About the Book
As a child in Oklahoma, Wilma Mankiller experienced the Cherokee practice of Gadugi, helping each other, even when times were hard for everyone. But in 1956, the federal government uprooted her family and moved them to California, wrenching them from their home, friends, and traditions. Separated from her community and everything she knew, Wilma felt utterly lost until she found refuge in the Indian Center in San Francisco. There, she worked to build and develop the local Native community and championed Native political activists. She took her two children to visit tribal communities in the state, and as she introduced them to the traditions of their heritage, she felt a longing for home.
Returning to Oklahoma with her daughters, Wilma took part in Cherokee government. Despite many obstacles, from resistance to female leadership to a life-threatening accident, Wilma's courageous dedication to serving her people led to her election as the first female chief of the Cherokee Nation. As leader and advocate, she reinvigorated her constituency by empowering them to identify and solve community problems.
This beautiful addition to the Big Words series will inspire future leaders to persevere in empathy and thoughtful problem-solving, reaching beyond themselves to help those around them. Moving prose by award-winning author Doreen Rappaport is interwoven with Wilma's own words in this expertly researched biography, illustrated with warmth and vivacity by Linda Kukuk.
My Take on the Book
This is a great book that really opened my eyes to a woman that I did not know much about. I actually read this to my daughters and I am glad that I did as Wilma was a powerful woman that stood for equal rights and more. I loved reading this my daughters because even in their school district they do not spend a lot of time talking about what happened to Native Americans in the United States. Wilma's story is a powerful one that shows what one woman can do to impact her own people even when large obstacles were in her way. This is a powerful book that I am so happy to have been able to read with my own daughters. I would highly recommend this book to anyone with daughters but even more so to all as this woman is someone all should know.
----------------------------------------
New to the Divadom or to Dad of Divas Reviews?
Please Subscribe to my RSS Feed! Subscribe in a reader
Questions? Drop me a line at dadofdivas@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment