Origin: An Illuminating Look At Indigenous Peoples And Their Connection To The Natural World

This remarkable book features portraits of over 20 Indigenous communities from five continents, highlighting humanity’s shared origins and our interconnectedness with the planet. Through 22 first-person stories, the book explores diverse Indigenous cultures—including the !Kung, Inuit, Tuareg, Cherokee, Sami, Yanomami, and many others—highlighting their values of reciprocity, solidarity, mutual aid, and respect for nature’s gifts. The book underscores the crucial role Indigenous peoples play as guardians of 80 percent of terrestrial biodiversity and documents their ongoing struggles to defend their territories, languages, and traditional ways of life against encroaching “civilization” and exploitation. Cardozo creates an informative narrative that honors both the past and present of these First Nations while inviting readers to reflect on creating a new unity that reconnects all humanity to the living world. The beautiful illustrations blur the boundaries between humans and their environments, visually reinforcing the book’s central message of interconnectedness and presenting these little-known cultures with stunning artistry that complements the diverse ways of life portrayed. An introduction, a map of lands and territories, and notes with additional information about the peoples round out this impressive work. mjw

Title: Origin: An Illuminating Look At Indigenous Peoples And Their Connection To The Natural World
Author: Nat Cardozo
Illustrator
: Nat Cardozo
Publisher
: Red Comet Press. Brooklyn
Copyright
: 2025
Original Language
: Spanish
Translator
: Ian Farnes and Layla Benitez-James
Original Title
: Origen
Original Publisher
: Libros del Zorro Rojo. Spain
Original Copyright
: 2023
ISBN
: 978-1-63655-155-5
Hardcover pages
: 64
Age range
: 8-12
Genre
: Picture Book, Information Book
Author’s ethnicity
: Franco-Uruguayan
Author’s residence
: Montevideo, Uruguay
Illustrator’s ethnicity
: Franco-Uruguayan
Illustrator’s residence
: Montevideo, Uruguay
Subjects
: Continents, Cultures, Customs, First Nations, Languages, Traditions

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