Ontario Library Association's Golden Oak Award Hackmatack Children's Choice Book Award for Non-fiction

Next Generation Indie Book Awards for Children's/Juvenile Nonfiction Ten years later, the Canadian Children's Book Centre included it on their list of the Best Books for Kids & Teens. In 2010, Fatty Legs was named one of the best children's books of the year by The Globe and Mail. Jordan-Fenton stated using the book out of context was “irresponsible at best, and intentionally or unintentionally, it is revisionism and the perpetuation of a falsehood.” Fraser Middle School in Abbotsford, British Columbia was using the book to show the positive side of residential school. School Library Journal's Jody Kopple called it 'n excellent addition to any biography collection,' noting, 'the book is fascinating and unique, and yet universal in its message.' įatty Legs formed part of a controversy in November 2020 when it came out that an assignment at W. Kirkus provided a starred review, calling the memoir ' moving and believable account' of Canadian residential schools. Reception įatty Legs received positive critical reception and was included on many recommended books lists as a way to introduce children to the history and trauma of the residential school system in an age-appropriate way. The story also speaks to the power of literature and of resiliency and fortitude. Fatty Legs documents the vicious treatment she received at the school, particularly from one nun, having her hair cut, being locked in a dark basement, and the humiliation of being given red socks as a punishment. However, upon arrival, she learned that the school was not as she imagined. When Pokiak-Fenton was eight years old, a residential school opened nearby, and with the dream of learning to read, she begged her parents to go. The four books 'have sold more than a quarter of a million copies and collected over 20 awards and distinctions.' Plot įatty Legs was later followed by A Stranger at Home, as well as editions for younger readers entitled When I Was Eight and Not My Girl. Debbie Reese and a new preface by Christy Jordan-Fenton. Ī tenth anniversary edition was released in 2020 and included a new foreword by Dr. The book was published two years before the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission began to investigate the residential school system and was among the first children's books from a survivor of Canada's Indian Residential School System. The story introduces children to the devastating reality of the residential school system, a system focused on the assimilation of Indigenous peoples. Fatty Legs is a memoir aimed at middle-grade children, written by Christy Jordan-Fenton and Margaret Pokiak-Fenton and illustrated by Liz Amini-Holmes, published Septemby Annick Press.

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