The true story of how Indigenous girls at a residential school sewed secret pockets into their dresses to hide food and survive. Mary was four years old when she was first taken away to the Lejac Indian Residential School. It was far away from her home and family. Always hungry and cold, there was little comfort for young Mary. Speaking Dakelh was forbidden and the nuns and priest were always watching, ready to punish. Mary and the other girls had a genius idea: drawing on the knowledge from their mothers, aunts and grandmothers who were all master sewers, the girls would sew hidden pockets in their clothes to hide food. They secretly gathered materials and sewed at nighttime, then used their pockets to hide apples, carrots and pieces of bread to share with the younger girls. Based on the author's mother's experience at residential school, The Secret Pocket is a story of survival and resilience in the face of genocide and cruelty.

Willow wants to go back to the city, but one thing keeps her on the rez. Aunt Pauline promises Willow that moving back to the rez and living with her grandmother is only temporary. As days and weeks pass, however, the twelve-year-old girl realizes that her aunt is not coming back and that her grandmother's house is now home. What is Willow supposed to do? Her elderly grandmother barely speaks; all her friends are back in the city, and Thomas, the boy next door, is hostile to her and cruel to his animals. But there is one thing that makes life bearable: Mistatim, Thomas's horse, with whom Willow established a connection as soon as she arrived. Finding herself more and more drawn to her new home, Willow explores the land around her seeking clues to her family's past--including the mysterious disappearance of her mother, years before. Meanwhile, her determination to protect Mistatim from the brutal treatment meted out by Thomas and his father grows, leading her to an unexpected friendship.

Willow wants to go back to the city, but one thing keeps her on the rez. Aunt Pauline promises Willow that moving back to the rez and living with her grandmother is only temporary. As days and weeks pass, however, the twelve-year-old girl realizes that her aunt is not coming back and that her grandmother's house is now home. What is Willow supposed to do? Her elderly grandmother barely speaks; all her friends are back in the city, and Thomas, the boy next door, is hostile to her and cruel to his animals. But there is one thing that makes life bearable: Mistatim, Thomas's horse, with whom Willow established a connection as soon as she arrived. Finding herself more and more drawn to her new home, Willow explores the land around her seeking clues to her family's past--including the mysterious disappearance of her mother, years before. Meanwhile, her determination to protect Mistatim from the brutal treatment meted out by Thomas and his father grows, leading her to an unexpected friendship.

Traveling to be reunited with her family in the arctic, 10-year-old Margaret Pokiak can hardly contain her excitement. It’s been two years since her parents delivered her to the school run by the dark-cloaked nuns and brothers. Coming ashore, Margaret spots her family, but her mother barely recognizes her, screaming, “Not my girl.” Margaret realizes she is now marked as an outsider. And Margaret is an outsider: she has forgotten the language and stories of her people, and she can’t even stomach the food her mother prepares. However, Margaret gradually relearns her language and her family’s way of living. Along the way, she discovers how important it is to remain true to the ways of her people—and to herself. Highlighted by archival photos and striking artwork, this first-person account of a young girl’s struggle to find her place will inspire young readers to ask what it means to belong.

When a young girl helps tend to her grandmother's garden, she begins to notice things that make her curious. Why does her grandmother have long, braided hair and beautifully coloured clothing? Why does she speak another language and spend so much time with her family? As she asks her grandmother about these things, she is told about life in a residential school a long time ago, where all of these things were taken away. When We Were Alone is a story about a difficult time in history, and, ultimately, one of empowerment and strength. When We Were Alone won the 2017 Governor General's Literary Award in the Young People's Literature (Illustrated Books) category, and was nominated for the TD Canadian's Children's Literature Award.