The story of the beautiful relationship between a little girl and her grandfather. When she asks her grandfather how to say something in his language, Cree, he admits that his language was stolen from him when he was a boy. The little girl then sets out to help her grandfather find his language again. This sensitive, beautifully illustrated picture book explores the intergenerational impact of Canada's residential school system, which separated young Indigenous children from their families.

Note: The finished printed picture book contains 24 pages. The PDF, which contains 13 digital pages, is designed to reflect the printed reading experience. Please do not include interior images in your review without permission from the publisher.

Note on the text: The final text for Stolen Words will differ slightly from this advance copy:

1.The Cree words used in the text will have the following accents:
"Tânisi, nimosôm, she said." (note: nimosôm will not be capitalized)
"Nôsisim, he whispered."
"Pîkiskwêwina."
"Têniki, he said."

2. The copyright page of the book will include a special thanks to Arok Wolvengrey, Professor, Algonquian Languages and Linguistics and Department Head of Indigenous Languages, Arts and Cultures First Nations University of Canada.

About the Author: Melanie Florence is an award-winning Cree/Scottish writer. Her book Jordin Tootoo: The Highs and Lows in the Journey of the First Inuk to Play in the NHL was chosen as an Honor Book by The American Indian Library Association. Her first picture book, Missing Nimama, won the TD Canadian Children’s Literature Award. She is also the author of Righting Canada’s Wrongs: Residential Schools and several YA novels, including The Missing.