Red Bird Sings: The Story of Zitkala-Sa Native American Author Musician and Activist

About this book

"I remember the day I lost my spirit." So begins the story of Gertrude Simmons also known as Zitkala-a which means Red Bird. Born in 1876 on the Yankton Sioux reservation in South Dakota Zitkala-a willingly left her home at age eight to go to a boarding school in Indiana. But she soon found herself caught between two worldswhite and Native American. At school she missed her mother and her traditional life but Zitkala-a found joy in music classes. "My wounded spirit soared like a bird as I practiced the piano and violin " she wrote. Her talent grew and when she graduated she became a music teacher composer and performer. Zitkala-a found she could also "sing" to help her people by writing stories and giving speeches. As an adult she worked as an activist for Native American rights seeking to build a bridge between cultures. The coauthors tell Zitkala-as life by weaving together pieces from her own stories. The artists acrylic illustrations and collages of photos and primary source documents round out the vivid portrait of Zitkala-a a frightened child whose spirit "would rise again stronger and wiser for the wounds it had suffered."