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Eagle Books Travel to Communities Throughout the U.S.

About the Eagle Books

The Eagle Books are a series of four children’s books for Native American children and others interested in healthy living. The books promote type 2 diabetes prevention and encourage a return to traditional ways, including physical activity and healthy eating. The series was developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division of Diabetes Translation (DDT), in collaboration with the Tribal Leaders Diabetes Committee and the Indian Health Service, in response to the burden of diabetes among Native Americans and the lack of diabetes prevention materials for children.

The series, written by Georgia Perez (who served as a Community Health Representative for 19 years in Nambe Pueblo, New Mexico) and illustrated by Patrick Rolo (Bad River Band of Ojibwe, Wisconsin) and Lisa A. Fifield (Oneida Tribe of Wisconsin, Black Bear Clan), includes four books:

Through the Eyes of the Eagle
Knees Lifted High
Plate Full of Color
Tricky Treats

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Over 2 million books have been distributed throughout Indian Country, the rest of U.S., and abroad. To expand the reach of these vital health messages, artwork from the Eagle Books is now the focus of two outreach efforts.

Learn more about the Eagle Books and supporting materials such as the animated DVD and coloring books by visiting: www.cdc.gov/diabetes/eaglebooks.

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Community Outreach Campaign

Students listening to book reading at community event

Coordinated by DDT’s Native Diabetes Wellness Program, the Eagle Books Community Outreach Campaign supports activities and programs designed to empower local communities. From 2008 through 2012, the Native Diabetes Wellness Program will partner with American Indian and Alaska Native communities throughout Indian Country (such as Keweenaw Bay Indian Community in Michigan, the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in New Mexico, and Pendleton, Oregon, among others) to host a series of events celebrating the Eagle Books and their culturally-relevant messages about traditional ways and healthy living. Activities include large panels of images of the Eagle Books artwork accompanied by health messages, storytelling, diabetes talking circles, art workshops, powwows, school events, viewings of the animated Eagle Books on DVD, and seasonal events that coincide with local activities.

The first community outreach campaign was co-sponsored by Keweenaw Bay Ojibwa Community College in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community was chosen as the pilot site for the Eagle Book Community Outreach Campaign because of the community’s widespread use of the Eagle Books in their local schools and the role of Keweenaw Bay Community College in integrating the Eagle Books into the Health is Life in Balance Diabetes Education in Tribal Schools Curriculum (DETS).

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Girl reads wall text at Eagle Books exhibition

Traveling Exhibition

Through the Eyes of the Eagle: Illustrating Healthy Living for Children is a traveling exhibition of the original artwork from the Eagle Books. Curated by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Global Healthy Odyssey Museum, the exhibition has been on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, and at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Global Health Odyssey Museum.

United States map showing the location of various museums

Traveling Exhibition Map Locations

For information about where the exhibition will be on display next and for details about booking the exhibition, refer to the online traveling exhibition prospectus: www.cdc.gov/gcc/exhibit/cdc_traveling_exhibitions.htm.

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