In the captivating and unconventional Legendary Frybread Drive-In, 17 Indigenous writers collaborate to explore and celebrate a range of Native experiences. Through "winks, nods, and overlaps in their writing," the authors create a naturally interconnected anthology of stories centering on a fantastical setting.
Sandy June's Legendary Frybread Drive-In is a lively but humble-looking gathering place that appears when people from countless tribes, locations, and even times most need it. They go to the drive-in for the intertribal community, the live music, the romance and friendship, the healing, and the warm, down-to-earth support of the "legendary grandparents" with beaded name tags. And of course they go for the ever-changing traditional fare: elk soup, Navajo tacos, Coke or Pepsi (choose your counter line based on your preference!), and frybread. Visitors call the restaurant "good medicine," a "haven," and a "utopia," thinking it's possibly magical, probably breaking the laws of space and time.
Readers will find both commonalities and variations every time they "enter" the drive-in through a story. The neon sign is always yellow and green, and Elders are always cooking and offering guidance. How characters get there, though, is always different. Whichever way they make it to Sandy June's--via a fridge portal in Arizona, as the protagonist does in "I Love You, Grandson" by Brian Young; while lost in a Hawaiian rainstorm ("Braving the Storm" by Kaua Māhoe Adams); or during an online DnD game with players from different states ("Game Night" by Darcie Little Badger)--young people from the Cherokee, Muscogee, Ojibwe, Blackfeet, and other Nations come together, again and again.
Stories in this noteworthy and absorbing compilation work as stand-alones, but to get the full benefit and sense of intertribal community, read them together. Editor (and contributor) Cynthia Leitich Smith has demonstrated her prowess at designing entrancing story webs in her anthology for younger readers, Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids. In voices, styles, and scenarios as varied as the tribes and locations represented, the stories and poems in Legendary Frybread Drive-In capture often-pivotal moments in young people's lives. Glossary and notes sections are packed with useful, interesting information, and are well worth sticking around to read. Themes of displacement and loneliness, as well as the importance of connection to family, friends, and tribe, permeate the entries, making the collection relevant and accessible for teen readers of any background. As Cheryl Isaacs says in "Heart Berry," "One way or another, Sandy June's never fail[s]." --Emilie Coulter, freelance writer and editor
Shelf Talker: 17 Indigenous writers create a web of entertaining, intertwined stories in this uplifting and unusual anthology, ideal for the YA reader who longs for connection and authenticity.