BOOK DRIVE: Coming Home: A Hopi Resistance Story

*This product will be directly donated to the Children's Book Bank at SMART Readers as part of our Road Trip Book Drive. We've marked down all books in this collection so you have even more reasons to give generously. You can also bring like-new books from home to our store to participate in the book drive. The Book Bank is most in-need of culturally diverse Pre-K and Early Elementary picture books. Read their wish list + guidelines here. 

Every donation earns a coupon for a discount on a future visit to Postcard Bookshop!
1-2 Books = 10% off a future purchase
3-4 Books = 15% off a future purchase
5+ Books = 20% off a future purchase

From master Hopi woodcarver Mavasta Honyouti, the story of his grandfather’s experience at a residential boarding school and how he returned home to pass their traditions down to future generations.

When Mavasta Honyouti was a boy he would go with his grandfather to their cornfield, watching him nurture every plant. During breaks, his grandfather would take out a piece of paako root and use his pocketknife to whittle away. He made beautiful carvings that Mavasta would later learn to do himself.

But Mavasta would often wonder: what was his kwa’a like when he was a boy? And one day, he heard the story.

Mavasta’s grandfather, like many Native American children across the country in the late 19th and early 20th century, was forced to leave his Hopi reservation as a child and go to a residential boarding school far away. There, the government cut his hair, punished him for speaking his native language, and gave him a new name. But Mavasta's grandfather never forgot who he was – or where he came from – and he tried to escape again and again. Finally, he made it back to their reservation.

In later years, Mavasta’s kwa’a chose a simple life, taking great care of his family just like he took great care of his plants. His son and later his grandson became acclaimed Hopi katsina woodcarvers, just like him. Coming Home: A Hopi Resistance Story is a deeply personal book – written in both English and Hopi – that features sixteen stunning original painted wood carvings. It is an unforgettable testament to one man rising above a painful piece of history to keep the light of his family and culture alive.