Imprint Profile: Heartdrum
An imprint of HarperCollins Children’s Books.
The CBC is happy to host Imprint Profiles, where we shine a light on eponymous imprints dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion in the books they publish. Below, co-founders Rosemary Brosnan and Cynthia Leitich Smith answer our questions about Heartdrum Books.
How did your imprint start out?
Over breakfast at a teacher conference, Author and We Need Diverse Books Co-Founder, Ellen Oh and Cynthia Leitich Smith (Muscogee), were discussing the need for an Indigenous children’s book imprint. Given Cynthia’s publication history and teaching experience, Ellen suggested that Cynthia would be an ideal person to co-found it. After pondering the idea, Cynthia reached out to her long-time Editor, Rosemary Brosnan, who received a speedy greenlight from the president and publisher of HarperCollins Children’s Books to establish Heartdrum.
What is your imprint most known for?
We publish award-winning books by and about Indigenous people for children and teens.
Which genres or formats does your imprint prefer to publish?
To date, we’ve focused on contemporary realistic fiction, mystery, thrillers, humor, and modern folklore in a wide range of formats, including picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, YA novels, novels in verse, and graphic novels. We also embrace intersectional representation in books such as Two Tribes by Emily Bowen Cohen, about a Muscogee-Jewish girl; Stronger Than by Stacy Wells, Nikki Grimes, and E.B. Lewis, about a Black-Choctaw family; and Circle of Love by Monique Gray Smith and Nicole Niedhardt, about an Indigenous community center that welcomes Two-Spirit characters.
Which title have you recently rallied behind?
This month, we’re publishing two debut YA books: Shards of Silence by Brian Lee Young (Diné), and a novel in verse, An Expanse of Blue by Kauakanilehua Māhoe Adams (Native Hawaiian), both of which have received two starred reviews. Brian is also the author of the popular, award-winning Water Monster middle grade series, and Kaua is the first Native Hawaiian author on our list.
Which upcoming titles are you buzzing about?
Fresh off the success of their debut YA novel, Rez Ball, which won the William C. Morris Award and a Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor award, Byron Graves (Ojibwe and Lakota) has written a heartfelt, pulse-pounding skateboard novel, Medicine Wheels. Alaska Native author Karina Iceberg debuts this year with two picture books: A Good Hide, illustrated by Natasha Donovan (Métis), about a community coming together after a successful hunt, and this summer’s Free to Fly, illustrated by Steph Littlebird (Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde), about the dreams that sustained a grandfather while he was in boarding school.
Which of your frontlist titles would be great for a school library or public library?
If I have to pick one for library readers, it would be Brian Lee Young’s Shards of Silence, which is set in a prestigious, academic, modern boarding school and on the Navajo reservation. It’s both a fish-out-of-water story and an intergenerational tale that upper-middle-school and high-school students will find relatable.
Which of your frontlist titles would be great for a classroom? Which grade?
Teachers might enjoy the picture book Here Come the Aunties! by Cynthia Leitich Smith, which has already received three starred reviews. The story is a celebration of the roles aunties play in the life of a child whose parents are expecting a baby. Brought to life by Aphelandra’s (Oneida and Filipino) adorable illustrations, the story illuminates daily life in Muscogee tribal towns. It’s a terrific fit for K-2.
Which of your books deserve more attention from teachers, librarians, and booksellers?
- To Walk the Sky: How Iroquois Steelworkers Built Towering Cities, by Patricia Morris Buckley (Mohawk) with art by E. B. Lewis. This is one of our rare nonfiction titles, informed by fascinating insights available only to Patricia as a member of a family of steelworkers. It was named an ALA Notable Book.
- Aaniin: I See Your Light by Dawn Quigley (Ojibwe) and debut illustrator Nanibah Chacon (Diné) is breathtakingly gorgeous. The luminous art illustrates Ojibwe teachings and the power of respectful interpersonal recognition.
- Meanwhile, Dawn Quigley’s hilarious Jo Jo Makoons chapter book series is ongoing, and we look forward to Jo Jo Makoons: The Fun Field Trip in Winter 2027.
- Laurel Goodluck’s (Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara, and Alaska Tsimshian) Yáadilá! Good Grief is another funny title, shining an affectionate light on frustrations and thoughtfulness within a family.
Name a few of your favorite backlist titles that people should check out.
Of course, Kim Rogers’ (Wichita) picture books and Christine Day’s (Upper Skagit) middle-grade novels are always popular. Fans of supernatural stories should check out Cheryl Isaacs’ (Mohawk) The Unfinished and The Others. Mystery lovers should pick up Looking for Smoke by K. A. Cobell (Blackfeet), a Reese’s Book Club Pick. And those who enjoy contemporary realism should catch up on Jen Ferguson’s (Métis) novels before this fall’s release of the wonderful Like Glass.
What else would you like to tell us about your imprint and the passionate work you all do?
We’ve built the Heartdrum imprint with new voices and will continue to do so. In keeping with that approach, we’ve initially connected with several authors on our list (and those who go on to publish elsewhere) through our support of the annual We Need Diverse Books Native Children’s-YA Writing Intensive.
For example, Cherokee author Christine Hartman Derr has participated in the program repeatedly. Last summer, she offered a presentation to the group, and this summer she will be co-teaching the writing workshop component. Her experience reflects how we’re both nurturing aspiring writers and offering professional practice opportunities to new voices.
This year, we’re delighted to be publishing Christine’s debut middle-grade novel, Raven Rising, and next Winter we’ll be publishing her debut picture book, Until We Meet Again: Donadagohvi.
We believe it’s important to live by Native values on the page and behind the bylines. We’ll continue to lead the intertribal conversation of books for young readers, centering the needs of Indigenous young people, and inviting the larger reading community into our Indigenous literary circle.
Thank you, Heartdrum!
