Talking Leaves

     "Osdadu," my mother says. "Good." She taps her finger on the paper that lies on the table between us but has not come between us. "Now tell me about these markings."
     "Gahgayyouee, Etsi!" I say. "I love you, mother." And then, like a stream that was dammed and has finally broken through, my words spill out so fast I can hardly stop talking. I share with her my father's belief in the importance of writing and reading our own language. I explain how each design stands for a sound in our language just like the English alphabet. How my little sister, Ahyokah, is helping my father. How I have come determined to help him, too. I tell her how I have managed to convince my friend Yugi that it is not witchcraft. But there are still so many of our people who do not understand, who think my father, Sequoyah, is insane or doing evil magic.
     And that is why I have come to her.
     "Nothing good," I say, "can ever be done among our people if our mothers do not understand and help us.""

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Joseph Bruchac

Bruchac is an elder among his Nulhegan Abenaki people. He is a poet, a novelist, a teacher and a professional storyteller. He has written over 120 novels, published more than poems,articles and stories in more than 500 publications and edited numerous poetry anthologies. Bruchac's awards recognize individual works, as well as lifetime contributions to children's literature.

Synopsis

Uwohali's father, Sequoyah, returns from the West with a new wife and daughter, as well as an alphabet representing the sounds of the Cherokee language. Uwohali must decide whether to help his father convince the tribe he is not insane nor practicing witchcraft and that the writing and reading of the Cherokee language will preserve their culture and identity.

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Relevance

A central theme in Talking Leaves is "who am I?" Uwohali must decide if he is the son of a genius or the son of someone insane. Figuring out who you are may be a life's work, but most of the hard work is front loaded as a young adult.

Learning Connections

• Cherokee Almanac: Sequoyah, YouTube
  
• About the Nation, Cherokee Nation
• Cherokee Trail of Tears Lessons, Activities, Materials and Videos, Best Ed Lessons
• Discover the Trail of Tears: A Lightning Lesson from Teaching with Historic Places, National Park Service
  

Young adult, 235 pages with an afterword. Uwohali must decide whether to help his father convince the tribe he is not insane nor practicing witchcraft.