Black Sheep, White Crow and Other Windmill Tales

Stories from Navajo Country

by Jim Kristofic

Illustrated by Nolan Karras James

Published by: University of New Mexico Press

120 Pages, 6.00 x 9.00 in, 39 halftones

Paperback
9780826358196 | August 2017

$19.95

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EPUB
9780826358202 | August 2017

$9.99

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Description
Contributors
Acclaim
Table Of Contents

Winner of the 2018 Southwest Book Award from the Border Regional Library Association
Winner of the 2018 Skipping Stones Honor Award for Multicultural and International Books

When Kameron moves to his grandma's sheep camp on the Navajo Reservation, he leaves behind his cell phone reception and his friends. The young boy's world becomes even stranger when Kameron takes the sheep out to the local windmill and meets an old storyteller. As the seasons turn, the old man weaves eight tales that teach the deeper story of the Diné country and the Diné people.

Jim Kristofic grew up on the Navajo Reservation in northeastern Arizona. He has written for The Navajo Times, Arizona Highways, Native Peoples Magazine, High Country News, and Parabola. He is the author of Medicine Women: The Story of the First Native American Nursing School and Navajos Wear Nikes: A Reservation Life and the coauthor of Send a Runner: A Navajo Honors the Long Walk (all from UNM Press). He lives in Taos, New Mexico.

Nolan Karras James is an artist, songwriter, powwow dancer, guitarist, and former rodeo cowboy from Pinon, Arizona. His father is Many Goats Clan and his mother is Apache.

"The tales plunge readers into Navajo lore. . . . Chapterbook readers will devour it, but don't overlook the opportunity to read it out loud, preferably while snuggling."
--New Mexico Magazine

"This collection of stories is reminiscent of Aesop's fables."
--Cibola Citizen

"Delightful."--Roundup

"These tales capture the humor and themes of traditional Diné literature. . . . The collection resonates with deep cultural authenticity."--Enrique Lamadrid, author of Juan the Bear and the Water of Life: La Acequia de Juan del Oso

"A wonderful set of stories that encompass the past, present, and future of the Navajos. It encourages [readers] to be determined, disciplined, and motivated as they move through life and make stories of their own."--Edison Eskeets, Diné runner, artist, educator, and first Diné trader at Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site

Preface

Shįįgo--Summer
Black Sheep, White Crow
The Animals Who Wanted to Be What They Were Not

'Aak'eedgo--Autumn
The Rattling Bones
The Ring with Three Stones

Haigo--Winter
The Heart of a Rider
The Ugly Dog

Dąągo--Spring
The Boy Who Became Coyote
The Flint Bear

Author's Notes
Notes on Navajo Pronunciation