Two Tribes
A Graphic Novel
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
In her poignant debut graphic novel inspired by her own life, Emily Bowen Cohen embraces the complexity, meaning, and deep love that comes from being part of two vibrant tribes.
Mia is still getting used to living with her mom and stepfather, and to the new role their Jewish identity plays in their home. Feeling out of place at home and at her Jewish day school, Mia finds herself thinking more and more about her Muscogee father, who lives with his new family in Oklahoma. Her mother doesn’t want to talk about him, but Mia can’t help but feel like she’s missing a part of herself without him in her life.
Soon, Mia makes a plan to use the gifts from her bat mitzvah to take a bus to Oklahoma—without telling her mom—to visit her dad and find the connection to her Muscogee side she knows is just as important as her Jewish side.
This graphic novel by Muscogee-Jewish writer and artist Emily Bowen Cohen is perfect for fans of American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang. It is published by Heartdrum, an imprint that centers stories about contemporary Indigenous young people.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
A tween with divorced parents feels torn about her heritage in this profound graphic novel, Cohen's debut. Since her Jewish mother left her Muscogee father, middle schooler Mia has been raised by her mother and new stepfather. She attends a Los Angeles Jewish day school and is preparing for her upcoming bat mitzvah. When a school bully claims she's "not a real Indian" because she doesn't embody his stereotypical depiction of an Indigenous person, Mia wonders, "How can I say I'm Native if I don't know anything about it?" Wanting to connect with her Indigenous family, she tells her mother she's sleeping over at a friend's house and runs away to Tulsa, Okla., to visit her father. There, she meets her extended family and learns about many Muscogee Nation traditions and customs at a powwow, until her parents discover her lie. "Just like Mia, I am Muscogee (Creek) and Jewish," Cohen writes in a concluding author's note. In Mia's struggle to reconcile her ancestries, the creator develops a credible portrayal of self-image and acceptance. Plentiful panels rendered in earth tones further enhance this nuanced portrait of Mia's search for identity. Ages 8–12.
