The Water Walker

by Joanne Robertson

Overview

The story of a determined Ojibwe Grandmother (Nokomis) Josephine-ba Mandamin and her great love for Nibi (water). Nokomis walks to raise awareness of our need to protect Nibi for future generations, and for all life on the planet. She, along with other women, men, and youth, have walked around all the Great Lakes from the four salt waters, or oceans, to Lake Superior. The walks are full of challenges, and by her example Josephine-ba invites us all to take up our responsibility to protect our water, the giver of life, and to protect our planet for all generations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781772602302
Publisher:	Second Story Press
Publication date:	05/18/2021
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	36
File size:	12 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	6 - 9 Years

About the Author

Joanne Robertson is AnishinaabeKwe and a member of Atikameksheng Anishnawbek. She received her Fine Arts degree from Algoma University and Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig. She founded the Empty Glass for Water campaign to bring attention to the drinking water crisis in Indigenous communities. She works as a research assistant at the Shingwauk Residential Schools Centre and continues to support the water walks. Joanne lives near Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario.

Editorial Reviews

"The Water Walker is a wonderful book about conservation, environmentalism, and preservation, written in a way that even the youngest audience can understand why Nibi is important and why we should protect Nibi.... The book has the potential to be a highly interactive book around which science lesson plans could be formed. Students can discuss how they are protecting Nibi, they can write letters to Nokomis, and there can be discussion around the ways they can create change in the world, just as Nokomis did."

Resource Links

"... a worthwhile addition to classroom and public libraries and a resource for discussions about First Nations and ecology."

CM: Canadian Review of Materials

"Josephine Mandamin has inspired countless adults to care passionately about protecting the waters of the earth. Now through Joanne Robertson's magical book, Josephine will inspire children to know they can change the world."

Maude Barlow

"With a message that is both timely and timeless, The Water Walker... will prove to be an enduringly popular addition to family, preschool, elementary school, and community library collections."

Midwest Book Review

"... like so many titles about Indigenous topics finally earning shelf space in Canadian libraries and bookshops, The Water Walker has just as much to teach parents as the children... Joanne Robertson succeeds in answering with her words and her art the same question that Nokomis Josephine answered with her footsteps: 'What are you going to do about it?'"

Anishinabek News

"[The author’s] artwork in this picture book is colorful and accessible for readers, and she gives readers a solid inspirational story on a critical topic while even adding in a bit of humor…This book would be a good addition to a school or public library, and it would also be a good addition to text sets or lessons about conservation efforts or natural resources or Native Americans."

Kutztown Review - Karen J. Wanamaker

"The simple text and colourful pictures are the perfect medium to convey the urgency of the Water Walkers' initiative. Teachers and students can use [the] story to park and ignite their own activism around water protection."

Professionally Speaking - Joe Restoule General

"Joanne Roberston reconstructs Josephine's remarkable story with simple prose and colourful illustrations that will appeal to young readers."

Canadian Children's Book News

It is the epitome of #OwnVoices.... Robertson turned Mandamin's work into an engaging story that invites children to learn about her activism.... The Water Walker is an extraordinary book.

American Indians in Children's Literature - Debbie Reese

09/01/2017
K-Gr 2—Nokomis Josephine Mandamin, an Anishinaabekwe (Ojibwe grandmother) started walking in 2003 to draw attention to issues of water quality and scarcity. Not just a mile or two—no, Josephine and the Mother Earth Water Walkers circumnavigated the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River and traversed the United States, from ocean to ocean. With a copper pail of water and an eagle-head staff in hand, Josephine and the Mother Earth Water Walkers continue their tradition each year. Conservation, spirituality, and determination are the warp and weft of the story as author/illustrator Robertson (also an Anishinaabekwe) shares Nokomis's deep commitment to water. Robertson's naive-folk art mash-up, however, lacks the same strength as her narrative. Wobbly lines give the book a homespun, unfinished quality. Several spreads, including one of the Water Walkers weeping as they pour water from their pail into Lake Superior, deserve a long look, but inconsistencies should give a purchaser pause. The mostly mouthless and noseless characters in the second half of the book convey solemnity, but other emotions are hard to decipher. Problems with scale abound, and text written in two different hands distracts. A glossary of Ojibwe terms is appended. VERDICT A worthwhile read about a First Nation grandmother and her committment to one of our most important resources, but lacking in the quality of the illustrations.—Kristy Kilfoyle, Canterbury School, Fort Myers, FL

School Library Journal

2017-06-14
A picture book that tells the story of the Mother Earth Water Walkers, a group that walks to bring awareness to the importance of clean water. Nokomis ("grandmother") Josephine Mandamin, an Ojibwe, loves and respects Nibi ("water"), greeting it every morning with gratitude. Hearing an elder predict that clean water will soon be more precious than gold, Nokomis decides to take action. She and other women begin to walk, first around the Great Lakes (an endeavor that takes seven years), then around other bodies of water, to highlight the importance of unpolluted water. Author/illustrator Robertson, an AnishinaabeKwe, tells her true story without lecturing and fills it with bright, effectively childlike illustrations. She writes with verve and occasional gentle humor about the need to respect Nibi and to make decisions for "your grandchildren's grandchildren." The humor extends to the illustrations; in one image Nokomis sits with her feet in bunny slippers, using her laptop to buy new sneakers. There is a slight storyline confusion (was it Nokomis Josephine or other women who did the walking from the four points of Turtle Island?), but this is a small quibble in a book about such a large issue. The illustrated glossary with pronunciations is essential, since Robertson uses Ojibwe words throughout, a decision that enhances the book's substance. An important topic is treated with grace, love, and a smidgen of humor in this delightful, necessary book. (informational note) (Picture book. 3-7)

Kirkus Reviews