BookPeople Presents: Heartdrum Native American Heritage Month Celebration

BookPeople and Austin Public Library welcome Heartdrum authors Kim Rogers, Brian Young, Laurel Goodluck, Dawn Quigley, and Cynthia Leitich Smith to celebrate Native American Heritage Month as part of APL's full day of music, food and more celebrating the rich heritage of Native Americans.

This event is free and open to the public.

• Start time: 12:30 P.M.
• Run time: 45-60 minutes, followed by a signing line.
• Location: Austin Public Library Central Branch.

The authors will be signing and personalizing copies of their books after the speaking portion of the event.

• To get a book signed, a copy of the event book or an item of equal value must be purchased from BookPeople.

Guidelines:

• Seating will be on a first-come, first-served basis.
• There will not be a live stream or recording available.
• BookPeople reserves the right to cancel or postpone this event if necessary.
• If you have any other questions, please visit our Eventbrite FAQ. If your question isn't covered in the FAQ, feel free to email us at [email protected].

About Heartdrum: Heartdrum is a new imprint by Native American authors for kids 8+! Heartfelt, groundbreaking, and unexpected, these children’s books emphasize the present and future of Indian Country and the strength of young Indigenous heroes. Curated by Austin author Cynthia Leitich Smith.

About the books and panelists:

Laurel Goodluck writes picture books with modern Native themes that reflect Native children’s cultural experiences and everyday life, showing Native children that they have a perspective that is unique and powerful. She is the author of Forever Cousins, illustrated by Jonathan Nelson and has been named a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection; Rock Your Mocs, illustrated by Madelyn Goodnight; and the forthcoming Too Much, illustrated by Bridget George, is slated for a Spring 2024 from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

Rock Your Mocs: In this happy, vibrant tribute to Rock Your Mocs Day, observed yearly on November 15, author Laurel Goodluck (Mandan, Hidatsa, and Tsimshian) and artist Madelyn Goodnight (Chickasaw) celebrate the joy and power of wearing moccasins—and the Native pride that comes with them. A perfect book for Native American Heritage Month, and all year round!

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Author and filmmaker Brian Young is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation. He grew up on the Navajo reservation in Arizona. Brian earned his BA in Film Studies at Yale University and his MFA in Creative Writing at Columbia University. Brian currently lives in Brooklyn, NY.

Heroes of the Water Monster: An unmissable companion to Healer of the Water Monster, which won the American Indian Library Association Youth Literature Award, this novel by Navajo author Brian Young tells the story of two contemporary young Navajo heroes—and one water monster—who must learn to work together to save their present world from the lasting hurts of their people’s past.

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Kim Rogers writes books, short stories, and poems for young readers. Her debut picture book, Just Like Grandma, was published by Heartdrum in 2023. She is an enrolled member of Wichita and Affiliated Tribes and is a member of the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition.

A Letter for Bob: With humor and heart, and brought to life by Jonathan Nelson’s warm, distinctive artwork, Kim Rogers’s A Letter for Bob celebrates the treasured cars that carry us through our most meaningful childhood moments.

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Dawn Quigley is a citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe, North Dakota. Both her first book in the Jo Jo Makoons series, Jo Jo Makoons: The Used-to-Be Best Friend, and her debut YA novel, Apple in the Middle, were awarded American Indian Youth Literature Honors. She is a PhD education university faculty member and a former K–12 reading and English teacher as well as an Indian Education program codirector. You can find her online at dawnquigley.com.

Jo Jo Makoons: Fancy Pants: Filled with lots of glitter, raised pinkies, and humorous misunderstandings, this second book in the Jo Jo Makoons series—written by Dawn Quigley and illustrated by Tara Audibert—is filled with the joy of a young Ojibwe girl discovering her very own special shine from the inside out.

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Cynthia Leitich Smith is the bestselling, acclaimed author of books for all ages, including Rain Is Not My Indian Name, Indian Shoes, Jingle Dancer, and Hearts Unbroken, which won the American Indian Library Association’s Youth Literature Award; she is also the anthologist of Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids. Most recently, she was named the 2021 NSK Neustadt Laureate. Cynthia is the author-curator of Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books, and serves as the Katherine Paterson Inaugural Endowed Chair on the faculty of the MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts. She is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation and lives in Austin, Texas. You can visit Cynthia online at www.cynthialeitichsmith.com.

Sisters of the Neversea: Five starred reviews! In this beautifully reimagined story by NSK Neustadt Laureate and New York Times bestselling author Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee Creek), Native American Lily and English Wendy embark on a high-flying journey of magic, adventure, and courage to a fairy-tale island known as Neverland…

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By purchasing a book from BookPeople, you are not only supporting a local, independent business – you’re showing publishers that they should continue sending authors to BookPeople.

Thank you for supporting Kim Rogers, Brian Young, Laurel Goodluck, Dawn Quigley, Cynthia Leitich Smith, and your local independent bookstore!

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