I sang you down from the stars6/7/2023 And so I looked to her and her life and her culture as much as I could. You know, she welcomed her baby Isabella right about the time I finished the book. And I also wanted to root the visual story in Tasha's world as much as I could. And so I relied on that to help lend some authenticity from my end to the story. And then with the author, with Tasha Spillett-Sumner's Cree world view, it lends itself a really beautiful, unique quality to the story."Īt the core of this book were themes that I often explore in my own work as well in terms of, you know, land is central to identity and love for land, and how it ties us to our Indigenous cultures. "And it's the sort of magical journey that she goes through as she realizes she's pregnant, as she prepares for this child, and then she welcomes the child into the world. She says she was drawn to the story because it focused on the woman's preparation before she becomes a mother. The beautiful tapestry-like illustrations in the book visualize motherhood in Cree culture.Īrtist Michela Goade, who has Tlingit heritage and just this year won a Caldecott Medal, is the illustrator of I Sang You Down from the Stars. She gathers sacred elements from the Earth into a bundle for her baby, and whispers the protective prayers of her ancestors. With these opening lines, children's author Tasha Spillett-Sumner follows a mother-to-be who prepares for the arrival of her child by following the rites of her Indigenous heritage.
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