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Starred Review This poignant and heartfelt narrative delves into the history of one Hopi family while highlighting the resilience of the Hopi people across generations as they keep their culture and language alive despite attempts of forced assimilation. The story is an ode to Honyouti's kwa'a (grandfather), taking readers on a journey through the cornfields where the narrator recalls cherished moments spent together. Through evocative storytelling, the narrator reveals a painful chapter of his grandfather's childhood ing taken away to a state residential school, a place designed to erase his cultural identity. The book powerfully portrays the emotional and cultural toll of such experiences while also celebrating the strength and perseverance of the Hopi people. Each page also includes the Hopi translation of the text, adding to the reading experience. The illustrations, rendered in a unique style of acrylic paint on hand-carved panels, vividly bring each scene to life. Coming Home is an invaluable resource for classrooms, particularly those looking to include stories of resilience and remembrance. It offers young learners an accessible and powerful narrative about the importance of language preservation and the strength of the human spirit. Back matter details the author's and translator's journeys, as well as the process of creating the illustrations.
Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)An Indigenous man passes on his culture of resilienceRenowned Hopi carver Honyouti (Iswungwa) tells the true story of how his kwa'a (grandfather) Clyde survived the terror of residential boarding school. Despite his parents' brave attempts to hide him from government agents, Clyde was taken to Keams Canyon, Arizona. He and the other Native children brought there were forced to cut their hair and assume "a good Christian name." Yet every trauma the children endured was met with resistance. When they were punished for speaking Hopi, the kids "whispered to each other instead." When Clyde and his friend were whipped for trying to run away from the school, they didn't give up-they tried again to return to their families. Even the forced adoption of a new name became an act of rebellion. Though "Honyouti" became Clyde's last name due to an agent's misunderstanding of his real name, Honkuku, his family takes pride in the name's meaning: "a pack of bears that are running together." Honyouti's rich wood carvings, painted with acrylics, beautifully illuminate this account of ancestral pride, Indigenous power, and intergenerational memory. The text is presented in both English and Hopilavayi and concludes with backmatter about Hopi history, Parra's work translating the story, and Honyouti's art. This powerful tale is a much-needed reminder that the stories of Indigenous peoples, despite being threaded with trauma, are marked by defiance and pride.A stirring tribute to Hopi culture, language, and resistance.(Picture-book biography. 6-10)
Kirkus ReviewsAn Indigenous man passes on his culture of resilienceRenowned Hopi carver Honyouti (Iswungwa) tells the true story of how his kwa'a (grandfather) Clyde survived the terror of residential boarding school. Despite his parents' brave attempts to hide him from government agents, Clyde was taken to Keams Canyon, Arizona. He and the other Native children brought there were forced to cut their hair and assume "a good Christian name." Yet every trauma the children endured was met with resistance. When they were punished for speaking Hopi, the kids "whispered to each other instead." When Clyde and his friend were whipped for trying to run away from the school, they didn't give up-they tried again to return to their families. Even the forced adoption of a new name became an act of rebellion. Though "Honyouti" became Clyde's last name due to an agent's misunderstanding of his real name, Honkuku, his family takes pride in the name's meaning: "a pack of bears that are running together." Honyouti's rich wood carvings, painted with acrylics, beautifully illuminate this account of ancestral pride, Indigenous power, and intergenerational memory. The text is presented in both English and Hopilavayi and concludes with backmatter about Hopi history, Parra's work translating the story, and Honyouti's art. This powerful tale is a much-needed reminder that the stories of Indigenous peoples, despite being threaded with trauma, are marked by defiance and pride.A stirring tribute to Hopi culture, language, and resistance.(Picture-book biography. 6-10)
Starred Review ALA Booklist (Thu Oct 31 00:00:00 CDT 2024)
Starred Review for Kirkus Reviews (Fri Oct 04 00:00:00 CDT 2024)
Kirkus Reviews
From master Hopi woodcarver Mavasta Honyouti, the story of his grandfather’s experience at a residential boarding school and how he returned home to pass their traditions down to future generations.
When Mavasta Honyouti was a boy he would go with his grandfather to their cornfield, watching him nurture every plant. During breaks, his grandfather would take out a piece of paako root and use his pocketknife to whittle away. He made beautiful carvings that Mavasta would later learn to do himself.
But Mavasta would often wonder: what was his kwa’a like when he was a boy? And one day, he heard the story.
Mavasta’s grandfather, like many Native American children across the country in the late 19th and early 20th century, was forced to leave his Hopi reservation as a child and go to a residential boarding school far away. There, the government cut his hair, punished him for speaking his native language, and gave him a new name. But Mavasta's grandfather never forgot who he was – or where he came from – and he tried to escape again and again. Finally, he made it back to their reservation.
In later years, Mavasta’s kwa’a chose a simple life, taking great care of his family just like he took great care of his plants. His son and later his grandson became acclaimed Hopi katsina woodcarvers, just like him. Coming Home: A Hopi Resistance Story is a deeply personal book – written in both English and Hopi – that features sixteen stunning original painted wood carvings. It is an unforgettable testament to one man rising above a painful piece of history to keep the light of his family and culture alive.