Details
https://bookclubs.scholastic.ca/fr/-smile-so-big-/82789691-cec-ca.htmlDescription
When Challa comes home in tears after being teased about her smile, her mom gives her a special gift. It's a magic mirror, shiny, beaded and beautiful, passed on from her mom, and from her djo djo before her.
Challa's mom tells her that when anyone looks into the mirror, they will see their true self. There's just one rule: Everyone has to say what they see in the reflection.
At first the mirror seems to work for everyone but her. Challa keeps looking and looking. The more beauty she sees in herself, the happier she feels, and the longer she looks into the mirror, the more beauty she sees, until finally Challa sees so much beauty, she can't contain her smile!
This special story, from award-winning activist Sunshine Quem Tenasco and artist Chief Lady Bird, introduces readers to concepts of self-acceptance, self-empowerment, and recognition of the unique beauty that comes from within.
About the Author/Illustrator
Sunshine Tenasco is Anishinabeg, from Kitigan Zibi Anishinabeg, Quebec, Canada. She is a clean water activist. Sunshine's website, www.herbraids.com, sells the beaded pendants Sunshine makes, with a portion of the profits going to the David Suzuki Blue Dot campaign, which supports the right to a clean environment. She is a mother of four. Chief Lady Bird is a Chippewa and Potawatomi artist from Rama First Nation and Moosedeer Point First Nation, who is currently based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She graduated from OCAD University in 2015 with a BFA in Drawing and Painting and a minor in Indigenous Visual Culture. Through her art practice, Chief Lady Bird uses street art, community-based workshops, digital illustration and mixed media work to challenge the lens that Indigenous people are often viewed through. She was the recipient of the Donna McLean Award for Portraiture and Life Study in 2015; and known across Turtle Island for her murals.