06/17/2026
Consider what it would mean to bring a bookwalk to your congregation to help people talk and engage with indigenous storytelling.
https://vist.ly/583pa
Here is what Laura Alary says about the book Alis the Aviator:
Alis the Aviator is an alphabet book which uses simple text and gorgeous cut-paper illustrations to introduce a variety of aircraft and moments from aviation history. The main character is named for Dr. Alis Kennedy, likely the first indigenous woman in Canada to earn both a private and commercial pilot’s license.
Because this book has no particular plot or storyline, it may not seem obvious how it could connect with the bible, or theology, or life in Christian community. In this it is similar to certain passages of scripture, whose purpose is not immediately apparent, and which we might be tempted to skip over. These include things like long genealogies, or the lengthy greetings Paul often includes in his letters, naming people about whom we know very little.
But when we look closer at these passages, we discover they are not just lists—they are collections of stories! Every name in a family tree, every person mentioned in a letter, is someone with a story.
Similarly, what sounds like a list of planes, or people, or events, is much more. Behind every aircraft mentioned in Alis the Aviator there are stories: who invented it, developed it, flew it, when, where and for what purpose? Behind the simplicity of the text there are wars, accidents, close calls, discoveries, and adventures. One such astonishing moment is when an ultralight was used to teach geese to migrate from Ontario to Virginia!
So a book like Alis the Aviator can actually change the way we see the world. It can help us pay attention to hidden stories—the stories that lie behind and beneath the surface of what we see and hear. This book also reminds us of the many achievements of Indigenous people, whose stories have not been told.
