American Indian Critic Debbie Reese praises SALTYPIE

Easter Weekend brought Tim Tingle, Karen Clarkson and Cinco Puntos Press a wonderful gift. Debbie Reese pulled out all the stops in her praise of Tim's forthcoming (June 2010) new book Saltypie, A Choctaw Journey from Darkness to Light. Choctaw artist and first time book illustrator Karen Clarkson received equal praise for her acurate depiction of modern Indian life. Debbie Reese is an American Indian (Nambé Pueblo), children's lit critic who specializes in indigenous issues and who is a very influential blogger @ American Indians in Children's Literature--Critical perspectives of indigenous peoples in children's books, the school curriculum, popular culture, and society-at-large. I use the whole subtitle in directing you to her blog so that you can get a sense of the wide ranging issues that she writes about. Please become a fan of Debbie's blog and keep up with these import issues in literature, culture and society concerning the indigenous peoples. 

"American Indians are not an ethnic group. We are not a minority culture, and we are not people of color. WE ARE SOVEREIGN NATIONS." --Debbie Reese

We at Cinco Puntos take great pride in Debbie’s review. From our inception, we’ve published multi-cultural and diverse books. We believe, as we’ve said before, “Books are mirrors, books are windows.” We want kids and adults to see themselves in our books, we want kids and adults from different cultures to see and understand the experiences of others. Thus, we make every effort to ensure that the writers and illustrators reflect fully the culture and experience of the book. We want our books to be a true experience. Saltypie is a perfect example of this aim, and we are so delighted that the book strikes such a deep chord in Debbie’s heart.