Description
Son Who Returns is one of the titles in 7th Generations' PathFinders Series. This series of novels are known as high/low books—written at a lower reading level but with high-interest, age-appropriate plots. Designed for reluctant readers from ages 12 and up, these books feature linear story lines, limited vocabulary and short sentences. The layout and print size also contribute in making the books easier to read. This contemporary novel features fifteen-year-old Mark Centeno is of Chumash, Crow, Mexican, and Filipino ancestry—he calls himself “four kinds of brown.” When Mark goes to live with his Chumash grandmother on the reservation in central California, he discovers a rich world of family history and culture that he knows very little about. He also finds a pathway to better understanding a part of his own identity: the world of powwow dancing. Riveted by the traditional dancers and feeling the magnetic pull of the drums, Mark begins the training and other preparations necessary for him to compete as a dancer in one of largest powwows, the Gathering of Nations in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Like all of our PathFinders novels for reluctant teen readers, this contemporary story is by a Native American author, features a linear plot, and is written at a 4.5 reading level.