Books with author Virginia Driving Haw Sneve

Virginia s old coat is too small. The cold South Dakota wind blows across the Rosebud Indian Reservation, making her shiver as she walks to school. Virginia dreams of a new coat arriving in the Theast boxes--parcels of clothing from churches in The East. But, she knows she may not have a chance for a coat this year. Her father is the village Episcopal priest, so her family chooses last, and as Mama always says, The others need it more than we do. Generosity and unexpected joy remind Virginia of the importance of community within this story from the author s childhood.

The friendship and adventures of Iktomi, the trickster figure from Lakota legend, and Troll, the familiar character from Norse mythology, are the subject of this imaginative, marvelously spun tale. While searching for his Norwegian immigrant family, the gentle, lumbering Troll meets Iktomi. The vain, opportunistic Trickster soon discovers that he too has lost his people, the Lakota. When Iktomi and Troll eventually find their peoples, they are neither recognized nor wanted. The lonely Trickster and the Troll find solace in their friendship and take refuge in a cave. Many years pass before they are rediscovered and loved again.

Strange events and an undercurrent of tension permeate The Chichi Hoohoo Bogeyman. While secretly exploring an old fort on the South Dakota prairie, three Indian girls encounter a stranger. One of the girls playfully names him the chichi hoohoo bogeyman, after the Sioux, Hopi, and white figures used to discipline children. On a forbidden outing the girls again encounter the stranger, who starts to chase them as they run away in fear. Swearing themselves to secrecy, they become further unsettled when they return home and hear the adults talk of recent unexplained occurrences at home, perhaps driven by spirits. The most rebellious of the girls disappears before the mystery of the chichi hoohoo bogeyman comes to light. Booklist praised the “fresh, in-tune portrayal of the girls and their families” and recommended the book for readers in grades 3 to 5. This Bison Books edition includes a new introduction by the author.

The friendship and adventures of Iktomi, the trickster figure from Lakota legend, and Troll, the familiar character from Norse mythology, are the subject of this imaginative, marvelously spun tale. While searching for his Norwegian immigrant family, the gentle, lumbering Troll meets Iktomi. The vain, opportunistic Trickster soon discovers that he too has lost his people, the Lakota. When Iktomi and Troll eventually find their peoples, they are neither recognized nor wanted. The lonely Trickster and the Troll find solace in their friendship and take refuge in a cave. Many years pass before they are rediscovered and loved again.

For Ages 8 and upImagine having to argue in court that you are a person. Yet this is just what Standing Bear, of the Ponca Indian tribe, did in Omaha in 1879. And because of this trial, the law finally said that an Indian was indeed a person, with rights just like any other American.Standing Bear of the Ponca tells the story of this historic leader, from his childhood education in the ways and traditions of his people to his trials and triumphs as chief of the Bear Clan of the Ponca tribe. Most harrowing is the winter trek on which Standing Bear led his displaced people, starving and sick with malaria, back to their homeland—only to be arrested by the U.S. government, which set the stage for his famous trial. Standing Bear’s story is also the story of a changing America, when the Ponca, like so many Indian tribes, felt the pressure of pioneers looking to settle the West. Standing Bear died in 1908, but his legacy and influence continue even up to the present.

This charming and poignant contemporary story about two Lakota girls and their Laotian friend illuminates for children and adults the Lakota meaning of family, friendship, life, and death. In the Lakota way, Lana and her cousin Lori are like sisters, growing up together under the caring eyes of an extended family of parents and grandparents. Also like sisters, they have their share of squabbles and fights, but when they meet a new girl at school who has recently arrived from Laos, they are drawn closer by their shared friendship, their discoveries about cultural differences, and their experience with loss and death. An image of footprints in the snow, one under the other so that it looks as if only one person is walking, becomes the central compelling image in the story. "We can't keep snow from melting," says Grandpa, "But the footprints will always be there, even if we can't see them." Taking her inspiration from Lakota and Asian students in her home state of South Dakota, award-winning children's writer Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve has crafted a simple story of friendship that survives a tragic year, beautifully illuminating along the way many profound truths about the human spirit.

For Ages 8 and upImagine having to argue in court that you are a person. Yet this is just what Standing Bear, of the Ponca Indian tribe, did in Omaha in 1879. And because of this trial, the law finally said that an Indian was indeed a person, with rights just like any other American.Standing Bear of the Ponca tells the story of this historic leader, from his childhood education in the ways and traditions of his people to his trials and triumphs as chief of the Bear Clan of the Ponca tribe. Most harrowing is the winter trek on which Standing Bear led his displaced people, starving and sick with malaria, back to their homeland—only to be arrested by the U.S. government, which set the stage for his famous trial. Standing Bear’s story is also the story of a changing America, when the Ponca, like so many Indian tribes, felt the pressure of pioneers looking to settle the West. Standing Bear died in 1908, but his legacy and influence continue even up to the present.

The friendship and adventures of Iktomi, the trickster figure from Lakota legend, and Troll, the familiar character from Norse mythology, are the subject of this imaginative, marvelously spun tale. While searching for his Norwegian immigrant family, the gentle, lumbering Troll meets Iktomi. The vain, opportunistic Trickster soon discovers that he too has lost his people, the Lakota. When Iktomi and Troll eventually find their peoples, they are neither recognized nor wanted. The lonely Trickster and the Troll find solace in their friendship and take refuge in a cave. Many years pass before they are rediscovered and loved again.