PORT TOWNSEND — The young adult version of Robin Wall Kimmerer’s “Braiding Sweetgrass” is the 2023 Port Townsend selection for Community Read 2023.
During month, the Port Townsend Public Library will host a number of events related to “Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants” adapted by Monique Gray Smith with illustrations by Nicole Neidhardt.
The book, which can appeal to both teens and adults, was selected for the annual program — in which the public is invited to read the same book and discuss it in groups and attend events pertaining to it — to honor indigenous wisdom and foster strong ecological understanding and “promote intergenerational discussions and connections,” according to a press release.
The month’s events will be capped with an in-person talk by Smith on March 28.
“I am profoundly grateful that Port Townsend has chosen “Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults” as their book for 2023 Community Read,” Smith said in the release.
“What an extraordinary month of activities you have planned, and I very much look forward to joining you all on March 28th at the Northwest Maritime Center,” she added.
Library Director Melody Sky Weaver said she read the original in 2020.
“It’s such a healing book and it left a lasting impression on me, and Smith’s adaptation has made the lessons from the original still more accessible to all readers and I love her adaptation even more,” she said.
“The book provides the intersections we need to look at — the indigenous wisdom and science. It’s so powerful to bring those worlds together.”
“These are the most we ever had,” Weaver said. “This is the kind of the book I hope will be read many times.”
Library personnel hope that since people don’t have to return the book, they will pass it on to others.
The library has additional copies available to check out or copies of the book may be purchased at Imprint Bookstore and The Writers’ Workshoppe, 820 Water St.
In the original book, Kimmerer drew upon her experiences as an indigenous scientist to demonstrate how all living things provide gifts and lessons.
Smith’s adaptation reaches out to young adults through sidebars, questions for reflection and illustrations by Neidhardt.
Kimmerer is an enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation; her first book, “Gathering Moss,” was awarded the John Burroughs Medal for outstanding nature writing.
Smith — who lives in British Columbia — is Cree, Lakota and Scottish. She has written eight books. Her most recent novel, “Tilly and the Crazy Eights,” was long listed for Canada Reads 2021.
Neidhardt, a Diné (Navajo) artist of Kiiyaa’áanii clan, has earned a bachelors in fine arts with a business minor from the University of Victoria on Vancouver Island and a masters of fine arts from Ontario College of Art and Design University in Toronto, Ontario.
Activities set throughout March are:
• “Northwind Art Presents: Seeds Are Postcards from the Land — a Community Art Project” hosted by the library.
Participants can write gratitude postcards to the land, which will be on display at the library and will then be planted to grow flowers.
• “Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula Education Trunk from Jefferson County Historical Society” will be on loan to the library from the historical society all month long.
The trunk was developed in consultation with the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and contains a variety of commissioned objects, books, games and digital materials.
• One of Smith’s other books, “When We Are Kind” is on the Kah Tai Lagoon StoryWalk path.
Families can walk and read the book anytime during daylight in March.
Here are dates for other activities this month. All are free.
To find links for online presentations, go to www.ptpubliclibrary.org.
• Monday, March 6: Weaver will lead a discussion on the book at 2 p.m. online at the Book Lover’s Cafe.
• Thursday, March 9: Neidhardt will discuss her process and share her illustrations from the book at 6:30 p.m. online.
• March 16: Community Book Discussion at The Castle, 8 p.m. in Manresa Castle, 651 Cleveland St., themed drinks will be available during a discussion of the book led by Weaver.
• March 18: Cicmehán Trail Walk, a guided 3-mile loop walking trail starting at 1 p.m. at the trail sign at Chetzemoka Park, 1000 Jackson St.
• March 25: PTFF Indigenous Animation Screening at the Rose Theatre, 235 Taylor St. In-person screening begins at 11 a.m. Short animation in many styles by indigenous artists will be presented. For free tickets, go to www.ptfilm fest.com or the library.
• March 28: “Meet the Author” Monique Gray Smith will read at 6:30 p.m. in the Northwest Maritime Center, 431 Water St.; a signing will follow her talk.
The Community Read program is made possible through support from the Friends of the Port Townsend Library, the Port Townsend Public Library Foundation and many community supporters. The City of Port Townsend proclaims March as the official “Reading Month.”
For more information, call the library at 360-385-3181, email ptlibrary@cityofpt.us or visit ptpubliclibrary.org.
