Who Am I?

Who Am I? tells the story of Makwa, a young Indigenous boy whose spiritual name means ‘bear’ in Ojibwe. Torn between his traditional teachings and the modern life of a typical American kid, Makwa loves basketball and video games. However, his grandfather challenges him with a profound question: how does he plan to honor and give back to his people and ancestors who fought for their survival?

Makwa embarks on a journey of self-discovery, exploring whether his true calling is to be a dancer like his cousins. Despite examining various styles, he doesn’t feel the pull. Without his father around since infancy, Makwa turns to his grandfather for guidance. Through the rituals of leaving a tobacco offering and smudging, he seeks the Creator’s help to find his path.

Who is Makwa? Dive into his heartfelt journey to uncover his identity and purpose.

This book will have some of the words such as ‘grass dance,’ ‘traditional dancer,’ and ‘fancy dancer’ in Arikara and Ojibwe at the bottom of the pages.

Maria DesJarlait is an indigenous woman who is from the Arikara tribe of Fort Berthold reservation in North Dakota and Ojibwe from Red Lake, Minnesota. She was raised on the reservation in North Dakota and had big city dreams. She went on to college in Chicago, Il where she earned her bachelor’s degree in early childhood education and English as a second language. She is married to her best friend Joel and has two daughters Aiyanna and Ayasha that keep her plenty busy. She teaches Preschool in Illinois where she seen the need for books that represent Native American children as people of today. She wrote this book based on her experiences as a child with her grandmother and her two daughters’ experiences with their adventurous grandmother Peggy as well. This is her story that she hopes to inspire more Native American children to dream big. Miigwetch (thank you)!