Setting out with her infant daughter and the baby's father, an Ojibwe spiritual leader and guide, Louise Erdrich embarks on an evocative journey to the islands of her forebearers in southern Ontario. She arrives in a small boat on Lake of the Woods to visit powerful, centuries-old rock paintings that are still read by contemporary Ojibwe as ''teaching and dream guides.'' In this rich memoir Erdrich compellingly writes about the Ojibwe spirits and songs, language, and sorrows that have passed down through generations. Erdrich later travels to Rainy Lake, to an island of real books, the world of an exuberant eccentric and close friend to the Ojibwe, who established an extraordinary library there a hundred years ago. Set against powerful prose about her own family and contemporary life Books & Islands in Ojibwe Country is an intensely thoughtful, intimate, and fascinating cultural excursion.

• 15 illustrations
• Hardcover: 192 pages. 5 5/8'' x 8 1/4''. © 2003
• Softcover: 160 pages. 5 1/2'' x 8''. © 2006