Rez Dogs
Malian was visiting her grandparents at their home on the Wabanaki reservation when she got the news that everything was closing down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Now she’s with them indefinitely until travel can be resumed, but that’s fine with her. She can keep up with her online classes (when the internet connection is working) and spend much-cherished time with her elders, who tell her stories about their past and their people and enjoy watching movies with her on Netflix. She befriends a stray dog that shows up one day, and the same dog figures into her grandparents’ stories of past times. Has the dog always been here as a protector of Malian’s family? There’s just enough mystery about the dog to add tension to an otherwise idyllic story in verse about a young girl embracing and being embraced by her family’s Native traditions. ©2022 Cooperative Children’s Book Center
CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 8-11
Age Range:
Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Grades 6-8 (Ages 11-13)
Formats:
Novel
Poetry
Subjects:
Animals (Fiction)
First/Native Nations
Grandfathers
Grandmothers
Novels in Verse
Pandemic
School
Stories and Storytelling
Wabanaki People
Diversity subject:
Indigenous
Publishers:
Dial, Penguin Random House
Publish Year: 2021
Pages: 185
ISBN: 9780593326213
CCBC Location: Fiction, Bruchac