Alaska Children's Literature

50 short biographies about Indegenous peoples in the United States. The book features Alaska Native, Native American, and Native Hawaiian peoples, both historical and currently living. Each biography is accompanied by a bright, realistic portrait.

A nonfiction book detailing how animals survive the winter in extremely cold climates. Several pages fold out for more detail and larger, realistic colored pencil illustrations. Both Arctic and Antarctic climates are discussed as well as many land and sea animals.

A short storybook about what Indegenous life looks like today for some families. Told through the eyes of a little girl, we learn what her family does to utilize and honor the land throughout the year. We also continually ask what do you see? What do you hear? What do you eat? The illustrations are computer generated, realistic, with some fantasy-like qualities. The text has many Nłeʔkepmxcin and Stó:lo Halq'emeylem words with translation on every page as well as translation and pronunciation in a glossary in the back.

A stunningly illustrated call to action from the viewpoint of a young Native girl learning about the importance of water. She rallies her people to fight (or protest) the “black snake,” a metaphor for the Dakota Access Pipeline. This book also carries multiple, repeated reminders that Native people are still here and will still fight for the safety and sanctity of their land and water.

Halibut wants to play! A modern folktale about how the halibut got its coloring, we follow Raven and Halibut through a game of hide and seek. Halibut is lonely and wants to play, but when he dies, Raven can’t find him. Raven recruits several other animals to help find him, but he remains hidden on the seabed, surrounded by seaweed. The other animals give up, but Halibut waits, slowly taking on the colors of the seabed - now he’s always playing hide and seek and never feels lonely. This is a straightforward, lighthearted book with vibrant illustrations.

Not specifically an Alaska tale, Laser Moose and his sidekick Rabbit Boy help a trout who accidentally swallowed a time travel device to fix the timeline he changed and get everything back to normal.

Not specifically an Alaska tale, Laser Moose and his sidekick, Rabbit Boy encounter trouble when an Evil(?) Chickadee causes a shipment of disco balls to be let loose in the woods. Their archnemesis, Cyborgupine, realizes that Laser Moose’s Laser eyes are helpless against the mirrors on the disco balls and planning commences. An easy, lighthearted tale told in graphic novel format. The drawings are cartoonish and the sequencing is very easy to follow.

In When I was Eight, Inuit Olemaun /Margaret tells of the year she leaves her arctic home to attend boarding school. In spite of numerous obstacles she triumphantly learns to read. Evocative poetic language and stylized watercolor and gauche paintings bring the characters’ contrasting emotions to life.

This is a young adult novel, first in a series, that focuses on a 17 year old girl, Juneau, who was raised in a sort of utopian commune near Denali, in Alaska.
The plot, a chase, is complicated and messy, and the book ends with a cliff-hanger lead in to the next book in the series.

A historical account of the war waged between the Japanese and the Americans during World War II on the Aleutian Islands. The book details the war in which both sides fought the weather as much as they fought themselves.

A collection of photographs from World War II era Aleutian Islands. The book shows images contrasting past and modern views of the area.

A collection of photographs from World War II era Aleutian Islands. The book shows images contrasting past and modern views of the area.