Heart Berry Bling

by Jenny Kay Dupuis, Eva Campbell (Illustrator)

Overview

On a visit to her granny, Maggie is excited to begin her first-ever beading project: a pair of strawberry earrings. However, beading is much harder than she expected! As they work side by side, Granny shares how beading helped her persevere and stay connected to her Anishinaabe culture when she lost her Indian status, forcing her out of her home community—all because she married someone without status, something the men of her community could do freely.

As she learns about patience and perseverance from her granny’s teachings, Maggie discovers that beading is a journey, and like every journey, it’s easier with a loved one at her side.

In this beautifully illustrated book, children learn about the tradition of Anishinaabe beadwork, strawberry teachings, and gender discrimination in the Indian Act.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781774920558
Publisher:	Portage & Main Press
Publication date:	05/09/2023
Pages:	48
Product dimensions:	9.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.31(d)
Age Range:	6 - 8 Years

About the Author

Jenny Kay Dupuis (she/her/hers) is a sought-after public speaker, best-selling author, educator, and accomplished Woodland pop artist whose focus is raising awareness about Indigenous realities. She is well-known for her exceptional knowledge of Indigenous care theories, leadership models, and engagement frameworks, and has shared this expertise to support corporations, non-governmental organizations, school districts, and post-secondary institutions around the world in shifting their organizational practices.

As co-author of the award-winning children’s book I Am Not a Number, Jenny Kay shared her granny’s experiences at a residential school in Canada. Her latest book for children, Heart Berry Bling, brings together some of her own experiences and those of many others to highlight how the rights of thousands of First Nations women were taken by the Indian Act.

A certified teacher and learning strategist, Jenny Kay holds her Bachelor of Arts in History and Visual Arts, Bachelor of Education, Master of Education in Special Education, and Doctorate in Educational Leadership. Jenny Kay is a member of Nipissing First Nation and lives in Toronto, Ontario. Follow her on social media @jennykaydupuis.

Eva Campbell (she/her/hers) is an artist, illustrator, and teacher who lives in Victoria, British Columbia. Her work has been exhibited around the world, including in Canada, the United States, Barbados, and Ghana. She won the Children’s Africana Book Award for her illustrations in The Matatu, by Eric Walters, and the Lillian Shepherd Memorial Award for Excellence in Illustration for Africville, by Shauntay Grant. Her vibrant illustrations in Heart Berry Bling capture the warmth of the relationship between Granny and Maggie.

What People are Saying About This

Purdue University John P. Broome

Heart Berry Bling is a soulful children’s story that reminds readers of not only the importance of family and culture, but also the generational harm caused by laws against Indigenous Peoples. In this tale of a young Anishinaabe girl who finds out how her own family was negatively impacted by the Indian Act, Jenny Kay Dupuis has created an important text for anyone learning of the erased ancestral stories from and about Indigenous Peoples.

Governor General's Award-winner David A. Robertson

Heart Berry Bling seamlessly threads together history with cultural teachings and practices, like the beads Granny and Maggie patiently stitch to share their story. The story's calm beauty is perfectly matched with soft, warm illustrations. This is a wonderful and impressive follow-up to I Am Not a Number.

Editorial Reviews

Eva Campbell’s richly detailed illustrations and warm colour palette perfectly capture the loving relationship between Maggie and her granny. Heart Berry Bling is both a gentle introduction for readers who are not already familiar with the [Indian] Act, and a validation for those impacted by it. The book is an excellent educational resource for teachers, librarians, and parents looking to enrich collections of books about Indigenous histories in Canada.

Quill & Quire

Touches on the emotional aspects of beading as well as a few technical skills! All this weaved into a visit between a girl and her grandmother, with a sprinkling of Canadian history, women's rights, and the importance of perseverance. Great for a read aloud for older students to introduce some of the unfair treatments [of] Indigenous Peoples in North America.

Follett Learning - Mary Hazel

We need books from writers like Jenny Kay Dupuis—people whose families hold ... brutal realities in their memory as something they lived through—and people across North America have so much learning to do about Native life and history, and about authenticity of storyteller and storytelling. Quite magnificent….Highly recommended.

Debbie Reesen Indians in Children’s Literature (AICL)