Renowned author Joseph Bruchac tells a powerful story of a girl who learns more about her Penacook heritage while sheltering in place with her grandparents during the coronavirus pandemic. Malian loves spending time with her grandparents at their home on a Wabanaki reservation—she’s there for a visit when, suddenly, all travel shuts down. There’s a new virus making people sick, and Malian will have to stay with her grandparents for the duration. Everyone is worried about the pandemic, but Malian knows how to keep her family safe: She protects her grandparents, and they protect her. She doesn’t go out to play with friends, she helps her grandparents use video chat, and she listens to and learns from their stories. And when Malsum, one of the dogs living on the rez, shows up at their door, Malian’s family knows that he’ll protect them too. Told in verse inspired by oral storytelling, this novel about the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the ways in which Indigenous nations and communities cared for one another through plagues of the past, and how they keep caring for one another today. **Four starred reviews!** Boston Globe-Horn Book Fiction & Poetry Honor NPR Books We Love Kirkus Reviews Best Books School Library Journal Best Books Chicago Public Library Best Fiction for Younger Readers Jane Addams Children’s Book Award Finalist Nerdy Book Club Award—Best Poetry and Novels in Verse Awards and Praise for Rez Dogs Boston Globe-Horn Book Fiction & Poetry Honor NPR Books We Love Kirkus Reviews Best Books School Library Journal Best Books Chicago Public Library Best Fiction for Younger Readers Jane Addams Children’s Book Award Finalist Nerdy Book Club Award—Best Poetry and Novels in Verse NCTE/CLA Notable Children's Books in the Language Arts Award NCSS-CBC Notable Social Studies Trade Books Iowa Children's Choice Award Nebraska's Golden Sower Book Award North Carolina Junior Book Award Wisconsin's Just One More Page! Reading List Pennsylvania's Young Readers Choice Award Rhode Island Middle School Book Award Arkansas' Charlie May Simon Book Award New Mexico's Battle of the Books List New Jersey's M. Jerry Weiss Award Garden State Children's Book Award Pacific North West Young Reader's Choice Award Nominee ★ “Hidden throughout this moving novel in verse, old stories are discovered like buried treasures.”— Kirkus Reviews , starred review ★ “Bruchac intricately interweaves past and present stories . . . in this rewarding intergenerational narrative.”— Publishers Weekly , starred review ★ "Deftly handles weighty issues and provides readers a story they can connect with . . . [A] dose of hope for the future."— School Library Journal , starred review ★ “Story telling is an important part of culture, and Bruchac is a masterful storyteller who weaves culture with narrative."— School Library Connection , starred review “With this gentle book, Bruchac offers children another story to expand their worlds and hearts.”— Booklist “A gentle book about family and history.”—Betsy Bird for A Fuse #8 Production/ SLJ Joseph Bruchac is a highly acclaimed children’s book author, poet, novelist, and storyteller, as well as a scholar of Native American culture. He is the coauthor of the bestselling Keepers of the Earth series with Michael Caduto. Bruchac's poems, articles, and stories have appeared in hundreds of publications from Akwesasne Notes and American Poetry Review to National Geographic and Parabola . He has authored many books for adults and children including Code Talker: A Novel about the Navajo Marines of World War Two , Skeleton Man , and The Heart of a Chief . chapter one malsum When Malian woke up and looked out her window, the dog was there. Just as she had dreamed it would be. It was lying on the driveway halfway between their small house and the road. It wasn’t sleeping, its head was up, its ears erect, its paws in front of it as if on guard. As Malian watched, the dog turned its head to look right at her, as if it knew her, as if it had known her for a long, long time. “Malsum,” she said. “Kwai, kwai, nidoba.” Hello, hello, my friend. The big dog nodded and then turned back to continue watching the road. Malsum. That was the old name for a wolf. It was a good one for that dog. It was as big as a wolf. It looked like the videos of wolves she’d watched on her phone. The only things different about it were the white spots over each of its eyes. “Four-eyed dog,” a soft voice said from back over her shoulder. It was Grandma Frances. Malian had not heard her come up behind. She was used to that. Both her grandparents could walk so softly that she never knew they were there until they spoke. Grandma Frances would tease her about it. “Be careful, granddaughter, you don’t want to let no Indian sneak up on you.” Grandma Frances put her hand on Malian’s shoulder. “Looks to me like he thinks h
