The dedication of this book is not to be missed: "To my ancestors who fought in the Battle of Batoche. If only I could rewrite history."
Carole Lindstrom — the New York Times bestselling author whose We Are Water Protectors won the 2021 Caldecott Medal for the most distinguished U.S. picture book — here brings us a tale of a girl's courage when her village is in dire danger. Rose lives in Batoche, Saskatchewan, which we now know as a decisive battle site in the Northwest Resistance of 1885.
But as the book begins, Rose is simply a 12-year-old with a protective mother, an understanding father, and a sometimes pesky little sister. Her Métis community — a distinct Indigenous Nation — has up to this time been her entire life. Rose loves their land, their home, the rolling hills, the prairie, the trees, and mornings by the river. She wishes she were a boy so that she could be useful in ways that domestic chores don't allow.
She gets her first chance when she's allowed to go on a moose hunt. But it isn't long before her adventuresome spirit is called to a much larger challenge, when their land comes under threat by encroaching settlers, the military, and the Canadian government. Her creativity, stealthiness, and spirit of rebellion become essential assets in an early success in the Battle of Batoche, when she helps cripple the steamboat Northcoate, carrying Canadian troops.
Those of you who know this history will be aware that in the end the battle did not go the way the rebels hoped. The story hints at this tragic outcome, the reason Lindstrom wishes she could rewrite history. But it remains age appropriate, focusing on the powerful resistance and the assurance that Rose's family and the Métis people will stick together no matter what happens.
Lindstrom is Anishinaabe/Métis and an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe. She tells this story with an understanding that comes from the inside out. In her Author's Note, she writes, "This is my Little House on the Prairie from a Native perspective of a young girl, much like Laura Ingalls." The reading age given is eight to 11 years, but teenagers could also appreciate and benefit from the story.
