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  • Red Bird Sings: The Story of Zitkala-Sa, Native American Author, Musician, and Activist

Red Bird Sings: The Story of Zitkala-Sa, Native American Author, Musician, and Activist

Author
Illustrator
Gina Capaldi
Publication Date
August 06, 2019
Genre / Grade Band
Non-fiction /  4th − 5th
Language
English
Format
Picture Book
Red Bird Sings: The Story of Zitkala-Sa, Native American Author, Musician, and Activist

Description

"I remember the day I lost my spirit." So begins the story of Gertrude Simmons, also known as Zitkala-Sa, which means Red Bird. Born in 1876 on the Yankton Sioux reservation in South Dakota, Zitkala-Sa willingly left her home at age eight to go to a boarding school in Indiana. But she soon found herself caught between two worlds--white and Native American.

At school she missed her mother and her traditional life, but Zitkala-Sa found joy in music classes. "My wounded spirit soared like a bird as I practiced the piano and violin," she wrote. Her talent grew, and when she graduated, she became a music teacher, composer, and performer.

Zitkala-Sa found she could also "sing" to help her people by writing stories and giving speeches. As an adult, she worked as an activist for Native American rights, seeking to build a bridge between cultures.

The coauthors tell Zitkala-Sa's life by weaving together pieces from her own stories. The artist's acrylic illustrations and collages of photos and primary source documents round out the vivid portrait of Zitkala-Sa, a frightened child whose spirit "would rise again, stronger and wiser for the wounds it had suffered."

Publication date
August 06, 2019
Genre
Non-fiction
ISBN-13
9781541578364
Lexile Measure
940
Publisher
Carolrhoda Books (R)
BISAC categories
JNF007050 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography & Autobiography | Cultural Heritage
JNF025200 - Juvenile Nonfiction | History | United States/19th Century
JNF007110 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography & Autobiography | Social Activists
JNF007040 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography & Autobiography | Music
JNF007030 - Juvenile Nonfiction | Biography & Autobiography | Literary
JNF018040 - Juvenile Nonfiction | People & Places | United States - Native American
Library of Congress categories
United States
Political activists
Yankton Indians
Indian women authors
Indian women activists
Indian musicians
Women musicians
Zitkala-eSa
Yankton women