes that the beavers dam the water, creating shallow areas where she can find food for herself and her cubs. The deer appreciate the fallen trees, as they can reach the tasty leaves more easily. The fish can swim all winter long because the channels the beavers create in the water keep it from freezing. And the red fox can get home to his family quickly because of the dam over the water.
Amik and her cousins enjoy their day together, even though she’s been looking all over for Nishiime but couldn’t find her. But as the cousins are getting ready to go back home, the younger sister shows up. When Amik asks her where she had been, she answers that she’d been hiding. Nishiime was afraid of meeting new people, but she watched them all day, and she’s less afraid now. She talks to all her cousins and makes plans to visit them all at some point. And then it’s time for the cousins to leave.
Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome is a picture book filled with lessons for young kids. They can learn about beavers and how they contribute to their environment. They can learn about dealing with fears of strangers. And they can learn about the Anishinaabe, the indigenous people of the Great Lakes region.
Each of the six beaver cousins come named as the word “beaver” in their own language and bring gifts. And at the end of the book is a short glossary of the words used throughout the story. Biindigen, for example, means welcome, and nishiime means little sister. It’s a sweet introduction to the Anishaabe people, with colorful illustrations and sweet characters.
I really enjoyed Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome and think it will spark a lot of young minds to be curious about nature and about the history of the Great Lakes region. However, I do wish that author Nancy Cooper had been more information on the indigenous people. As someone who is not from that area, I had to look up information on the Anishinaabe on my own to understand the book well enough to talk about it in a review. But I do think it will ignite curiosity in kids and will lead them to learn more, which is always a good thing.
Egalleys for Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome were provided by Owlkids Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.
A bear is nearby. but she is not a threat. She likes that the beavers dam the water, creating shallow areas where she can find food for herself and her cubs. The deer appreciate the fallen trees, as they can reach the tasty leaves more easily. The fish can swim all winter long because the channels the beavers create in the water keep it from freezing. And the red fox can get home to his family quickly because of the dam over the water.
Amik and her cousins enjoy their day together, even though she’s been looking all over for Nishiime but couldn’t find her. But as the cousins are getting ready to go back home, the younger sister shows up. When Amik asks her where she had been, she answers that she’d been hiding. Nishiime was afraid of meeting new people, but she watched them all day, and she’s less afraid now. She talks to all her cousins and makes plans to visit them all at some point. And then it’s time for the cousins to leave.
Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome is a picture book filled with lessons for young kids. They can learn about beavers and how they contribute to their environment. They can learn about dealing with fears of strangers. And they can learn about the Anishinaabe, the indigenous people of the Great Lakes region.
Each of the six beaver cousins come named as the word “beaver” in their own language and bring gifts. And at the end of the book is a short glossary of the words used throughout the story. Biindigen, for example, means welcome, and nishiime means little sister. It’s a sweet introduction to the Anishaabe people, with colorful illustrations and sweet characters.
I really enjoyed Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome and think it will spark a lot of young minds to be curious about nature and about the history of the Great Lakes region. However, I do wish that author Nancy Cooper had been more information on the indigenous people. As someone who is not from that area, I had to look up information on the Anishinaabe on my own to understand the book well enough to talk about it in a review. But I do think it will ignite curiosity in kids and will lead them to learn more, which is always a good thing.
Egalleys for Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome were provided by Owlkids Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.
November 27, 2024
I picked up this title when I was looking for books to use in my beaver lesson plan and I got so much more than I expected. Nancy Cooper and Joshua Mangeshig Pawis-Steckley are both First Nations peoples and partnered to create this beautiful masterpiece. Our main character, Amik, is a beaver and her cousins are coming to visit! The cousins come from all different parts of the forest and are adorned with different jewelry, markings, etc. Each of the beaver cousins is named "beaver" in a different indigenous language, and they bring gifts to share, which I assume also represent their Nation. For example, the character "Amicos" (which is Cree for "beaver") brings "juicy maple twigs". The cousins thank Amik for having them on her territory and invite Amik to visit their territory one day, too. As Amik and her cousins move through the forest, Cooper teaches readers Anishinaabe words, especially the words for various animals such as deer, otter, and fox, along with giving examples of how beavers help these animals. For example, the deer thank Amik because it's easier for them to get to the leaves after the beavers cut down the trees. I would definitely use this book for my beaver lesson plan, but the indigenous representation is even better.
February 14, 2023
This beautiful picture book follows a story close to any child's heart: excitement and fear, eagerness and trepidation. Basic information like directions, North, South, East, and West, and names of animals, beaver, bear, fish, fox, otter, appeal to very young readers, with details of plants, rivers, and terrain giving a sense of the greater ecosystem. For example, a funny and calming episode when a cousin apologizes for showing up late, frightened by the sound of a bear. The beaver need not fear the bear, for the bear is looking for plants and insects in the stream and actually likes beavers' dam! More advanced readers learn Anishinaabe words, with each visitor coming from a different Nation, their name meaning "beaver" in their own language. I appreciated the glossary at the back of the book, but wish a map had been included, showing the homes of these Nations. Thank you to NetGalley for the privilege of a review copy.
January 30, 2023
I received an electronic ARC from Owlkids Books through NetGalley.
Readers meet Amik and her younger sister, Nishiime, as they wait for their cousins to come and visit from their homes. The cousins arrive bringing gifts and joy. They join together in learning about Amik's home and searching for Nishiime when she disappears. By the day's end, Nishiime conquers her shyness and rejoins them. Each must return to their own home and looks forward to gathering together at a new location. Beautiful illustrations capture the various Nations in the small details of each beaver. I appreciate the glossary and explanations provided at the end of the book.
An analogy younger readers will comprehend to connect with larger Nation meetings.
Readers meet Amik and her younger sister, Nishiime, as they wait for their cousins to come and visit from their homes. The cousins arrive bringing gifts and joy. They join together in learning about Amik's home and searching for Nishiime when she disappears. By the day's end, Nishiime conquers her shyness and rejoins them. Each must return to their own home and looks forward to gathering together at a new location. Beautiful illustrations capture the various Nations in the small details of each beaver. I appreciate the glossary and explanations provided at the end of the book.
An analogy younger readers will comprehend to connect with larger Nation meetings.
February 8, 2023
Thank you, NetGalley, for allowing me to review and ARC of Biindigen! Amik Says Welcome.
This picture book features a family of beavers who are excitedly awaiting the arrival of their cousins. The beavers all represent different indigenous Nation, and there are Anishinaabe word throughout, such as nishiime- little sister. When the beaver cousins come to visit, they bring gifts, which are all items from that Nation's tribe. The back of the book has a translation and pronunciation guide.
The illustrations are bright and charming, and the story of the little sister who is nervous to meet her cousins will be a good talking point with small children who might have similar fears.
This picture book features a family of beavers who are excitedly awaiting the arrival of their cousins. The beavers all represent different indigenous Nation, and there are Anishinaabe word throughout, such as nishiime- little sister. When the beaver cousins come to visit, they bring gifts, which are all items from that Nation's tribe. The back of the book has a translation and pronunciation guide.
The illustrations are bright and charming, and the story of the little sister who is nervous to meet her cousins will be a good talking point with small children who might have similar fears.
February 27, 2024
Loved how all the beavers from different communities were named beaver in the local language! Loved how it's a story about Amik finding his sister, but we learn about how grateful all the creatures are to have the beaver in their ecosystem and why. What a great book for learning about how ecosystems work! Highly recommended for elementary school teachers teaching about ecosystems.
April 13, 2023
A charming, vibrantly illustrated picture book introducing readers to complex teachings about family, fsharing, safety, and cooperation from an Algonquian perspective through the story of the kinship among an Anishinaabe beaver clan.
Read
June 28, 2023saving comments until I can do further research. the story is cute and informative in an accessible way. I'm not a fan of animals-as-stand-ins for humans, so that made me a little uncomfortable.
July 8, 2024
A good picture book to introduce young children to Native American words and ideas.
August 22, 2024
Too long for storytime.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews