We mark Louis Riel Day annually on November 16 across the Métis homelands. This date marks the anniversary of Riel’s execution in 1885 for leading the Northwest Resistance. Riel led the rebellion as federal authorities contested Métis nationhood. This day has since served as a time to commemorate the struggle for Métis rights and celebrate Métis culture and resilience.
Louis Riel Day: The Fur Trade Project by Deborah L. Delaronde
A young boy is assigned a project about the fur trade by his teacher. With help from his grandfather and the internet, they travel back in time and discover how the fur trade began, a new people emerged, the Métis' role in the fur trade, Louis Riel and the Red River Resistance, and the reason behind a holiday named Louis Riel Day. Ages 6-9.
Métis Community by Laura K. Murray
An introduction to the daily life, beliefs and celebrations of the Métis. Ages 7-9.
Louis Riel : le pays improbable par André Leblanc
Qui était Louis Riel ? Pourquoi les Métis de l’Ouest se sont-ils soulevés ? Comment ont-ils pu résister à une armée bien équipée, dix fois plus nombreuse qu’eux ? Dès 9 ans.
Du sang sur nos terres : Joséphine Bouvier, témoin de la rébellion de Louis Riel par Maxine Trottier
Joséphine, une jeune métisse de treize ans, décrit dans son journal intime les faits marquants de sa vie à Batoche pendant une période sombre de l’histoire du Canada. Joséphine raconte les espoirs et les déceptions des Métis qui, menés par Louis Riel, tentent d’obtenir la reconnaissance de leurs droits. De 9 à 12 ans.
Louis Riel: A Comic-Strip Biography by Chester Brown
This biography of the Canadian rebel Louis Riel tells the story of the charismatic, complex nineteenth-century Métis leader whose struggle to win rights for his people led to violent rebellion on the nation's western frontier. Age 11 and up.
Red River Resistance by Katherena Vermette
Red River Resistance sees Echo Desjardins adjusting to her new home, finding friends, and learning about Métis history. One ordinary afternoon, Echo finds herself transported through time to the banks of the Red River in the summer of 1869. All is not well in the territory, as Canadian surveyors have arrived, and Métis families, who have lived there for generations, are losing access to their land. As the Resistance takes hold, Echo fears for her future. Ages 12-14.
The Audacity of His Enterprise: Louis Riel and the Métis Nation that Canada Never Was, 1840-1875 by M. Max Hamon
A political leader of the Métis people of the Canadian Prairies, Louis Riel is often portrayed as a rebel. Reconstructing his experiences in the Northwest, Quebec, and the worlds in between, Max Hamon revisits Riel's life through his own eyes, illuminating how he and the Métis were much more involved in state-making than historians have previously acknowledged.
Canada's Residential Schools: The Métis Experience - The Final Report of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada
Canada’s Residential Schools: The Métis Experience focuses on an often-overlooked element of Canada’s residential school history. The federal government policy on providing schooling to Métis children was subject to constant change. It viewed the Métis as members of the ‘dangerous classes,’ whom the residential schools were intended to civilize and assimilate.
Métis by Royal Canadian Geographical Society
This general information title contains descriptions and histories of Métis communities throughout North America. Visual materials such as maps and photographs appear alongside textual descriptions.
