CCBC-Recommended Book Search - Cooperative Children's Book Center

A searchable database of books recommended by the CCBC.

(More information on CCBC book recommendations)

This Land: The History of the Land We're On

CCBC Review:

With intention and grace, this child-centered text explores the history of belonging to places while also centering the story on the historical and contemporary Indigenous people. The narrative begins with a girl and her family (white) standing outside their house. “This is my house. I live here with my family. Before us, another family lived here. Before that, another family lived here, too.” An illustration shows family groupings from different time periods who lived in the girl’s house. The story then transitions to an illustration of the people who lived on the land originally, and what happened when people from Europe forced those Indigenous families to leave their homes. Back in contemporary times, the girl speaks about her friendship with TJ (Indigenous) and what she and her family have learned from his Noko (grandmother), particularly how every place can be viewed from the perspective of how the land was originally inhabited and held sacred by many Indigenous peoples. For example, while the Golden Gate Bridge is an icon of San Francisco, the Ohlone have been fishing in the bay for years. The book concludes with the girl riding in a car. Out one window is an image of present-day, out the other is an image of Indigenous people on the same land in long-ago times. While the artwork provides sufficient context, the text in this book conveys important concepts about the history of the land we’re on. ©2025 Cooperative Children’s Book Center

Illustrated by Bridget George

CCBC Age Recommendation: Ages 6-10
Age Range: PreK-Early Elementary (Ages 4-7) Grades 3-5 (Ages 8-10)
Format: Picture book
Subjects: 16th Century 17th Century 18th Century 19th Century 20th Century 21st Century First/Native Nations History (Nonfiction) Maps and Geography Nature/Environment
Diversity subject: Indigenous

Publishers: Crown, Random House
Publish Year: 2024
Pages: 32
ISBN: 9780593651445

CCBC Location: Picture Book, Fairbanks