This Big Words book from an award-winning author tells the courageous
life story of Wilma Mankiller, the first female chief of the Cherokee
Nation.
As a child in Oklahoma, Wilma Mankiller experienced the Cherokee
practice of Gadugi, helping each other, even when times were hard for
everyone. But in 1956, the federal government uprooted her family and
moved them to California, wrenching them from their home, friends, and
traditions. Separated from her community and everything she knew, Wilma
felt utterly lost until she found refuge in the Indian Center in San
Francisco. There, she worked to build and develop the local Native
community and championed Native political activists. She took her two
children to visit tribal communities in the state, and as she introduced
them to the traditions of their heritage, she felt a longing for home.
Returning to Oklahoma with her daughters, Wilma took part in Cherokee
government. Despite many obstacles, from resistance to female leadership
to a life-threatening accident, Wilma's courageous dedication to serving
her people led to her election as the first female chief of the Cherokee
Nation. As leader and advocate, she reinvigorated her constituency by
empowering them to identify and solve community problems.
This beautiful addition to the Big Words series will inspire future
leaders to persevere in empathy and thoughtful problem-solving, reaching
beyond themselves to help those around them. Moving prose by
award-winning author Doreen Rappaport is interwoven with Wilma's own
words in this expertly researched biography, illustrated with warmth and
vivacity by Linda Kukuk.
