Two Tribes

I really, really love being blown away by a graphic novel that isn’t necessarily the best thing in the world, but that I genuinely enjoyed reading, immediately want to recommend to young readers, and that I can’t stop thinking about. Two Tribes by Emily Bowen Cohen is my new “that book” and I can’t wait to tell you about it!

Mia, our protagonist, is being rasied Jewish and preparing for her bat mitzvah with her mother and her step-father, but she can’t escape the questions she has about her father, who she hasn’t seen in years, and the Native side of her family. As she prepares to “become a woman” and sees the things people expect of her—and say in front of her, unaware of her Native side—she decides to use her bat mitzvah money to visit her dad and his family in Oklahoma…without telling her mom. This anxiety inducing trip isn’t the end of the novel though, it’s smack int he middle, and we get to learn about Mia’s Muscogee family just as she does—trying out new traditions, finding old memories, and reconnecting with her family–and then we get to see the repercussions of that, not just in her mom grounding her, but how she changes and learns to stand up for herself.

This is Heartdrum’s first graphic novel, and I was so impressed! The illustration style, and the story, frankly, is perfect for slightly older fans of Raina Telgemeir, Kayla Miller, and Terri Libenson, and I say slightly older primarily because it doesn’t “read” as young, even though all of the subject matter is very appropriately targeted to that age range. I loved learning about Muscogee traditions and seeing the beautiful illustrations of Jingle dresses and the like, and watching Mia grow into her voice and her culture.

While it is alluded to that Mia’s father was bad for her mother—probably infidelity, but also possibly physical or substance abuse—he gets what I can only call a minor redemption arc. Mia is able to have a solid relationship with him, and we see him as a parent but not necessarily the BEST parent ever, but more importantly, he and the mother have a conversation about how much pain there was, and is, but how important it is to focus on growth.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel, loved the themes it explored and the way it did so, and can’t wait for more graphic novels from Heartdrum! Put this on every Native American Heritage Month Display–and then keep it up for your favorite graphic novels devourers. They’re going to love this one.