At the mountain's base

*Starred Review* A group of women gather in a cabin to sing and pray for the safe return of one of their kin—a pilot who is away at war. As their song reaches her, she too prays for the safety of her loved ones—the women in the cabin at the base of the mountain. The well-crafted brevity of Sorell's poem belies the weight of the women's emotions and the significance of the topic being honored. We learn from the author's note that Native women have always held military roles: in intertribal conflicts, against European colonialism, and in the U.S. Armed Forces. With illustrations by award-winning comic artist Alvitre, a more powerful pairing of art and text is difficult to imagine. At the core of the poem is a grandma who is "weaving. / And worrying." The strands of her weaving spin across the pages, framing panels of stunningly detailed and realistic renderings of the mountain, the cabin, and the women's faces. Sorell and Alvitre invite readers to think about intergenerational connections, the power of love, and the juxtaposition of vulnerability and strength that the women embody. With a message that is universal while also centering on Native women, this blend of fiction and nonfiction, the human and the divine, is simply brilliant. Grades K-2. Copyright 2019 Booklist Reviews.

In an author's note, Sorell (We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga), who is an enrolled citizen of the Cherokee Nation, explains that Native women have served in the U.S. Armed Forces "at proportionately higher rates than all other Active Duty, Reserve, and National Guard Servicemembers." In this lullaby-like poem, she imagines the Cherokee family of one such woman. The lines join with an incantatory rhythm: "At the mountain's base/ grows a hickory tree. Beneath this sits a cabin./ In that cabin" a grandmother weaves with help from younger women and a small girl. The women, "tending and singing," praise a missing family member: a WWII military pilot flying a combat mission. Alvitre (Little Nemo: Dream Another Dream), who is Tongva/Scots-Gaelic, paints her in her cockpit above the clouds as her thoughts circle back to her family: "Within that pilot/ forms a prayer,/ pleading for peace./ Because at the mountain's base,/ beneath the hickory tree" awaits her beloved family. High above, with flowing hair and outstretched arms, the figure of a larger-than-life entity watches over the family and the pilot. Sorell honors an Oglala Lakota pilot and holds up her courage in this expansive, intimate picture book. Ages 4–8. (Sept.) Copyright 2019 Publishers Weekly.

K-Gr 3—A military family awaits the return of their loved one in this lyrical tribute to modern warrior women. At the mountain's base, beneath a hickory tree, sits a cabin, and inside, next to a cozy stove, a grandmother weaves and prays, surrounded by family members singing. Within their song, a pilot flies into danger seeking peace, and Sorell's simple yet poetic text circles back to the family in the cabin, huddled together, "waiting for her return." Individual color strands woven throughout Alvitre's watercolor and ink illustrations come together to form a striking tapestry encircling the cabin, linking its inhabitants to the pilot. Generous white space and colorful frames focus attention on the connections between the human figures. An afterword summarizes the achievements of Indigenous women in the armed forces and briefly mentions the career of Ola Mildred Rexroat, an Oglala Lakota pilot and member of the WASPs in World War II. VERDICT Accessible to a wide range of young audiences and military families, this picture book is also a unique and specific recognition of the strength and courage of Indigenous women. A first-purchase for any library.—Chelsea Couillard-Smith, Hennepin County Library, MN Copyright 2019 School Library Journal.

Separated from a loved one by distance and duty, a family waits for a soldier’s return in a lyrical celebration of the bonds of Cherokee culture and the bravery of history-making female pilots. By the author of We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga. Simultaneous eBook. Illustrations.

In a cabin at the mountain's base, a Cherokee family waits for their loved one, a pilot, to return home.

"At the mountain's base sits a cabin under an old hickory tree. And in that cabin lives a family -- loving, weaving, cooking, and singing. The strength in their song sustains them through trials on the ground and in the sky, as they wait for their loved one, a pilot, to return from war."--Amazon.

A family, separated by duty and distance, waits for a loved one to return home in this lyrical picture book celebrating the bonds of a Cherokee family and the bravery of history-making women pilots.At the mountain's base sits a cabin under an old hickory tree. And in that cabin lives a family -- loving, weaving, cooking, and singing. The strength in their song sustains them through trials on the ground and in the sky, as they wait for their loved one, a pilot, to return from war. With an author's note that pays homage to the true history of Native American U.S. service members like WWII pilot Ola Mildred "Millie" Rexroat, this is a story that reveals the roots that ground us, the dreams that help us soar, and the people and traditions that hold us up.