Sovereign Traces

Not (Just) (An)Other

Gordon Henry Jr (Editor), Elizabeth LaPensée (Editor)

By merging works of contemporary North American Indigenous literature with imaginative illustrations by U.S. and Canadian artists, Sovereign Traces: Not (Just) (An)Other provides a unique opportunity for audiences to engage with works by prominent authors such as Stephen Graham Jones, Gordon Henry Jr., Gerald Vizenor, Warren Cariou, Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair, Louise Erdrich, Joy Harjo, Richard Van Camp, and Gwen Westerman.

Through this exciting medium, Sovereign Traces beckons to audiences that are both new to and familiar with Native writing, allowing for possibilities for reimagined readings along the way.

Readers will find works of graphic literature, uniquely including both poetry and fiction, newly adapted from writing by Indigenous North Americans.

Published by Michigan State University Press; distributed in Canada by UMP.

Reviews

“Not just another book for fans of Indigenous stories and comics alike, this collection locates myth not in the past, but in the mundane, drawing on traditional cultures and stories to depict current Indigenous lives in their many complex forms.”

Nyala Ali, Winnipeg Free Press

“An exciting compilation of fiction and poetry that honors Indigenous storytelling while also embracing inventive approaches to visual expression through the medium of the graphic novel. The artists explore a variety of important themes highlighting multi-vocalic views, multi-layered techniques, and nuanced understandings of the raw realities of Indigenous lives.”

Estrella Whetung, University of Victoria, Transmotion

About the Authors

Gordon Henry Jr is an Anishinaabe poet and novelist and is an enrolled member of the White Earth Chippewa Tribe of Minnesota. His poetry has been published in several anthologies, and his novel The Light People won the American Book Award in 1995.

Elizabeth LaPensée is an award-winning designer, writer, artist, and researcher. She is Anishinaabe from Baawaating with relations at Bay Mills Indian Community, and Métis. She is an Assistant Professor of Media and Information and Writing, Rhetoric and American Cultures at Michigan State University.

Other contributors: .
Writers
Warren Cariou, Louise Erdrich, Joy Harjo, Gordon G. Henry Jr., Stephen Graham Jones, Sheldon Raymore, Niigaanwewidam James Sinclair, Richard Van Camp, Gerald Vizenor, Gwen Nell Westerman

Illustrators and Colourists
Weshoyot Alvitre, Evan Buchanan, Nicholas Burns, GMB Chomichuk, Scott B. Henderson, Elizabeth LaPensée, Tara Ogaick, Neal Shannacappo, Delicia Williams, Donovan Yaciuk

Book Details

  • Sovereign Traces: Not (Just) (An)Other
  • Gordon Henry Jr (Editor), Elizabeth LaPensée (Editor)
  • Published June 2018, 128 pages
  • Paper, ISBN: 978-1-93806-506-4, 6.625 × 10.125, $29.95
  • Topic(s): Art & Architecture, Indigenous Studies, Literature

Purchase Online

  • Only available for sale in: Canada.

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