Surviving the City Vol. 2 From the Roots Up

This second volume of the “Surviving the City” series reintroduces best friends Dez—Innenew (Cree)—and Miikwan—Anishinaabe (Ojibway). Dez is grieving the loss of her grandmother, and, having nowhere else to go, is now living in a group home. She is not coping well, and, in fact, is picked up for vandalism within the first few pages. She is also navigating a new relationship with her girlfriend Kacey and coming into her own as a Two-Spirit person. At school, a new student named Riel (Métis) causes a bit of a stir when he refuses to stand for the national anthem, but he also catches Miikwan’s eye.

After Riel’s first day, Miikwan, Dez, and Kacey take him to an after-school gathering called Mino Bimaadiziwin, meaning “the good life” in Anisshinaabemowin. Geraldine—Anishinaabe (Ojibway)—hosts the gathering, which was created as a safe space for Indigenous youth at the school and where they can learn their history and traditions from elders. But the traditions they are taught often adhere to a strict gender binary which leaves Two-Spirit people like Dez on the margins.

On this particular afternoon, Riel bucks tradition and invites Dez to sit at the big drum, angering one of the elders in the process, but also providing a learning experience for Geraldine (see the “Excerpt” above ) Riel helps Dez, Geraldine, and others in the community better understand what it means to be Two-Spirit, and together, they build a safer space that is welcoming of all people, regardless of their gender or sexuality.

Tasha Spillett-Summer and Natasha Donovan make a spectacular writer-illustrator duo. Spillett-Summer skillfully creates realistic, well-rounded, and sympathetic characters while Donovan brings the whole story to life in vivid color and details. The book is informative and has the potential to work very well in educational settings such as school libraries or classrooms, but without feeling overly didactic or preachy. Additionally, while a book about the struggles of being an Indigenous teen has the potential to become preoccupied with trauma, From the Roots Up ends up focusing more on the joy that comes with good friends and a community that is willing to change and learn to become more open and accepting.

The illustrations really add a wonderful dimension to the narrative and tie together past and present through the inclusion of ghostly ancestral figures who cry and laugh and cheer for Dez, Riel, Miikwan, and Kacey as they work to make the world around them a more accepting place for everyone. At the same time, a more sinister ghostly figure shows up when Dez feels haunted, symbolizing the moments of trauma and pain that she has had to live through.

From the Roots Up is an informative, haunting, and celebratory story of friendship, ancestry, love, culture, and identity that teens of any background can appreciate.