This colouring and activity book, Magical Beings of Haida Gwaii, shares Stories, Knowledge, and Tradition in a way that young learners will engage with. As the authors are involved in education themselves, they created a book that informs readers and challenges them to make connections. Williams-Davidson, Davidson, and Varnell present a variety of activities to increase curiosity and demonstrate understanding with every Story, and with each story comes a colouring page to enhance the reader’s understanding of what has been read. Magical Beings of Haida Gwaii reminds us of our connections to our surroundings and the importance of our role as stewards of the land, water, and sky. There are messages in these Stories that are worth experiencing and interpreting.

Other End Matter: How to use this book
Images: b&w illustrations, Black-and-white digital artwork
Contributor Affiliation: Authors Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson (Haida), Sara Florence Davidson (Haida/Settler), Jaad Tl'aaw Paula Varnell (Haida), Illustrators Judy Hilgemann, Alyssa Koski (Kainai Nation)
Bibliography: Yes
Index: No

Source: Books BC - BC Books for Schools & Indigenous Books for Schools

Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson is an activist through art and music, and also through law. Born in Haida Gwaii, Terri-Lynn has been a promoter of Haida music and culture since the age of thirteen. Since 1995, she has successfully represented the Haida Nation at all levels of court, including the Supreme Court of Canada. In 2014, she received the West Coast Environmental Law People's Choice Andrew Thompson Award for environmental advocacy. In 2000, she founded the Haida Gwaii Singers Society with other veteran Haida singers including her husband, artist Robert Davidson. For her music, she has received multiple Canadian Aboriginal Music Awards and several nominations for Aboriginal People’s Choice Awards, Canadian Folk Music Awards, a Western Canadian Music Award, and Native American Music Awards. An effective advocate, she integrates cultural knowledge and an Indigenous voice into her legal work. For more information, visit ravencallingproductions.ca./p

Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson's profile page

Sara Florence Davidson (she/her/hers) is a Haida/Settler Assistant Professor in Indigenous Education in the Faculty of Education at Simon Fraser University. Previously, she was an educator working with adolescents in the K-12 system in British Columbia and Yukon Territory. Sara is the co-author of Potlatch as Pedagogy: Learning through Ceremony­, which she wrote with her father, and Magical Beings of Haida Gwaii, which she wrote with her stepmother, Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson.

When she is not reading or writing, Sara can be found walking with her dog, drinking tea, or listening to stories and learning something new.

 

Sara Florence Davidson's profile page

Jaad Tl’aaw, Paula Varnell belongs to an unbroken line of Haida weavers and language speakers. She is the owner of The House of Haida Weavers, the Program Coordinator for the Skidegate Haida Language Nest, a member of the Skidegate Haida Immersion Program, and an apprentice in the Skidegate Haida Mentor Apprentice Program. Paula holds a Bachelor of Education degree from the University of Northern British Columbia, with a two-year concentration in Haida language and culture. In the continuation of her great naanii, Ilst’ayaa, Selina Adams Peratrovich’s legacy, she provides traditional Haida weaving and harvesting immersion experiences on Haida Gwaii with her naanii, Ilskyalas, Delores Churchill and mother, X̱iihliiḵingang, April Churchill.

Paula Varnell's profile page

Alyssa Koski is an illustrator, animator and entrepreneur. She graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design (now Alberta University of the Arts) with a major in Character Design. Alyssa specializes in whimsical and narrative-based illustration, following the themes of adventure, magic and belief in the impossible. She mostly works on children’s books, graphic novels and short film 2D animation. She is also the curator of her grandma’s traditional Blackfoot dress collection, which she showcases in museums, pop-up exhibits and fashion shows. She has a mixed heritage of Blackfoot and European ancestry and is a member of the Kainai Nation. She lives in her hometown of Okotoks with her family and many dogs.

Alyssa Koski's profile page

Judy Hilgemann has been an artist and illustrator all her life. She has illustrated several books, including B is for Basketball, which was the official book of the 2011All Native Basketball Tournament and was shortlisted for the First Nations Communities READ program for 2014–2015. She is a member of the Island Illustrator’s Society and Federation of Canadian Artists. She lives in Queen Charlotte, BC.

Judy Hilgemann's profile page