Bound To Stay Bound

School Library Journal - 06/25/2021 PreS—A heart-warming story from an Indigenous perspective about a mother preparing for her baby's entrance into the world. Spillett-Sumner is Inniniwak and shares with readers how a sacred medicine bundle is created for a child with natural elements such as sage, cedar, stone, and eagle plume. The care and love felt through the pages of the illustrations are dreamlike and ethereal. Readers follow the mother and baby's journey through the seasons and explanations of the medicine bundle and traditional teachings. The emotions stirred by word choices and visual elements can be overwhelmingly tender. In a moment where the mother stitches a star blanket with the help of her family, she is then shown spending time alone to complete it. During this time, she says something that captures the essence of the book, "With each stitch, I whispered a prayer for you and thought about wrapping you up warm and safe, just like you are now in my belly." VERDICT Recommended for all libraries especially those with baby programs and other early literacy initiatives.—Danielle Burbank, San Juan Coll., Farmington, NM - Copyright 2021 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 09/15/2021 In lyrical text, a young mother addresses her unborn child, sharing the traditional beliefs of her Inniniwak heritage. As her pregnancy progresses, she collects items for the baby's sacred medicine bundle: a white feather, cedar and sage, a handmade star blanket, and a small stone from the river. After the child arrives, the mother explains the significance of each object, emphasizing the child's connection to her Native identity, the community, and their traditional territory. Caldecott-winner and Tlingit illustrator Goade's ethereal watercolor-and-mixed-media artwork favors deep blues and purples (suggesting the night sky) accented in greens and rosy hues. Of particular note is the swoosh, a starry white energy-flow appearing in every spread that provides continuity and connects the story's themes of land, culture, family, and identity. Her style mixes realism (for the contemporary locations) with muted colors that suggest the past. She also skillfully incorporates traditional Indigenous symbols into the northern Manitoba landscape. While this is culturally specific, motherhood is universal; this story will be appreciated wherever newborns are celebrated. - Copyright 2021 Booklist.