Hardcover
Synopsis
Set at a classic drive-in restaurant that seems to exist in every Native community, this anthology unites the stories of teens from all kinds of backgrounds through the shared theme of Native joy, with stories and poems reflecting hope, healing, humor, love, friendship, romance, and joy.
The road to Sandy June's Legendary Frybread Drive-In slips through every rez and alongside every urban Native hangout. The menu offers a rotating feast, including traditional eats and tasty snacks. But Sandy June's serves up more than food: it hosts live music, movie nights, unexpected family reunions, love long lost, and love found again.
That big green-and-gold neon sign beckons to teens of every tribal Nation, often when they need it most.
Featuring the voices of both new and acclaimed Indigenous writers, and edited by bestselling Muscogee author Cynthia Leitich Smith, this collection of interconnected stories serves up laughter, love, Native pride, and the world’s best frybread.
Editor
Cynthia Leitich Smith is the bestselling, acclaimed author of books for all ages, including Firefly Season, Jingle Dancer, Indian Shoes, On a Wing and a Tear, Sisters of the Neversea, the Blue Stars series, Rain Is Not My Indian Name, Harvest House, and Hearts Unbroken, which won the American Indian Youth Literature Award. Cynthia is also the anthologist of Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids and Legendary Frybread Drive-In: Intertribal Stories. She has been honored with the American Library Association’s Children’s Literature Lecture Award and has been named the NSK Neustadt Laureate. She is the author-curator of Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint at HarperCollins Children's Books, and served as the Katherine Paterson Endowed Chair on the faculty of the MFA program in writing for children and young adults at Vermont College of Fine Arts. Cynthia is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation and lives in Denton, Texas.
Illustrator
Praise
"Superlative." -Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
"Welcome to the best-kept secret on Turtle Island! A mixture of award-winning authors and new voices use this liminal space in surprising and inventive ways, creating a microcosm of the interconnectedness of modern Indigenous life, one in which community and family, past and present, encourage its young visitors to inhabit their truest selves as they look toward the future. It is also simply a terrific collection of entertaining stories—full of laughter, music, delicious food, friendship, and romance—that will appeal to teen readers across age ranges, identities, and interests." -Booklist (starred review)
"There's a lot of warmth and gratitude to revel in...Various characters thread through each other’s stories, allowing many of the players more depth and nuance had they only been in one tale, and encouraging the readers to make the thematic connections in cultural identities that are both individually specific and community-wide." -Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
"This reverent compendium provides the setting for 17 loosely linked stories about Indigenous teens navigating evergreen concerns about love, life, and identity. Smith’s uplifting poem “Open Mic at the Drive-In” closes this liminal-feeling collection, which pays tribute to the Native traditions and intergenerational relationships preserved by the “run-down, neon” drive-in." -Publishers Weekly
"17 Indigenous writers create a web of entertaining, intertwined stories in this uplifting and unusual anthology, ideal for the YA reader who longs for connection and authenticity. Themes of displacement and loneliness, as well as the importance of connection to family, friends, and tribe, permeate the entries, making the collection relevant and accessible for teen readers of any background. As Cheryl Isaacs says in "Heart Berry," "One way or another, Sandy June's never fail[s]." -Shelf Awareness
Product Details
ISBN: 9780063314269
352 pages
8.3 in H | 5.5 in W | 0.9 lb Wt
