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Reviewed by: Heather Maneiro, High School Librarian Title: Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults Author: Robin Wall Kimmerer (adapted by Monique Gray Smith) Publisher: Zest Books
Year: 2022 Good for Grades: 8-11 Genre/Type of Book: Non-Fiction (Nature/Science)
Content Warnings, or things that other School Librarians should be aware of: none Recommended for a school library: Yes Reason(s) for choosing the book: Available on SORA, positive reviews If you were tasked by the publisher with writing a short quote for the back cover of this book, what would it be: What is truth? How do we know what we know? Robin Wall Kimmerer shows that science and tradition do not have to be separate. These two ways of knowing can be complementary and provide a greater level of understanding when we honor both.
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Review:
What is truth? How do we know what we know? Robin Wall Kimmerer shows that science and tradition do not have to be separate. These two ways of knowing can be complementary and provide a greater level of understanding when we honor both. With deeply personal anecdotes, the author illustrates how indigenous teachings have deepened and provided insight to her as a scientist. Indeed as a daughter of a science teacher and avid gardener/conservationist, I listened to the why behind the planting of our garden – peas, with corn and squash, the three sisters in harmony.
My one regret after reading additional reviews is that I chose audio for this text. I love that the personal responsible for the adaptation served as the narrator; however, I see that I probably missed quite a bit by not reviewing the text complete with illustrations. I will need to go back for a quick re-read in order to enjoy the illustrations. Unlike most of the other reviewers of this version, I have not read the original, but most reviewers indicate this version does exactly as intended providing a shorter more accessible version for the younger audience.
I often purchase both versions for my library when a young adult adaptation is available, but for this text, I believe I will stick with the young adult version available to us in our SORA collection. I may purchase the physical text just to have for the illustrations.
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For more information about this book, see the Publishers Website
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