A Warm Springs elder has been selected as a finalist for one of the Oregon Book awards this year. Linda Meanus, Warm Springs, and Yakima elder, recounts her life story in her book, “My Name is LaMoosh.” The book is a finalist for the Eloise Jarvis McGraw Award for Children’s literature and is printed by the Oregon State University Press.
The book follows her life growing up with her grandma Flora Thompson and grandpa Chief Tommy Thompson near Celilo Falls before it was flooded in 1957.
“Linda persevered through this historic trauma and life’s challenges to teach young people about the Indigenous ways of the Columbia River. Intended for young readers to learn more about Native American history through a first-hand account, the book is also a reminder that Indigenous people continue to maintain a cultural connection to the land and river that gave them their identity,” said the OSU Press.
Alongside the personal story of Linda’s life, the book includes historical and cultural facts and environmental context to the events happening around her as she grew up, as well as historical photos of her family and community around Celilo Falls.