The Good Mind of Joseph Bruchac, by Becky Rodia
A love of his Native American heritage drives this writer-storyteller-publisher to share Native culture with others
Joseph Bruchac has lost count of how many books he's written. "I know it's more than 100. I don't keep track," he said. Though teachers may be familiar with his children's books such as The First Strawberries (Puffin, 1993), Eagle Song (Puffin, 1997), Crazy Horse's Vision (PaperStar, 1994), and others, Joseph's prolific writings include retellings of American Indian stories, collections of classroom activities based on American Indian customs and crafts, as well as books for adults.
When you consider how much Joseph does, in addition to writing – visiting schools, researching his books, running a publishing company with his wife and performing with his grown sons and sister (who are all storytellers) – it's no wonder that he doesn't have time to keep count of his publications!
Despite giving "every single word" consideration for revision as he writes, Joseph Bruchac manages to write three or four books at a time. "It's like reading," he said. "I'm always reading six or seven books at once – they're all over the house, with bookmarks in them. It keeps your mind active."
Photo by Becky Rodia
Traditional stories.
When we caught up with Joseph at Hill and Plain School in New Milford, CT, where he was one of five visiting authors during the school's Literature Week. We watched as he mesmerized an auditorium full of third, fourth and fifth graders with traditional stories and songs from several different American Indian nations. Joseph's vocal characterizations held everyone's attention – the kids' favorites seemed to be the sniveling voice of the red squirrel and the blood-curdling scream uttered by the monster known as Ugly Face – and drew us all deeper into the stories.
"I think the process of storytelling and the process of writing can be deeply connected,"he told us. "One of my early children's books, a collection of Iroquois stories, was done – quite literally – from oral tellings. I'd try to type the stories as I listened to myself tell them. I'd also have my son Jesse tell the stories to me, as he remembered them, and I'd type them out."
Making changes.
Though Joseph considers storytelling to be his "primary mode of expression," his first writings, as an undergraduate at Syracuse University, were poems. "I found prose difficult because I constantly revise," he said. "I'd do 10 or 12 drafts of a poem before I felt it was complete, and I do the same with prose. I look at every single word, how every word looks on the page, how every word works with every other word. When computers came along, I could cut and paste and change my prose as freely as I wanted to!"
When we asked Joseph how he made the transition from poetry and novels to writing for children, he said, "I give a lot of credit to my sons. When they were born, I told them stories, and I told them more stories as they grew older. When I first did a book of children's stories, they were the ones I'd told to my sons. My sons turned me into a storyteller and a writer for children."
The book covers above represent only a small portion of Joseph's forays into fiction, storytelling, activity books and autobiography.
Important voices.
Joseph is also a publisher. The Greenfield Review Press came into being when Joseph and his wife, Carol, returned to the United States after a late-1960s teaching stint in Africa. Joseph was excited about African writers and writing, and wanted to provide a way for these unheard voices to be heard.
In addition to telling stories, Joseph sings traditional Native American songs, accompanying himself on authentic instruments, such as this drum.
"Our aim was to publish people who wouldn't normally be published,"Joseph said. "At the time, that meant people in prison, women writers, African writers, Native American writers, Asian American writers and other ethnic minorities."
The Greenfield Review Press distributes a catalog of North American Native Authors that includes such writers as Sherman Alexie, Louise Erdrich, N. Scott Momaday and Leslie Marmon Silko. The complete catalog can be found online at nativeauthors.com
Family business. The Greenfield Review Press is very much a family business. Joseph's son Jesse runs the press' website, and his other son, James, helps distribute the Native Authors catalog. Joseph's sister Marge assists with design and production of the catalog. The press' office is in Joseph and Carol's house in Greenfield Center, New York – the same house in which Joseph grew up.
Joseph's visit to Hill and Plain School's Literature Week celebration inspired student responses to his book The First Strawberries. One student even recreated the book's cover, seen at top left.
Joseph was raised by his maternal grandparents, who didn't discuss the family's Indian ancestry, for fear of being treated poorly. Joseph's heritage is Czechoslovakian ("Bruchac" is Slovak for "big belly") and Abenaki Indian. The Abenaki homeland is Vermont, New Hampshire and parts of northern New York. There are two Abenaki reserves – Odanak and Wolinak – in Canada.
When a Hill and Plain student asked Joseph what his Indian name is, he responded, with a smile: "Joseph Bruchac." He went on to explain that, in honor of his writing and the work he does with American Indian peoples, an Onondaga clan mother gave him the name Gah-neh-go-he-yoh, which means "The Good Mind."
With a schedule that includes school visits, storytelling performances, visits to American Indian reservations and centers of culture, and researching and writing as many as three or four books at a time, it's clear that Joseph Bruchac's good mind has enough good things in it to keep giving to the world for a very long time.
Literature Week at Hill and Plain School
Hill and Plain School in New Milford, CT (a K-5 school with 850 students) celebrates Literature Week every spring. The festivities begin with lots of reading, followed by activities such as designing book covers, acting out parts of the books and – the highlight of the week – visiting with authors. Last year, the visiting writers were Joseph Bruchac, Jon Buller, Andrew Clements, Katie Davis and Douglas Florian.
Nancy Nally, the school's media specialist, says that Hill and Plain parents are "very involved" in choosing which authors to invite. The PTO holds fundraisers to finance the author visits. "The level of involvement is wonderful," Nancy said. "It makes Literature Week more personal for everyone. The students read the authors' books beforehand, so when an author visits the school, the kids feel like they're seeing someone they know. We hope that these Literature Week experiences will help kids become lifelong readers."
Becky Rodia, senior editor Teaching K-8 magazine.
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