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No-man’s land between the Canada-U.S. border

July 7, 2022

In late June, STUDY CANADA K-12 and Village Books, Bellingham, sponsored Métis author, Natasha Donovan who presented her graphic novel Borders.

In Borders, this graphic-book adaptation of award-winning author Thomas King’s The Inconvenient Indian, The Truth About Stories, a young Blackfoot boy and his mother end up in a no-man’s land between the United States and Canadian when his mother refuses to answer a seemingly simple question: “Are you American? Or are you Canadian?” In a story told with King’s characteristic wit, readers are invited to consider themes of place, nationality, family, Indigenous Sovereignty, and home. 

Natasha Donovan is a Métis Canadian illustrator who focuses on comics and children’s book illustrations. She illustrates the award-winning children’s book series The Mothers of Xsan, written by Brett Huson. Her recent picture books include A River’s Gifts by Patricia Newman and The Global Ocean by Rochelle Strauss. Natasha grew up in Vancouver and currently lives in Bellingham.

The event was held at Village Books in Fairhaven, Bellingham. 

STUDY CANADA K-12, housed at Western Washington University,  provides much of the K-12 programming for our National Resource Center’s Title VI program. Kyla Sweet is the Education and Curriculum specialist for the K-12 program.