“A seed is a story you can hold in your hand.” A young narrator preparing to sow wild rice (mnoomin) shares observations about the ecosystem in which wild rice plays a part, and of the role and rituals of wild rice in the child’s Ojibwe culture, in a spare yet lyrical bilingual (Ojibwe/English) picture book. Mayfly and Pike, Eagle and Muskrat, Moose and Heron and Bat are all part of the marshy world in which wild rice grows. When the rice is “heavy with new life” it is time to harvest. “We offer semaa to the waters, asking for safe passage. We offer tobacco to the fields, asking mnoomin to fill our canoe.” Harvesting means bending stalks and knocking seeds loose into the canoe; it means leaving those that don’t easily let go. Some of the harvest is set aside for sowing, the rest is roasted to dry before the husks are loosened beneath dancing feet, and the seeds are winnowed and then cooked. “We say miigwech to mnoomin for allowing us this feast.” Warmly hued, beautifully composed illustrations glow with the beauty of the natural world and warmth of family and tradition. A translator’s note discusses variations in the Objibwe/Nishnaabemwin language among different communities and the cultural grounding for her translation. (Ages 4-8)