A Stranger At Home

Traveling to be reunited with her family in the arctic, 10-year-old Margaret Pokiak can hardly contain her excitement. It's been two years since her parents delivered her to the school run by the dark-cloaked nuns and brothers. Coming ashore, Margaret spots her family, but her mother barely recognizes her, screaming, "Not my girl." Margaret realizes she is now marked as an outsider. And Margaret is an outsider: she has forgotten the language and stories of her people, and she can't even stomach the food her mother prepares.

However, Margaret gradually relearns her language and her family's way of living. Along the way, she discovers how important it is to remain true to the ways of her people and to herself. Highlighted by archival photos and striking artwork, this first-person account of a young girl's struggle to find her place will inspire young readers to ask what it means to belong. (From Annick Press)

Margaret-Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton wasaInuvialuit knowledge keeper andresidential school survivor. She was the co-author of several books, includingFatty Legs: A True Story,When I Was EightandNot My Girl.She diedon June 2, 2021.

Christy Jordan-Fentonis Pokiak-Fenton's daughter-in-law and co-author. She now lives in Fort St. John, B.C.

Gabrielle Grimard has illustrated over 30 picture books, includingStolen Words,When I Was Eight,Not My GirlandStolen Words.She lives in Quebec.

• Margaret Pokiak-Fenton and Christy Jordan-Fenton talk about the 10th anniversary of children's bookFatty Legs
• 48 books by Indigenous writers to read to understand residential schools
• 44 books to read from Indigenous creators who identify as women and/or two-spirit

Interviews

Unreserved6:31Residential school memoir set to become new Canadian children's classic

An Inuk grandmother's life has inspired a best-selling series of books about residential school so popular, they're set to become Canadian children's classic. Fatty Legs, the first in the series, is still making Top 10 lists six years after coming out.

Other books byMargaret-Olemaun Pokiak-Fenton