Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful; a must-have for any children's lit collection!, August 3, 2005
This review is from: Shota and the Star Quilt (Folk Tales series) (Paperback)
This is a wonderful book. Whereas most children's literature dealing with Native themes show Native people as existing only in the past, this book shows modern Native people in both urban and reservation settings. The relationship between Shota and her best friend, Esther (who is white), is nicely presented, as are the parallels between the two grandmothers. The drawings are wonderful. The text is presented in both English and Lakota (Sioux), which is very important not only for speakers of Lakota, but so that non-Native children understand that Lakota people have a Lakota language.
What is so outstanding about this book is that it shows adults taking the children seriously. It empowers even young children because it shows that children are capable of finding solutions to problems even when adults are unable to do so. My children also really liked that all of the tenants in the apartment building where Shota and Esther lived were able to band together against the landlord who was threatening to demolish their building.
We are a Native family with dozens of children's Native titles, and this is consistently on our "Top Five!" It has been an honor and a pleasure to be able to share this title with other families and with my children's classmates at school.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A different perspective, November 13, 2007
This review is from: Shota and the Star Quilt (Folk Tales series) (Paperback)
A young Lakota Sioux child learns about quilting, community and the potential of a single act of kindness. The illustrations are rich in color and bring the story to life. The Sioux text, which was included with the English, was intriguing.
The people of the Pine Ridge Reservation of South Dakota are seeking copies to be giving to impoverished children. Please contribute via the Friends of the Pine Ridge Reservation web site.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Story of two sweet girls and a quilt, January 8, 2012
I randomly selected this book while searching under the quilt keyword from the library, and ordered it, thinking it featured a Japanese girl. I was wrong, she is Lakota. I'm so glad that I did! My five year old son really liked it. It's written and illustrated by two English women, with two native women as "consultant" and translator. As mentioned in the other reviews, it's about a bad old white man who is lonely and dead inside so he decides to tear down some houses to fill the hole in his heart. This is the only part of the book I didn't like, it's very stereotypical and no real estate developer does it because they are lonely, but, whatever, it's a simple dramatic story. Shota, the Lakota girl, and her friend, Esther, decide to save their building. They visit Pine Ridge and make a community quilt, which is later given to the man. He's touched, so he saves their building, and becomes a star in the sky. The text is bilingual. Despite the stereotypical villain, I really liked the book because it showed that kids can make a difference, and people can be moved and touched, even bad ones. I'm sad this book is out of print!
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