Shirley is only five years old when she is taken away by the Indian agent to live at a residential school.
She loves learning, but she is not there by choice. From the first day walking up the long, lonely stone steps of the school building, life is hard and full of rules. Separated from her brothers and sisters, she is truly on her own.
Shirley is very brave, but there is no one she loves to hold her at night when she is afraid. No one to tuck her in and comfort her. Shirley keeps going despite the sadness. She makes friends and has adventures. And most of all, she looks ahead to summertime, when she will be able to return to her family and the happiness of home.
A true story.
The inspiring story of a young girl's resilience and survival at residential school.
The true story of Shirley (Fletcher) Horn's experience of resilience and survival at the Shingwauk Indian Residential School.
Key Selling Points:
Joanne Robertson is the writer/illustrator of the multiple-award winning and best-selling (over 70,000 copies in print) children’s book The Water Walker (also published in dual language Anishinaabemowin/ English edition Nibi Emosaawdang). Joanne is AnishinaabeKwe (Ojibwe) and a member of Atikameksheng Anishnawbek in Ontario.
Shirley was written collaboratively with Shirley (Fletcher) Horn and is based on Shirley’s experience at residential school in Ontario with her siblings. Shirley attended both the St. John's Indian Residential School in Chapleau, Ontario and the Shingwauk Indian Residential School in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. She helped found two organizations to help survivors: Children of Shingwauk Alumni Association and the Shingwauk Education Trust.
Shirley (Fletcher) Horn is a member of the Missanabie Cree First Nation in Ontario, where she served as Chief for six years. Shirley is the first chancellor of Algoma University - which is built on the grounds of the former Shingwauk school. Shirley graduated from the Algoma U Fine Arts program in 2009, fifty-four years after she attended the residential school on those same grounds.
Shirley is a vital residential school account, told from lived experience, written with care and sensitivity from an Indigenous perspective. Joanne Robertson is a long-time friend of Shirley’s. Joanne talks about their friendship in her author's note, where she writes: "Shirley has done a lot of healing to be able to share her story. During our first interview, she said that she didn’t want to traumatize young readers with her story, but she knew that sadness was unavoidable. Perhaps this is why she shares a few more humorous stories than you might expect to find in a book about schools that have graveyards and unmarked graves. We didn’t talk about those places, but it’s true, and it never should have happened."
Like her books The Water Walker and Nibi is Water, Shirley is illustrated by Joanne Robertson in her distinct, often playful style. In Shirley, Joanne layered her illustrations onto historical photos, which add to the emotional impact of the story. Her illustrations welcome young readers, easing them into a sensitive and painful topic.
In her author's note, Shirley shares more about her family, the impact of residential school on their lives, and the importance of remembrance. She tells readers that the Shingwauk school was closed in 1970. From her note: "Through sharing my story, it’s my hope that you begin to reflect on the deep and continuing impacts the residential schools had and have on survivors, their families, communities, and Canada’s reputation. It may negatively impact your understanding of Canada, but learning the truth is important. The trauma effects generations and it will take many years for healing and reconciliation to happen. Through sharing my story, it’s my hope that you begin to reflect on the deep and continuing impacts the residential schools had and have on survivors, their families, communities, and Canada’s reputation. It may negatively impact your understanding of Canada, but learning the truth is important. The trauma effects generations and it will take many years for healing and reconciliation to happen."
Robertson’s book The Water Walker was the "Great Lakes, Great Read" Children's Selection in 2024, won the First Nation Communities READ Indigenous Literature Award for 2018-19, was a finalist for the Indigenous Voices Awards in 2018, and more. She is also the author of the dual-language (Anishinaabemowin/Ojibwe) board book Nibi is Water.
Shirley is publishing simultaneously in a French edition.
