A joyous celebration of gender expression through an Indigenous lens, by New York Times bestselling author Tasha Spillett and Ojibwe elder Daniel Ramirez
Raven loves round dances. The drums sing to the people, and the people dance to their songs. Raven especially loves dancing with his grandma, sidestepping to the rhythm of the drums. His favourite part of all is watching the ribbon skirts swirl like rainbows.
“Nohkum, do you think a boy could wear a ribbon skirt?” Raven asks his grandmother one day. She tells him she has lived for a long time, but she has never seen it. That evening, she sews late into the night, and Raven awakes to a rainbow skirt of his own. “I’ve lived for a long time,” his grandma says, “and I’m lucky to see beautiful things that I’ve never seen before.” At the next dance, Raven wears the swirl of unique ribbons with pride.
With illustrations infused with joy and colour, this moving intergenerational story celebrates self-expression, honouring traditions, and finding room for reinvention.
"[A] welcome story about an Indigenous child’s gender expression."
"Cree author Spillett (I Sang You Down from the Stars) captures the joy of the round dance, and a feeling of belonging and connection offered in intergenerational Indigenous community."
"Weaves Two-Spirit self-expression and collective belonging into a beautiful tribute to Indigenous heritage."
"Sennelier acrylic paints on canvas softly depict a world of intergenerational support that swishes with touchable fabric texture ... A recursively powerful narrative of acceptance, tribal community, and empowerment."
"Hopeful, heart-filled ... Join Raven and his grandma and stand heart by heart alongside them as they learn that boys, too, can wear ribbon skirts."