Book Recommendations & Learning Resources

At Chapters4Change, we believe growth begins with courageous learning and reconciliation begins with listening. Everything You Wanted to Know About Indians But Were Afraid to Ask (Young Readers Edition)  by Ojibwe author, educator, and scholar Anton Treuer  offers young readers a powerful entry point into both. Written in a clear, accessible question-and-answer format, this book invites young people to engage honestly with questions many are curious about but unsure how, or w

Chapters4Change 2026 Theme:  Growth & Reconciliation We are excited to share that the Chapters4Change theme for 2026 will be Growth & Reconciliation . With only approximately 13 Calls to Action considered complete, and only two of those having been completed in the past five years , the need for all Canadians to act on reconciliation remains urgent! Chapters4Change is specifically committed to Education for Reconciliation . As one way of living this commitment in the coming

We are calling all educators to partake on a transformative journey of learning and re-storying our education systems using author, speaker, educator, and faculty at UBC Teacher Education Carolyn Roberts ' invaluable book entitled Re-Storying Education: Decolonizing Your Practice Using a Critical Lens . Roberts defines Re-Storying Education is a process of dismantling old narratives taught in education and rebuilding new narratives that include all the voices that have create

In honour of World Day for Prevention of and Healing from Child Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Violence on November 18, and Human Rights Day on December 10th, we would like to highlight some of our past book recommendations for you to consider further.

“From the dancer we learned that we’re better together, a big human family for now and forever.” We are excited to introduce Teddy Anderson’s book, “The Medicine Wheel: Stories of a Hoop Dancer.” This book encourages inclusion and belonging through the power of storytelling. In this story, a Mooshum (grandfather) is telling his grandson stories. Through these stories, other children from around the world also come to listen, and they learn the importance of embracing all cult

We are extremely humbled to introduce Helen Knott's memoir, In My Own Moccasins: A Memoir of Resilience. Helen offers her truth to readers as she shares accounts of addiction, sexual violence, intergenerational trauma, and the devastating effects these things have on one's life. Through her resilience, the love she holds for her child, and her drive to advocate for other Indigenous women and girls, Helen strives to find her way to happiness through a tough and painful journey

We are honoured to feature and share with you Tasha Spillett-Sumner's new picture book, released October 15, 2022, Beautiful You, Beautiful Me. Like her first picture book, I Sang You Down from the Stars, this book beautifully illustrates the love between a mother and her child. In this book, a child named Izzy realizes she is different from her mother in several ways. This realization leaves Izzy feeling sad and confused because she longs to be beautiful in the ways she see

We are honoured to feature and share with you Monique Gray Smith's Tilly and the Crazy Eights. This amazing book was the winner of the 2019/2020 First Nation Communities READ Indigenous Literature Award. The book takes on a road trip with Tilly as she drives eight of her community elders ("the Crazy Eights") on a road trip to New Mexico to the Gathering of the First Nations Pow Wow. Each person is transformed along the way as they spend time together, each filling a piece of

We are honoured to feature and share with you Joshua Whitehead's first novel and the 2021 CANADA READS WINNER, Jonny Appleseed . The book tells the intimate, compelling, heartbreaking yet inspiring story of a young Two-Spirit/Indigiqueer named Jonny Appleseed. The story focuses on Jonny's life as a young boy living on the reserve as well as his life as a young man living off the reserve in the big city. In the city, Johnny is trying to navigate through the challenges of life,

We are honoured to feature and share with you Jesse Wente's memoir 'Unreconciled'. Jesse's book is a call to action for education toward truth in order that the nation of Canada and Indigenous peoples can build a respectful and healthy relationship. It is a call to action for settlers of Canada to recognize how colonial attitudes and institutions still have huge impacts on Indigenous peoples. The books addresses many critical topics including the intergenerational trauma caus

We are honoured to feature and share with you Tasha Spillett-Sumner's New York Times and CBC Books bestseller ' I Sang You Down from the Stars'. This book beautifully illustrates a mother's deep love for her new baby and the importance of passing on traditional teachings and stories. The story brings readers on a journey as a mother prepares a medicine bundle for the arrival of her new baby. The sacred bundle holds important items which celebrate indigenous traditions and cul

We are honoured to feature and share with you Drew Hayden Taylor's 'Motorcycles & Sweetgrass'. The story opens with the readers following a mysterious and handsome stranger as he rides his 1953 Indian Chief motorcycle to Otter Lake, answering a call from an old friend to return there. Otter Lake is usually an uneventful Anishnawbe community, that is until this stranger arrives. With his arrival comes a series of strange, magical, and unexplained happenings which awaken Otter

We are honoured to feature and share with you Tasha Spillett-Sumner's graphic novel, Surviving the City (Vol. 2: From the Roots Up). In this sequel to Tasha Spillett’s graphic novel ‘Surviving the City’, the friendship and story of the lives of Dez and Miikwan continue. Dez is navigating through life as she grieves the passing of her grandmother, struggles to adapt to her group home, and learns to fully embrace her identity as a Two-Spirit person. Miikwan is also navigating t

We are honoured to feature and share with you Tasha Spillett-Sumner's graphic novel debut, Surviving the City (Vol. 1: Book 1 of 2), winner of the Indigenous Voices Award , alternate format and an In The Margins Top Fiction Novel for 2020 . In the story, best friends Miikwan (who is Anishinaabe) and Dez (who is Inninew) navigate through life as teenagers within an urban setting. Both deal with friendship, loss, and trauma. The story highlights the themes of womanhood and col

We are thrilled to feature Angeline Boulley's 'Firekeeper's Daughter'. The book follows Daunis Fontaine, an eighteen-year-old who has always struggled to find her place and identity within her family, hometown, and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. The book takes us on a journey of cultural education mixed with mystery and suspense as Daunis puts her dreams of college on hold to join the FBI. She uses her knowledge of chemistry and Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down th

We are extremely excited to feature and share with you Anton Treuer's 'The Cultural Toolbox: Traditional Ojibwe Living in the Modern World'. This book follows one Ojibwe family through the four seasons of the year and the four seasons of life, sharing a modern view of traditional Ojibwe beliefs and practices including hunting, gathering, and harvesting. The book provides readers with a feeling of connection to the rest of the planet, educating readers about this rich and beau

Michelle Good was awarded the Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize and the Scotiabank Giller Prize, Canada for this masterpiece. Five Little Indians is a national best-seller and winner of the Governor General’s Literary Award , the Amazon First Novel Awards , and the Kobo Emerging Author Prize . Good’s book takes us along on the hopeful and often devastating journey of five residential school survivors (Kenny, Lucy, Clara, Howie, and Maisie) as they try to move forward in life w

Métis writer and lawyer Chelsea Vowel's 'Indigenous Writes: A Guide To First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Issues In Canada'. Vowel's book is divided into 5 parts: The Terminology of Relationships, Culture and Identity, Myth-busting, State Violence, and Land, Learning, Law, and Treaties. This is essential reading for anyone who is committed to working toward reconciliation. Educational Resources Click the link below to download the Educational Resources in order to Read to Learn