For many American parents and caregivers, Thanksgiving raises complicated questions about how best to explain our country’s relationship with indigenous people and their land, which the Pilgrims approached on the Mayflower in 1620. (The first harvest celebrations took place in 1621, and President Abraham Lincoln formalized a harvest holiday as Thanksgiving in 1863.)

This year, we decided to look to Joseph Bruchac, a children’s author whose background includes Native American heritage as well as English and Welsh, and who works to preserve Abenaki culture and traditions. He’s been writing for over 40 years, and he’s authored dozens of picture books for children about indigenous peoples' folklore and traditional stories, as well as nonfiction, plays, mysteries, and novels for older kids, teens, and adults.

Bruchac’s Thanksgiving book—Squanto’s Journey: The Story of the First Thanksgiving—is told from Squanto’s own point of view. It describes how he was kidnapped and enslaved by Europeans, and later returned to North America before he became a guide for the early settlers from the West.

But don't stop there. Thanksgiving offers a great opportunity to delve more generally Bruchac's retellings of folklore from the Muskogee, Iroquois, Cherokee, and more. He sometimes writes with his son James, and illustrators Jose Aruego and Ariane Dewey often lend appealing, cartoony animal illustrations to the stories.

Here are just a few of our favorites:

Raccoon's Last Race: A Traditional Abenaki Story
Azban the Raccoon loves to race on his long legs. He is the fastest of all the animals, but he’s also the most conceited, mocking everyone with his speed. When the other animals grow tired of his attitude, Azban chooses Big Rock as his next opponent. Busy taunting instead of running, he trips, and Big Rock flattens him. Only the ants will help stretch him out againas long as he promises to be their friend. But will a trickster like Azban keep his word?
 

How Chipmunk Got His Stripes: A Tale of Bragging and Teasing
Bear brags that he can do anything-even stop the sun from rising. Brown Squirrel doesn't believe him, so the two wait all night to see if the sun will rise. Sure enough, the sky reddens and the sun appears. Brown Squirrel is so happy to be right that he teases Bear. What happens when a little brown squirrel teases a big black bear? Brown Squirrel gets stripes and is called chipmunk from that day forward .

Rabbit's Snow Dance: A Traditional Iroquois Story
A whimsical wintertime fable finds Rabbit using a traditional Iroquois drum and song to perform a snow dance, irritating his fellow creatures by causing incremental snowfall amounts well into the spring.

Turtle's Race with Beaver: A Traditional Seneca Story 
Turtle lives in a beautiful little pond with everything a happy turtle needs. But one spring, Turtle awakes from hibernation to discover that her lovely home has been invaded! A pushy beaver takes over Turtle's beloved pond and refuses to share. Instead, he challenges her to a race to determine who can stay. But how can a little turtle outswim a big, powerful beaver? This charming fable of brains versus brawn is a great read for all the young readers in the forest to share!

The Great Ball Game: A Muskogee Story
Bat, who has both wings and teeth, plays an important part in a game between the Birds and the Animals to decide which group is better.

Find more of Bruchac’s books for all ages in our catalog, as well as a full complement of Thanksgiving picture books. There are many with familiar picture-book characters we all know and love—Llama, the Sesame Street gang, Curious George, Snoopy, and more. 

NYPL also has more recommended books for Native American Heritage Month and more Thanksgiving posts, including a list of books our staff members are thankful for. 

Plus, a few more Thanksgiving resources for kids and adults alike:

• The National Museum of the American Indian put out a Harvest Ceremony Study Guide that debunks the standard “first Thanksgiving” myth many Americans grew up with. 

• The Smithsonian also has materials that offer American Indian perspectives on the holiday, including images and kids’ activities. 

• On her American Indians in Literature blog, Debbie Reese also publishes a guide and lesson plan about Thanksgiving (and reminds us all to center books by indigenous authors all year long).

Summaries provided via NYPL’s catalog, which draws from multiple sources. Click through to each book’s title for more.

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Have trouble reading standard print? Many of these titles are available in formats for patrons with print disabilities.

Staff picks are chosen by NYPL staff members and are not intended to be comprehensive lists. We'd love to hear your ideas too, so leave a comment and tell us what you’d recommend. And check out our Staff Picks browse tool for more recommendations!