National Reading Month
March is National Reading Month and the NLL wants YOU to read more. All we ask is 30 minutes a day. Reading is important for development and provides many benefits including: increased empathy, reduces stress, helps alleviate depression symptoms, aids in sleep readiness, and many more.
For National Reading Month, the NLL put together a variety of books to consider reading and wants you to participate. Fans who pledge to read 30 minutes a day for the entire month will be entered to win swag from their favorite teams! Register below.
Lacrosse Books
Akhwatsirehkó:wa – My Big Family
By Brendan Bomberry and Brennor Jacobs
Akhwatsirehkó:wa – My Big Family is a 450 page book by Indigenous lacrosse stars Brendan Bomberry and Brennor Jacobs who explore how the game of lacrosse has spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually aided players from all around the world, through their differing experiences within the sport.
Children of the Longhouse
By Joseph Bruchac
Told from the alternating points of view of Native American Ohkwa’ri and his twin sister Otsi:stia, this historic novel shows a Mohawk village during the best of times: after the Great League of Peace is formed and before European settlers rob the tribe of its land.
The Creator's Game: A story of Baaga'adowe/Lacrosse
By Art Coulson
Travis Skinaway doesn’t know the full story of the game: he only knows that he struggles to catch the ball and tends to throw it over the other boys’ heads. Maybe he’s not built right to run the field. His teammates and coach seem to think he’s hopeless, anyway. Travis is ready to hang up his gear, but then his grandfather appears in a dream, explaining to him that lacrosse is a spiritual quest, just like a prayer, a song, or a dance. Mom doesn’t believe Travis’s story, but Grandma knows: she says dreamtime is just as real as awake time.
Lacrosse Warrior: The Life of Mohawk Lacrosse Champion Gaylord Powless
By Wendy A. Lewis
Gaylord Powless was playing lacrosse by the age of three. His father was a famous player who taught Gaylord everything he knew. But Gaylord’s tremendous skill and native ancestry made him a target on and off the lacrosse floor. Gaylord learned that the best revenge was to improve his game. He became a standard for sportsmanship and skill and a pioneer in promoting equality for Canadian athletes of all ethnic backgrounds.
StringMan
By John Carrozza
An Iroquois boy’s pursuit for balance between indigenous roots and the modern world. Patwin’s life is shaped through the values of the Haudenosaunee (People of the Hills). Through the “Creators Game”, lacrosse, Patwin hopes to carve out a unique identity within his clan, while trying to navigate high school!
The Warriors
By Joseph Bruchac
When twelve-year-old Jake Forrest’s mother gets a job in a new city, everything changes. He has to move away from the Iroquois reservation he’s lived on his entire life―away from his aunt and uncle, and away from the friends he plays lacrosse with. The lacrosse coach and players at his new school in Washington, D.C., believe that winning is everything, and they don’t know anything about the ways of his people. As Jake struggles to find a place where he truly belongs, tragedy strikes and he must find out who he really is.
Indigenous Heritage Books
The Birchbark House
By Louise Erdrich
This young adult novel is the story of a year in the life of a young Ojibwa girl who, over the cycle of four full seasons, comes to a deeper understanding of life, herself, and the relationship between the two. As it chronicles the year’s events, the narrative thematically explores the connection between human beings and nature, the effect of whites on indigenous culture, and the necessity of confronting fear
Jim Thorpe: Original All-American
By Joseph Bruchac
Jim Thorpe ran away from school many times, until he found his calling at Pennsylvania’s Carlisle Indian School. There, the now-legendary coach Pop Warner recognized Jim’s athletic excellence and welcomed him onto the football and track teams. Focusing on Jim Thorpe’s years at Carlisle, this book brings his early athletic career—and especially his college football days—to life, while also dispelling some myths about him and movingly depicting the Native American experience at the turn of the twentieth century. This is a book for history buffs as well as sports fans—an illuminating and lively read about a truly great American.
The People Shall Continue
By Simon J. Ortiz
Told in the rhythms of traditional oral narrative, this powerful telling of the history of the Native/Indigenous peoples of North America recounts their story from Creation to the invasion and usurpation of Native lands. As more and more people arrived, The People saw that the new men did not respect the land. The People witnessed the destruction of their Nations and the enslavement of their people. The People fought hard, but eventually agreed to stop fighting and signed treaties
Rez Dogs
By Joseph Bruchac
Told in verse inspired by oral storytelling, this novel about the COVID-19 pandemic highlights the ways Malian’s community has cared for one another through plagues of the past, and how they keep caring for one another today.
There There
By Tommy Orange
Tommy Orange’s wondrous and shattering novel follows twelve characters from Native communities: all traveling to the Big Oakland Powwow, all connected to one another in ways they may not yet realize. Together, this chorus of voices tells of the plight of the urban Native American–grappling with a complex and painful history, with an inheritance of beauty and spirituality, with communion and sacrifice and heroism. Hailed as an instant classic, There There is at once poignant and unflinching, utterly contemporary and truly unforgettable.
The Trail of Tears
By John Bruchac
In 1838, settlers moving west forced the great Cherokee Nation, and their chief John Ross, to leave their home land and travel 1,200 miles to Oklahoma. An epic story of friendship, war, hope, and betrayal.
When We Were Alone
By David A. Robertson
A young girl notices things about her grandmother that make her curious. Why does her grandmother have long, braided hair and beautifully coloured clothing? Why does she speak Cree and spend so much time with her family? As she asks questions, her grandmother shares her experiences in a residential school, when all of these things were taken away.
Favorite Books from Around the NLL
Albany FireWolves
Reilly O’Connor – The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon
“My favorite book is The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon. It’s a very easy read that shares great team and personal lessons. I enjoy reading it because it’s a great way to continue to learn and grow as a person.”
Calgary Roughnecks
Harrison Matsuoka – The Glass by Jeannette Walls
“This book is a memoir about Jeanette Walls about her resilience growing up, which I found really inspiring.”
General Manager, Mike Board – America Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
Georgia Swarm
Lyle Thompson – A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle.
It’s a book that has opened my mind to a new way of thinking. It’s a spiritual book that has helped me become a more conscious, present person.
New York Riptide
GF Sports and Entertainment Executive VP Rich Lisk – The Carrot Seed by Ruth Kraus
“Last year I gave a copy of my favorite book, The Carrot Seed, to our Riptide staff. This simple children’s book is the best example of believing in yourself, perseverance and hard work all pay off. Hands down a treasure.”
Panther City Lacrosse Club
Matt Hossack – Talent Code by Daniel Coyle and Mind Gym by Gary Mack
Tracey Kelusky (Panther City Head Coach) – The Hard Hat by John Gordon
Jeremy Thompson – How to Become a Human Being by Steve Wall
San Diego Seals
Eli Gobrecht – The Hard Hat by John Gordon
“The legacy of George Boiardi has had a long lasting impact on me as a native of Ithaca, NY. I love this book because it inspired me to be a better teammate and to take nothing in life for granted.”
NLL Front Office
Jessica Berman – Finding Your Unicorn Space by Eve Rodsky & The Ride of a Lifetime by Robert Iger
Joel Feld – Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ’72 by Hunter S. Thompson & Eight Days in May by Volker Ullrich
Chris Heimsoth – The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark by Carl Sagan & I am a Strange Loop by Douglas Hoftstadter
Ryan Ireland – A Game Plan for Life by John Wooden & Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl
Devan Kaney – Red Rising (and the Red Rising Saga) by Pierce Brown
Katie Lavin – Becoming by Michelle Obama & Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown