Jo Jo Makoons: The Used-To-Be Best Friend (Paperback or Softback)

American Indian Youth Literature Award: Middle Grade Honor Book! Hello/Boozhoo—meet Jo Jo Makoons! Full of pride, joy, and plenty of humor, this first book in an all-new chapter book series by Dawn Quigley celebrates a spunky young Ojibwe girl who loves who she is.

Jo Jo Makoons Azure is a spirited seven-year-old who moves through the world a little differently than anyone else on her Ojibwe reservation. It always seems like her mom, her kokum (grandma), and her teacher have a lot to learn—about how good Jo Jo is at cleaning up, what makes a good rhyme, and what it means to be friendly.

Even though Jo Jo loves her #1 best friend Mimi (who is a cat), she’s worried that she needs to figure out how to make more friends. Because Fern, her best friend at school, may not want to be friends anymore…

Contemporary Native characters and community values are at the heart of Jo Jo's everyday adventures on her reservation! A glossary and author's note can be found at the end of every installment of this award-winning, Native-authored chapter book series.

The Heartdrum imprint centers a wide range of intertribal voices, visions, and stories while welcoming all young readers, with an emphasis on the present and future of Indian Country and on the strength of young Native heroes. In partnership with We Need Diverse Books.

Dawn Quigley is a citizen of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe, North Dakota. The first three books in her Jo Jo Makoons series, and her debut YA novel, Apple in the Middle, were awarded American Indian Youth Literature Honors. She is a PhD education university faculty member and a former K–12 reading and English teacher, as well as an Indian Education program codirector. You can find her online at dawnquigley.com.

Tara Audibert is a multidisciplinary artist, filmmaker, cartoonist, animator, and podcaster. She owns and runs Moxy Fox Studio, where she creates her award-winning works, including the animated short film The Importance of Dreaming, comics This Place: 150 Years Retold and Lost Innocence, and “Nitap: Legends of the First Nations,” an animated storytelling app. She is of Wolastoqey/French heritage and resides in Sunny Corner, New Brunswick, Canada. You can find her online at moxyfox.ca.