In Stolen Words, a young girl’s Indigenous grandfather discusses the history of forced cultural assimilation with his granddaughter. I love the illustration where the words fly off the page of the Cree book like ravens. This book is great for helping young children learn about Indigenous history and the importance of maintaining that culture.

NOTE: I received an ARC copy of this book on NetGalley. I received no incentive to read or review this book other than said copy of work. The review below contains my own thoughts and opinions. Special thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the free copy.

Beautiful illustrations. Language and words as a bird caged and set free by another book - Introduction to Cree. Cree is also the name of a successful LED company. Wonderful story and history. Aspen pictures is so earthy. Nice language.

beautiful read

A beautifully written and illustrated book for children.

Melanie Florence has written what she knows, as a writer of Cree and Scottish heritage based in Toronto, Canada.
Melanie is the author of other children books which are certainly worth having a look at and adding to your childs collection. www.melanieflorence.com.

This is a great Children's, Pre-School, Early Reader book. The story is short, simple and beautiful.

A Native American granddaughter brings much joy to her grandfather by returning his stolen words ( his Native American language ) to him.

The illustrations are cheerful, colorful and will easily show the love of a grandfather and his granddaughter.

An excellent story to open young minds to question and learn more about our nations Native Americans, their languages, and their heritage.

This will be an excellent choice to be read to young children or to read along with Early Readers.

Thank You Netgalley and author, Melanie Florence for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Stolen Words is a children's book written by Melanie Florence, and illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard. It tells the story of the beautiful relationship between a little girl and her grandfather. When she asks her grandfather how to say something in his language – Cree – he admits that his language was stolen from him when he was a boy. The little girl then sets out to help her grandfather find his language again. This sensitive and warmly illustrated picture book explores the inter generational impact of the residential school system that separated young Indigenous children from their families. The story recognizes the pain of those whose culture and language were taken from them, how that pain is passed down, and how healing can also be shared.

Stolen Words is a beautifully illustrated picturebook that points out something from our history that is often forgotten, and shows that some things can be done. We forget that while the Native Americans, and pretty much every indigenous culture around the world, has had more than just land and lives stolen from them. They were striped of language and culture and forced to adopt the language and in many cases religion and/or culture of those pushing them out or putting them in captivity. It is gently put, in deference to the target audience, but I think the adults sharing this with young readers will be reminded of all that these cultures have lost. I love that the granddaughter, with the help of another trusted adult, made an effort to do what she could to return the stolen words to her grandfather. I only wish that more resources were available to those seeking to regain lost parts of their heritage, and that they were as easy to find as in this book. Some languages are lost completely, or are remembered by only a few and not recorded in any way. Perhaps this book will inspire young people to learn their own culture, and inspire elders or older members of the family to rediscover it as well. I would have loved to see some resources listed at the end of the book to help those seeking to reclaim the language or culture of their ancestors.

The illustrations are beautiful! Melanie Florence provides the words to share the love between a young girl and her grandfather as she presents him with a well-worn Cree dictionary.

“Will you read to me?” she asks.

“Will you teach me your words?”

This is an appropriate way to share the indigenous experience of residential schools with young children. It is not frightening and shows a warm relationship between the grandfather and child. This book will help children understand truth and reconciliation.

The gentleness of his granddaughter comforts the harsh reality of a grandfather 's past experiences in a residential school where they took away his words.
The illustrations reflect the attention to detail as well as setting the mood for this heartwarming story.

Awww I loved this book so much!!
It made my heart melt and I have been telling this story to my 3 year old, since we also have an indigenous side (south american). Love it and the illustrations are superb.

This is a nice story. I liked it. Would recommend.

We really have enjoyed this book. I waited for hardcover and it was well worth it. Native American books are highly in demand, especially children's books.

This is such a lovely, heartbreaking story. It will make a great accompaniment to Code Talker when I discuss that novel with my sixth graders. You know, I'm all for diverse books but for some reason I had never felt drawn to Native American literature. I am happy to report that is not longer the case. It is books like this one that have helped me open my eyes to a wealth of stories that are forever enriching me.

Amazing book! The illustrations fit this book perfectly. Beautiful. The words in the book are powerful and emotional. I will be buying this book for my Goddaughter who is Cree.

Thanks NetGalley for loaning me this book.

This may be a children's book, but I believe that all adults should read it too.
The illustrations are sheer perfection and the story will tug at your heartstrings.
It is an important story and one that needs to be told.
5 Stars are just not enough for this wonderful children's book.

This is a touching and wonderful book about the a little girl helping her grandfather learn to speak Cree.. His native tongue that was '"stolen" from him through the residential program that seperated Americna Indian/First nation children from their families and their culture. This book ishould be on every elementary school library shelf in this country and Canada.

Stolen Words (September 2017), by Melanie Florence, looks at the Indian Residential School program in Canada that ran for over 100 years. This book is aimed at a younger audience and focuses on the lasting impact of the schools rather than the actual experience of being in the school. Stolen Words showcases the relationship between a little girl and her grandfather. When she asks him how to say grandfather in their native language of Cree, he sadly tells her that he doesn’t remember, that he “lost” his words a long time ago. He then explains to her how when he was a child he was taken away to a school, spoke to them in “words we did not know,” and if punished them for using Cree words. Illustrator Gabrielle Grimard did a mesmerizing job of illustrating the book, especially depicting how it felt like their voices were whisked away from them. The pain of what the grandfather went through is palpable, and there is beauty in the child helping him regain his language and share in their cultural history.

This is a poignant story that speaks to a relationship between a young indigenous girl and her grandfather. When she asks how to say Grandfather in Cree, she is introduced to how he lost his language during his time in residential school.
I appreciate that the time at residential school is dealt with in a way that is both gentle and profound. I admire how this story shows hope for the future through the strength and optimism of the child and her ability to heal her Grandfather.

Grimard's illustrations are stunning as usual, but I'm not so happy with the formatting of the text.

This was a beautiful book about a difficult subject. A young granddaughter learns of her grandfather's past at an Indian boarding school. He tells her of the difficulty of being separated from his family and the harsh treatment the children were subject to. Through her loving act of finding him a Cree book, she brings back the language that was taken from him as a child. The illustrations are lovely and support the text with a softness befitting the granddaughter's sweet nature.

Very sad story about a Cree grandfather who tells his daughter about being sent to a school for native American children where they weren't allowed to use their own languages or practice there own cultures, and rarely saw their parents or homes. Sad history with ramifications still being felt in native communities today. Wonderful illustrations.

Such a beautiful book! This emotional little story shows a grandfather explaining to his granddaughter that he cannot teach her to speak his native language, Cree, because he has forgotten it. As a boy, he was placed in an Indigenous boarding school, separated from his culture, torn from his family, and punished if he spoke Cree.

In just a few poignant words, this book had me crying. It deals with a very dark issue in such a sweet and loving way, and shows that while cruelty may impact our heritage, there is also healing to be found. The story is told in a simple way that is appropriate for young children, but also has an emotional impact for good.

The illustrations are just lovely! Every line seems to hold emotion and beauty in it, from the gnarled old grandfather with so much pain and regret in his face, to the sweet smile of his innocent little granddaughter, struggling to understand that there could be pain or cruelty in the world somewhere. There is a graceful movement to the illustrations that draws you ever deeper into the story.

After reading this I immediately began searching for more information about the Cree people, the schools that stole their children, the teachers that stole their language, and what I found horrified me. History is so brutal. Then I reread this little book again with new knowledge and understanding of what is hidden between the lines, and started crying again. I read it three times!

The very first line of this book is "She came home from school today." Just a sweet little girl walking from school to her happy home with her loving grandfather. She came home. But when he was a boy, her grandfather didn't come home from his school.
Every word in this book is purposeful and full of meaning. Brilliant writing! So touching.

The importance of heritage, family culture, and language in creating our identity is beautifully prominent in this book, told from the perspective and understanding of a little child.

Disclaimer: I received an ecopy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a free and honest review. All the opinions stated here are my own true thoughts and are not influenced by anyone.

Such a brilliant story with excellent illustrations. Children and adults alike need to read this book.