Buffalo Bird Girl: A Hidatsa Story

A stunning picture book biography of a 19th century Hidatsa woman, from award-winning author and illustrator S. D. Nelson

Buffalo Bird Girl (ca. 1839-1932) was a member of the Hidatsa, a Native American community that lived in permanent villages along the Missouri River on the Great Plains. Like other girls her age, Buffalo Bird Girl learned the ways of her people through watching and listening, and then by doing. She helped plant crops in the spring, tended the fields through the summer, and in autumn joined in the harvest. She learned to prepare animal skins, dry meat, and perform other duties.

There was also time for playing games with friends and training her dog. When her family visited the nearby trading post, there were all sorts of fascinating things to see from the white man's settlements in the East.

Award-winning author and artist S. D. Nelson (Standing Rock Sioux) captures the spirit of Buffalo Bird Girl by interweaving the actual words and stories of Buffalo Bird Woman with his artwork and archival photographs. Backmatter includes a history of the Hidatsa and a timeline.


Binding Type: Hardcover
Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers
Published: 10/01/2012
ISBN: 9781419703553
Pages: 56
Weight: 1.30lbs
Size: 10.10h x 10.10w x 0.60d
Award: Flicker Tale Children's Book Award - Nominee
Award: Young Hoosier Book Award - Nominee

Review Citations: Kirkus Reviews 09/15/2012
School Library Journal 11/01/2012 pg. 124
Bulletin of Ctr for Child Bks 12/01/2012
SLJ's Best Books 12/01/2012 pg. 35
Publishers Weekly 12/24/2012
Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/2013 - Recommended, Satisfactory

Accelerated Reader Quiz #/Name: 153336 / Buffalo Bird Girl: A Hidatsa Story
Reading Level: 5.9 / Interest Level: Lower Grade / Point Value: 1