A Blanket of Butterflies

by Richard Van Camp, Scott B. Henderson (Illustrator), Donovan Yaciuk (Illustrator), Nickolej Villiger (Illustrator)

Overview

No one knows how a suit of samurai armour ended up in the Fort Smith museum. When a mysterious stranger turns up to claim it, Sonny, a young Tłı̨chǫ Dene boy, is eager to help.

Shinobu has travelled to Fort Smith, NWT, to reclaim his grandfather’s samurai sword and armour. But when he discovers that the sword was lost in a poker game, he must confront the man known as Benny the Bank. Along the way, Shinobu must rely on unlikely heroes—Sonny, his grandmother, and a visitor from the spirit world. Together, they face Benny and his men, including the giant they call Flinch.

Will Shinobu be able to regain the lost sword and, with it, his family’s honour? Can Sonny and his grandmother help Shinobu while keeping the peace in their community?

Now in full colour, this new edition includes additional background information and cultural context. Learn about the real-life inspiration behind the story and the intersections between Indigenous and Japanese Canadian experiences during the Second World War.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781774920404
Publisher:	Portage & Main Press
Publication date:	09/06/2022
Series:	The Spirit of Denendeh , #1
Edition description:	Second Edition
Pages:	56
Sales rank:	492,363
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.15(d)
Lexile:	HL510L (what's this?)
Age Range:	12 - 18 Years

About the Author

Richard Van Camp (he/him/his) is a proud member of the Tłı̨chǫ Nation from Fort Smith, Northwest Territories. He is the author of more than 25 books including The Lesser Blessed (also a feature film), the Eisner Award–nominated graphic novel A Blanket of Butterflies (with Scott B. Henderson), and Three Feathers (also a feature film). He is a contributor to the groundbreaking graphic novel anthology This Place: 150 Years Retold. Richard is also the author of five collections of short stories, including Night Moves, and six baby books, including the award-winning Little You (with Julie Flett).

Scott B. Henderson (he/him) is a freelance illustrator, whose reputation for cultural sensitivity and an openness to listen and learn has garnered a large body of work in collaboration with Indigenous and LGBTQIA+ communities. His work spans several critically acclaimed graphic novels, including 7 Generations: A Plains Cree Saga (Indigenous history & Residential Schools); A Girl Called Echo series (Métis history); A Blanket of Butterflies (2016 Eisner Nomination); a short story in Marvel Voices: Pride #1 (2022); and the post-apocalypse graphic novel, Last Breeds (fall 2024). Scott is a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. He resides in Winnipeg with his partner.

Since 1998, Donovan Yaciuk (he/him/his) has coloured books published by Marvel, DC, Dark Horse comics, and HighWater Press including the A Girl Called Echo and The Reckoner Rises series, as well as select stories in This Place: 150 Years Retold. Donovan holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Honours) from the University of Manitoba and began his career as a part of the legendary, now-defunct Digital Chameleon colouring studio. He lives in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, with his wife and two daughters.

Nickolej Villiger (he/him/his) is a comic book artist and illustrator. Nickolej is also a musician and has composed, produced, and arranged for video games and film. Dedicated to his family and fans of his work, he is most fulfilled when creating something that is uniquely his own. Nickolej lives and works in Lethbridge, Alberta.

Editorial Reviews

Richard Van Camp on his hope for The Spirit of Denendeh feature interview in the Quill & Quire.

Quill & Quire - Angela Wright

Among CBC Books 22 Canadian comics we can't wait to read this fall

CBC Books

Among American Indians in Children's Literature (AICL) Best Books 2022

American Indians in Children's Literature

The connections are mind-blowing...a beautiful book...a fascinating story.

The Next Chapter - Shelagh Rogers

Nominated for YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens List for 2024

Young Adult Library Association

A Blanket of Butterflies is a great addition to a high school library's graphic novel collection, a good choice as a supplemental novel for high school English classes, and certainly a must for any Indigenous studies class. Recommended.

CM Reviews - Joanne Peters

This beautiful new edition, illustrated in full colour for the first time, tells the story of a young Dene boy and his grandmother helping a Japanese man recover his grandfather’s armour.

Active History - Sean Graham

A Blanket of Butterflies is a powerful tribute to the ways that different peoples’ cultures and histories have crossed and become connected throughout history. This book has stunning and intricately crafted action sequences.

49th Kids - Spencer Miller

Get a copy of A Blanket of Butterflies for your library or classroom, or for your own young readers. I really like it and highly recommend it.

AICL - Debbie Reese

A powerful and emotional book. Five stars.

My Book Abyss

The pace of the novel, as well as the balance between text and image, [are] particularly satisfying.

There Will Be Books Blog - Karyn Huenemann

2022-07-27
When a Japanese man comes to Canada to claim his family’s samurai armor, he finds healing and peace with a Tłı̨chǫ Dene family.

In a museum in Fort Smith, Northwest Territories, Shinobu, a man from Nagasaki, has arrived to take a suit of samurai armor back to his family. Unfortunately, the museum’s old manager gambled the sword away to a man known as Benny the Bank. With the guidance of Sonny, a Tłı̨chǫ boy, he finds Benny’s place but is attacked and knocked unconscious. Sonny brings him back to his grandmother’s house, and together, with the help of a spirit, he and Ehtsi heal Shinobu’s wounds. After getting to know each other and sharing stories of their respective cultures and connected histories, Ehtsi suggests going together to retrieve the sword peacefully. Van Camp (Dogrib Tłı̨chǫ) was inspired by an actual suit of samurai armor of mysterious provenance at the Northern Life Museum. This is a striking colorized version of his 2015 original. The story and messages of honor, respect, peace, and human connection are powerful and moving. Touching on the impacts of the Second World War on First Nations communities and their link to the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, an author’s note and two notes from experts in the fields of history and museum education add valuable cultural and historical insights to support the story.

A powerful, visually impactful story of cross-culture relations. (Graphic fiction. 14-adult)

Kirkus Reviews