"Poet Laureate of the United States"--Cover

The story field -- Woven -- Mystery -- First memory -- Voice -- Helpers -- Ethics -- Romance -- Kitchen table -- Feeding your spirit -- Tricksters -- Stirring the waters -- Friendship -- Fury -- Notice -- Songline -- Her name -- The race -- Thought trails -- Rainbow speak -- Be yourself -- Performing -- Failure -- Contradiction -- Intimate violence -- Making it through -- Addiction -- Judgment -- Despair -- Fear -- Transform -- Lost -- Dreaming -- Alert -- Forgiveness -- In our hands -- Witness -- Historical trauma -- Missing -- Orientation -- Greeter -- Butterfly -- Grief -- Compassion -- Flower -- Coming of age -- Passion -- Resonance -- Dark night -- Illumination -- Gratitude prayer

"In her best-selling memoir Poet Warrior, Harjo led readers through her lifelong process of artistic evolution. In Girl Warrior, she speaks directly to Native girls and women, sharing stories about her own coming of age to bring renewed attention to the pivotal moments of becoming including forgiveness, failure, falling, rising up, and honoring our vast family of beings. Informed by her own experiences and those of her ancestors, Harjo offers inspiration and insight for navigating the many challenges of maturation. She grapples with parents, friendships, love, and loss. She guides young readers toward painting, poetry, and music as powerful tools for developing their own ethical sensibility. As Harjo demonstrates, the act of making is an essential part of who we are, a means of inviting the past into the present and a critical tool young women can use to shape a more just future. Lyrical and compassionate, Harjo's call for creativity and empathy is an urgent and necessary work."--