What the Eagle Sees — Q&A with Eldon Yellowhorn

Eldon Yellowhorn's book 'What The Eagle Sees,' has won the 2019 Nautilus Book Awards Silver prize for Middle Grade non-fiction. Congratulations Eldon!

Can you tell us a little bit about this book?

What the Eagle Sees: Indigenous Stories of Rebellion and Renewal is a history book for young readers. Its subtitle is an indication of the content. We examine the history of contact between Indigenous people of America with the wider world. We also examine if greater detail key moments that were transformational in the lives and cultures of people. For example, we look at the impact that horses had when they returned to the great plains after being absent for a period 12,000 years. Although the theme of the book is historical, we do not imply that Indigenous people are only historical figures. We bring the stories into the present and look at the people who made significant contributions and the changes they provoked.

What inspired you to write it?

So often history is written from the perspective of the dominant culture and Indigenous people. That approach suppresses their perspective under broader narratives that highlight a heroic age of discovery and exploration. It implies that Indigenous people have no history or are minor figures in the long duration of history.

Can you tell us a little bit about your collaborator Kathy Lowinger and maybe speak to the process of co-writing a book?

Kathy Lowinger is a well–known author who has written books for young readers. Our collaboration is truly beneficial to us both. My own writing is directed to academic audiences who have a good knowledge of the subject. However, writing for young readers is not about dumbing down the content of academic writing. Instead it approaches the subject with a vocabulary and style of writing that they find accessible. This has been especially good for softening my writing style, which is technical and full of facts and data. What Kathy has taught me is how to write to an audience that does not have access to all the details of research and still make the narrative interesting and entertaining.

Kathy lives in Toronto and so we do all our correspondence through email. This can be challenging but it also gives us an opportunity to imagine the way we each see a topic. I am the researcher who has spent hours looking at journals and academic books, whereas Kathy is the translator who interprets the facts and imagines the context. I have learned a lot about writing for an non-academic audience.

Any future projects that you would like to share?

I am again working with Kathy Lowinger to produce another volume for young readers that will reveal the extend of science, technology, engineering and mathematics that emerged among Indigenous cultures in America. This is a topic that has not received any attention. If we want young Indigenous people to see themselves as scientists and engineers, we have to show them that their ancestors were not strangers to these topics. We will examine subjects such as astronomy, architecture and agriculture to show they have deep roots in antiquity.