This was a haunting look at a tragedy that is allowed to run rampant without even a fraction of the attention it deserves. Absolutely required reading.

Hands down one of the best reads of the year and very glad to see it on OLA Forest of Reading short list for this year. Important book to have on our shelves and to be sharing with students and staff.

December 10, 2020 is the 72nd anniversary of the United Nation's General Assembly adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, "a milestone document that proclaims the inalienable rights which everyone is entitled to as a human being – regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.”

This 2019 YA graphic novel by Brianna Jonnie (author) and Neal Shannacappo (illustrator) takes its text from a letter Brianna Jonnie sent to the Winnipeg Chief of Police when she was 14.

In gist, this novel, and the letter, brings to the forefront the very pressing danger of being an Indigenous teen in Canada today. In her letter that went viral, has become a documentary, and is now set to print through this graphic novel, the author calls out authorities for their lack of urgency in investigating missing Indigenous teens.

One of the most striking statements from this letter:

If I go missing, do not treat me like the Indigenous person I am proud to be.

Even if today is not Human Rights Day, this is a message to be heard and actioned.

This was a good representation of the poem. I will not say, however, that is outbreaking, 'cause we can fin a lot pf looks alike all over the web

A really great story and a must-read, it is a perfect novel to help spread awareness against murders and kidnappings of indigenous people. I loved loved loved it. Looking forward to more books from this author.😍

In 2016, Brianna Jonnie, a 14 year old Indigenous girl in Winnipeg, wrote a letter to her local police chief and politicians, asking them to change the way missing and murdered Indigenous women's cases were handled. The letter went viral, garnering her national attention in Canada, and got her a meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to discuss her concerns. This book is an illustrated version of her letter, with the full letter at the end, and an afterword that talks about the treatment of Indigenous women in Canada and around the world. The artwork, while not my favorite style, effectively conveys the message of the letter, giving weight to the words in a powerful way. This is a quick read, but important and sobering. It really makes you feel your white privilege.

#IfIGoMissing #NetGalley

I appreciate how this graphic brings an important issue to light in a more accessible way for teens (and even adults). I hadn't previously heard of this letter, and by the end of the book felt informed and engaged enough to care about this under-reported matter. The drawings add an extra layer of vulnerability and make the words stick with you longer.

Powerful book with a really important message for today's readers. The artwork is beautiful, dark, and leaves the reader thinking about it long after the book is finished.

2 1/2 Stars

I was browsing NetGalley when this graphic novel jumped out at me. The description sounded perfect for me, and I was excited to start reading it. Unfortunately, this book was nothing like I expected.

If I Go Missing is illustrating a powerful letter that went viral. When I read a graphic novel, I expect to find the book well illustrated. Judging from the cover, I expected to enjoy the artist's style, but I disliked them. The graphics were incredibly subpar. It was shocking how poorly done they were. The main character's skin color regularly changed, and the graphics looked like a middle schooler drew them.

As much as I liked the message of the book, I could not take this book seriously. Graphics are incredibly important in a graphic novel. Ultimately I'm rating this 2 1/2 stars. The message was excellent, nothing else was.

I don't know if this was just a preview or the entire graphic novel. I liked that a letter that was actually written was illustrated for emphasis but I was expecting that letter to be turned into a story of some sort and not just the letter itself illustrated. The bit of story it did was illustrated beautifully.

If I Go Missing is a powerful graphic novel that packs a punch in just a few pages. Based on a letter Brianna Jonnie wrote the Winnipeg Police Service when she was only 14 years old, it highlights the crisis that Indigenous communities are facing when girls from their communities go missing. There is often a delay in investigations, and the media portrayal of the girls is often quite different than it is when White children go missing. The illustrations really drive the message of Brianna's letter. I hope that this book will make more people aware of the crisis that is happening, and more efforts will be made to find missing Indigenous girls and protect girls in those communities from violence.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

The artwork in this novel was amazing and very detailed. I do wish it was a little longer but it was a very strong and well written graphic novel.

If I Go Missing is the novelization of the open letter that Brianna Johnnie wrote to the Winnipeg Police as a fourteen year old girl, urging the authorities to deal with the issue of so many neglected cases of crimes against indigenous women better. Her words terrify and move the reader. Despite being so young, there is a certain maturity to her voice that is heartbreaking to bear witness to.

It is really hard for me to rate and review non-fiction like this because honestly, what can you say?! There is nothing but truth in this book, and I can only hope that it reaches the people it needs to reach and fosters the change it aims to bring in the world. I'm neither from Canada nor am I indigenous in this context, but I empathize. And I acknowledge this work for the much needed conversation starter that it is.

My only issue with this book is that it felt too short. I feel like dding a few more stories from the community would have given this book an extra umph. It is too short and concise and I fear that this will affect the impact that it will create. I was also not a huge fan of the art style, although I loved how the only colour used in the panels was red, an ode to the REDress project!

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me with an early copy of this book to review! All opinions are my own!

⭐⭐⭐⭐4 Stars
This was haunting.

The beautiful artwork by Neal Shannacappo combined with the heartbreaking realities detailed in Brianna Jonnie's letter creates a striking call to action for the Canadian Police force to confront the dangers indigenous women face every day.

It is powerfully articulate and details (through illustrations) a young woman's disappearance and the reaction of her community, friends, the police and media. Centring on the lack of publicity that these cases get and the inaction of the police force. This story is important and the graphic novel format makes this easily accessible for those who have difficulty reading nonfiction or biographical text. Moreover. The illustrated narrative by Shannacappo adds another layer to this raw story of grief and hope. Splashes of red made the horrors of abduction and murder more effective.

Overall, read this graphic novel to begin to understand the trails that indigenous women face.

Preorder now CLICK HERE📫

I received an advance review copy for free from James Lorimer & Company and Lorimer Children & Teens. I am leaving this review voluntarily. 📚

This is a graphic novel written from a teenage girls perspective, asking the police to do a better job when it comes to searching for missing Indigenous girls and women. Indigenous girls and women are more likely to be assaulted, raped, murdered, or just disappeared from society than any other group out there. The government does not even keep statistics on how many Indigenous girls and women go missing and are still missing, no one knows the actual number, but many people feel the loss. Jonnie actually wrote this letter to the chief of police in 2016, though she does not talk about whether it had an impact or not.

This is a really intense graphic novel, but very easy to read. Perfect for sharing with teens and getting them involved in actions such as the Red Dress Project, which is an art project that displays red dresses in community spaces as a way to remind the community how many women and girls are no longer with them. I think everyone should take the time to read this and to realize how big of an issue this truly is. This is a way to start asking those of your community to do better.



Copy provided by NetGalley.

If I Go Missing is an important graphic novel about how missing indigenous girls are not treated the same as other missing persons.

While the story is an important one, I felt like If I Go Missing lacked the depth needed to truly make an impact. A quick read, but one that won't stick enough to effect change.

I cannot think of a word other than haunting that sums up my experience with this graphic novel, and even that adjective does not do. With new books, I try to avoid all descriptions and summaries before and during my reading process so that I can experience the work entirely on my own. I was not familiar with Brianna Jonnie, so I went into this letter blindly. I read the words and admired the images thinking that, while the message is undoubtedly important and the conversation bitterly necessary, the fourteen-year-old narrator was at least partially a work of fiction. The message came across undeniably, but seeing the full text of Brianna Jonnie's letter to the Winnipeg Police Service made me feel even more uneasy to say the least. The fact that a fourteen-year-old girl felt the need to express these thoughts to individuals in positions of power in an attempt to change the social discord regarding indigenous populations--specifically women and girls--is just gut-wrenching. No teenager should shoulder the weight of these statements, and yet Brianna Jonnie does so with powerful words and a clear call to action. Truly a poignant work of nonfiction and done so in a beautiful format.

This is a very real letter of a very real thing that happens to Indigenous women every day. It's not secret that the media will raise hell for a lost white child, but ignore or brush off the Missing/Murdered Indigenous Women & Girls when they have disappeared. If this is something you or someone you know can't seem to comprehend, read this book, because it couldn't be clearer. We cannot keep treating this issue like a faceless statistic. and every single one of these women deserves not only justice, but to not have to fear or suffer kidnappings and murder in the first place. If I Go Missing is a visual and powerful graphic novel that doesn't beat around the bush. This should be required in libraries and classrooms. I hope this book will educate people who don't know about or understand what has been happening to Indigenous women ever since colonization.

Haunting is not even the word. Such beautiful artwork that highlights such an important and vital issue and makes it known to society. And the way it depicts a real-life letter was just both innovative and complete genius. This eye-opening graphic novel that sheds the necessary light on the plight of the indigenous people.

Wow, wow, wow! This little book just broke my heart into a million pieces. It is a powerful and moving tribute to the thousands of indigenous women and girls who are murdered or go missing every year around the world, including the United States and Canada. It is also a call to action — and it comes from a teenage girl. Highly recommended.