What Your Ribbon Skirt Means to Me - by Alexis Bunten (Hardcover)

About the Book

"A picture book homage to community and contemporary Native pride, intimately set in the comfort of an urban Native community center that is celebrating the inauguration of Deb Haaland as Secretary of the Interior on March 18, 2021"--

Book Synopsis

This beautiful, informative, Indigenous picture book offers both an homage to Secretary Deb Haaland's achievements, and a celebration of urban Indigenous community through the eyes of a little girl.

Pia rushes over to the Indigenous community center after school. It's where she goes every day to play outside with friends and work on her homework. But today--March 18, 2021--is special: Auntie Autumn gathers all the children around their television to witness Secretary Deb Haaland in her ribbon skirt at the White House as she becomes the first Native American to serve as a cabinet secretary. Pia and the other kids behold her Native pride on an international stage. Together with their parents and Elders, the children explore the values woven into their own regalia, land, community, and traditions, making precious memories on this day they won't soon forget.

A Center for the Study of Multicultural Children's Literature Best Book of 2023
A Rise: A Feminist Book Project List Selection

Review Quotes

Praise for What Your Ribbon Skirt Means to Me:
A Center for the Study of Multicultural Children's Literature Best Book of the Year
A Rise: A Feminist Book Project List Selection

"Bunten (Aleut/Yup'ik) engages readers with lively language. Neidhardt's (Diné) bold, realistic art radiates with strength, especially when Pia's grandmother teaches her about the importance of regalia. A powerful story of intergenerational strength, womanhood, and Native pride."--Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"Could be used in units on Indigenous history or during Women's History Month. It would make a great companion to Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard and Sharice's Big Voice by Sharice Davids. An accessible picture book about an important voice on the U.S. political scene."--SLJ

"This simple story . . . artfully folds in all kinds of cultural details about Indigenous ceremonies, customs, and beliefs. Filled with bright, full-page illustrations, this attractive publication celebrates multiple urban and intertribal Native American traditions."--Booklist, starred review

About the Author

Alexis Bunten (Aleut/Yup'ik) has served as a manager, consultant, and applied researcher for Indigenous, social and environmental programming for over 15 years. She holds a BA in Art History from Dartmouth College and a PhD in Cultural Anthropology from UCLA. Alexis has published widely about Indigenous and environmental issues. She is the award-winning author of So, How Long Have You Been Native? and Keepunumuk: Weeâchumun's Thanksgiving Story​.

Nicole Neidhardt is Diné (Navajo) of the Kiiyaa'áanii Clan, and is originally from Santa Fe, New Mexico. She has a BFA from the University of Victoria as well as an MFA at OCAD University in Toronto. Nicole's Diné identity is the heart of her practice, which encompasses illustration, installation, murals, and Indigenous Futurisms.