Shi-shi-etko

by Nicola I. Campbell, Kim LaFave (Illustrator)

Overview

Shi-shi-etko just has four days until she will have to leave her family and everything she knows to attend residential school. She spends her last precious days at home treasuring and appreciating the beauty of her world — the dancing sunlight, the tall grass, each shiny rock, the tadpoles in the creek, her grandfather’s paddle song. Her mother, father, and grandmother, each in turn, share valuable teachings that they want her to remember. Shi-shi-etko carefully gathers her memories for safekeeping.

LaFave’s richly hued illustrations complement Campbell’s gently moving and poetic account of a child who finds solace around her, even though she is on the verge of great loss — a loss that native people have endured for generations because of Canada’s residential schools system.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780888996596
Publisher:	Groundwood Books
Publication date:	09/09/2005
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	182,655
Product dimensions:	8.13(w) x 7.75(h) x (d)
Lexile:	AD860L (what's this?)
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

Editorial Reviews

This poignant and poetic book tells the story of a young Indian girl who must leave her family to attend boarding school. The author's note at the beginning explains to readers that Canadian Indian children as young as four were forced to attend residential schools many miles away from their parents. Young Shi-shi-etko wistfully counts down the nights, or "sleeps," to her departure while, during the day, members of her family try to instill in her an appreciation for and understanding of her heritage. She retains everything, including the special bag of memories collected with her grandmother, which she hides in an old tree, obviously determined to return to her roots. The illustrations are aptly muted and autumnal, echoing the end of a way of life for Shi-shi-etko. The concept that Shi-shi-etko must leave while the adults, who clearly want her to stay, are powerless to stop her departure may be a bit disturbing for younger readers. 2005, Groundwood Books, Ages 4 to 8.
—Kathryn Erskine

Children's Literature

Gr 2-6-This is a moving story set in Canada about the practice of removing Native children from their villages and sending them to residential schools to learn the English language and culture. An introduction explains that governments believed Native people were ignorant and made laws to "educate" their children. Shi-shi-etko counts down her last four days before going away. She tries to memorize everything about her home-"tall grass swaying to the rhythm of the breeze, determined mosquitoes, working bumblebees." There is a family party to say good-bye. Her father takes her out in a canoe and implores her to remember the trees, the water, and the mountains, and her grandmother gives her a small bag made of deer hide in which to keep her memories. The vivid, digital illustrations rely on a red palette, evoking not only the land but also the sorrow of the situation and the hope upon which the story ultimately ends. This contemplative narrative will help children see how Native people have been treated in both Canada and the United States. A good choice to enhance units on Native North American cultures.-Linda M. Kenton, San Rafael Public Library, CA Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.

School Library Journal

A young Native American child prepares to leave home and family for compulsory Indian School in this quietly poetic Canadian import. On each of her last three days, Shi-shi-etko ("She Loves To Play In The Water") goes out with a different adult to gather impressions of her people's ways and the natural world around her: standing in a creek, listening to her mother singing, for instance, she "memorized each shiny rock, / the sand beneath her feet, / crayfish and minnows and tadpoles." On succeeding days she does the same with her father and her Yayah (grandmother), promising herself that she will not forget. Using a palette of saturated blues and rich autumnal reds and golds, LaFave places a child in modern dress (as the author explains in a foreword, the last Indian boarding school in Canada did not close until 1984) within landscapes whose strong, curving lines evoke subdued but intense feelings underlying this poignant tale of taking leave. Except in the foreword, Campbell never mentions where the child is going-so Shi-shi-etko's sadness and determination will also resonate with any child who's had to leave a familiar world behind. (Picture book. 6-8)

Kirkus Reviews