Red Bird Sings

"I remember the day I lost my spirit." So begins the story of Gertrude Simmons, also known as Zitkala-Sa, which means Red Bird. Born in 1876 on the Yankton Sioux reservation in South Dakota, Zitkala-Sa willingly left her home at age eight to go to a boarding school in Indiana. But she soon found herself caught between two worlds--white and Native American.

At school she missed her mother and her traditional life, but Zitkala-Sa found joy in music classes. "My wounded spirit soared like a bird as I practiced the piano and violin," she wrote. Her talent grew, and when she graduated, she became a music teacher, composer, and performer.

Zitkala-Sa found she could also "sing" to help her people by writing stories and giving speeches. As an adult, she worked as an activist for Native American rights, seeking to build a bridge between cultures.

The coauthors tell Zitkala-Sa's life by weaving together pieces from her own stories. The artist's acrylic illustrations and collages of photos and primary source documents round out the vivid portrait of Zitkala-Sa, a frightened child whose spirit "would rise again, stronger and wiser for the wounds it had suffered."

“"Zitkala-Sa, whose name means Red Bird, also known as Gertrude Simmons Bonnin, was Yankton Sioux, a musician, writer, composer and activist who was born in the year of Little Bighorn.Capaldi and Pearce have taken three of the stories Zitkala-Sa wrote for the Atlantic Monthly, presumed to be autobiographical, and retold them with additional material. While the language has been somewhat modernized, it still sounds quite stilted and overwrought to contemporary ears, although it is very much in the heightened style of the time. The stories are powerful: having her long, thick hair cut short at White's Manual Labor Institute in Wabash, Ind.; winning oratory contests at Earlham College while facing a huge banner with the word 'Squaw' on it; teaching at Carlisle Indian School and playing the violin before President McKinley; writing the Sun Dance opera (the first Native American to write an opera and have it staged); working in Washington D.C. for the National Council of American Indians. The illustrations use collages of newspaper clippings, railroad tickets, Atlantic Monthly logos and other archival materials over the loosely drawn, textured images. An afterword, source note and selected bibliographies are included, but the use of the first person may give scholarly pause, especially for young readers, who may not wish to pursue the various bibliographical sources.An important figure of myriad talents, Zitkala-Sa and her life and works are brought to needed attention here, but it's too bad the treatment isn't a bit clearer." --Kirkus Reviews”

"An important figure of myriad talents, Zitkala-Sa and her life and works are brought to needed attention here." --Kirkus Reviews

-- (9/1/2011 12:00:00 AM)

"Drawing from semiautobiographical stories that Zitkala-Sa wrote for the Atlantic Monthly in the early 1900s, Capaldi and Pearce eloquently describe her experience at a Quaker boarding school, where she laments the loss of her culture, but also develops passions for violin and women's suffrage.... Capaldi's understated illustrations integrate solid colors and doll-like characterizations with reproductions of period materials, while appended information on Zitkala-Sa rounds out this fascinating portrait." --Publishers Weekly

-- (7/25/2011 12:00:00 AM)

"Sheet music, maps, and photographs are thoughtfully incorporated into the acrylic illustrations in this emotion-stirring biography." --The Horn Book Guide

-- (4/1/2012 12:00:00 AM)

"This title will fill the gap in most libraries of strong, non-stereotypical Native American role models." --Library Media Connection

-- (3/1/2012 12:00:00 AM)

"While the text is modified for clarity for young audiences, it is still lyrical and compelling, drawing readers into the woman's life and work. The accompanying paintings are textured and sometimes layered with maps, pictures, and magazine pages that provide a rich complement to the story, conveying both emotion and depth. This unique format brings Zitkala-Sa's intriguing story to life, and engenders further exploration." --School Library Journal

-- (10/1/2011 12:00:00 AM)

"Zitkala-Sa is...an interesting figure...and one who rarely turns up in collective or individual biographies; this account offers insight not just into her achievements but into the complexity of identity." --The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

-- (2/1/2012 12:00:00 AM)

"Zitkala-Sa's story is inherently compelling, and Capaldi's beautiful mixed-media illustrations enhance the themes of grace and strength." --Booklist

-- (11/1/2011 12:00:00 AM)

As a freelance artist, Gina Capaldi has both written and illustrated books that range from nonfiction, educational, and picture books. Her favorite published works are her historical nonfiction, such as A Boy Named Beckoning: The True Story of Dr. Carlos Montezuma, Native American Hero. One of Gina's earlier books on American Indians has been recommended for elementary school social studies curriculum in the Virginia School systems. Gina Capaldi attended Malibu's Pepperdine University; Art Center & College of Design in Pasadena, California; and Pitzer College in Claremont, California. Q. L. Pearce is the author of more than 100 nonfiction books for children on the subjects of science, literature, history, and values. Her published fiction includes more than a dozen collections of scary stories and mysteries. Q is the Assistant Regional Advisor in the Orange County region of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators in Southern California. As a freelance artist, Gina Capaldi has both written and illustrated books that range from nonfiction, educational, and picture books. Her favorite published works are her historical nonfiction, such as A Boy Named Beckoning: The True Story of Dr. Carlos Montezuma, Native American Hero. One of Gina's earlier books on American Indians has been recommended for elementary school social studies curriculum in the Virginia School systems. Gina Capaldi attended Malibu's Pepperdine University; Art Center & College of Design in Pasadena, California; and Pitzer College in Claremont, California.

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