Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard

Maillard, K. (2019). Fry bread: A Native American family story. (J. Matinez-Neal, Illus.) Roaring Brook Press. 

     Using the various aspects of fry bread, a culturally significant food for Native American people, Maillard describes the history and lives that make up Native American culture today. Maillard is Native American himself and grew up with fry bread as a tradition and surrounded by family with stories of being Native American in our society through the years. This gives him some authority on the tradition he writes about. His writing is very respectful towards the subject and makes it obvious to the reader that there was care involved in it. Each spread begins with the phrase, “Fry bread is…” which keeps a consistent rhythm throughout the book even as the writing gets more abstract and strays from the food itself. The abstract parts may get a bit confusing for younger readers like in the spread for “Fry bread is place.” A younger reader might have a challenging time understanding the metaphorical aspect after having half the book take a literal stance though there is a more in-depth explanation provided.

    The end of the book provides eleven pages of additional content that strengthens Maillard’s authority and explains each choice made in the book. These pages include Maillard’s personal recipe for fry bread, references, further reading recommendations, and an author’s note. The author’s note is the most substantial of the information provided since it explains why Maillard wrote the book, how each section connects to his family as well as the overall history of Native Americans, and the ways in which the illustrations support the goal of each spread. This can help those who get confused by the metaphors and abstract writing clearly understand what the intention was for each part.

     Even if the abstract writing becomes confusing, the illustrations throughout the book lend a helping hand in understanding the book’s ultimate goal. Each spread displays Indigenous people with an array of different qualities showing that the Indigenous culture encompasses many different people rather than one certain type. Every person illustrated has different hair types, colors, skin colors and other qualities. Maillard tells us that these differences are intentional to display how the Indigenous culture was influenced by others throughout the years based on where each tribe originated and traversed. It is also a way to remind us that Indigenous people as a concept is too broad to encompass the whole of the culture. Maillard reminds us that the Native American culture is one encompassing the cultures of many tribes: an amalgamation of different people forced together by America’s history.