Native American Studies: Books

Established in 2006 by Dr. Debbie Reese of Nambé Pueblo, American Indians in Children's Literature (AICL) provides critical analysis of Indigenous peoples in children's and young adult books.

The first AILA American Indian Youth Literature Awards were presented during the Joint Conference of Librarians of Color in 2006. Awarded biennially, the AIYLA identifies and honors the very best writing and illustrations by Native Americans and Indigenous peoples of North America.

Colorín Colorado has an in-depth series of themed booklists for children and young adults featuring Native titles. We encourage educators and librarians to look for opportunities to include these stories across the curriculum throughout the year!

In 1972, the Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory received funding from the National Institute of Education for the development of a community-based reading and language arts program especially for Indian children. Twelve Northwest Indian reservations actively participated in the program from its beginning.
The result of this work was a unique supplementary reading and language development program for Indian and non-Indian children. The materials were authenticated by the participating tribes and field tested with over 1200 Indian and non-Indian children in 93 classrooms throughout the Northwest.

Salina Bookshelf, founded in 1994 is an independent publisher of multicultural materials which includes textbooks, children’s picture books, children’s chapter books, informational texts, reference books, audio books and language learning materials. We specialize in dual language books in Navajo/English and Hopi/English, as well as textbooks used to teach Navajo language in schools.

7th Generation is dedicated to publishing quality fiction and nonfiction titles for children and young adults. American Indian authors provide cultural accuracy and exciting contemporary content showcasing the diversity of Native American Nations and Indigenous people on Turtle Island.

Wisdom Tales is the name of the children’s book imprint of the award-winning publishing house, World Wisdom, which was founded in 1980. Wisdom Tales publishes both children’s and teen titles and was created for the purpose of sharing the wisdom, beauty, and values of traditional cultures and peoples from around the world with young readers and their families.