Keepers of the Earth

Michael Caduto and Abenaki storyteller Joseph Bruchac created something genuinely rare here: a book that is equally at home in a classroom, a nature center, a library story hour, and around a campfire. Twenty-five traditional Native American legends drawn from twenty cultural traditions are each paired with hands-on environmental science activities, building ecological awareness and cultural respect at the same time. The award shelf is impressive — RIF Multicultural Book Award, Aesop Prize, Storytelling World Award, NAPPA Gold, and more — and the recognition is earned. Families with concerns about non-Christian spiritual traditions should know the book integrates Indigenous cosmology and worldviews; the treatment is educational and respectful rather than proselytizing, but the content is genuinely rooted in those traditions. For parents and educators comfortable with that, this is one of the best environmental education resources available for the middle-grade years.