Fifteen-year-old Mark Centeno is of Chumash, Crow, Mexican, and Filipino ancestry—he calls himself “four kinds of brown.” When Mark goes to live with his Chumash grandmother on the reservation in central California, he discovers a rich world of family history and culture that he knows very little about.

He also finds a pathway to better understanding a part of his own identity: the world of powwow dancing. Riveted by the traditional dancers and feeling the magnetic pull of the drums, Mark begins the training and other preparations necessary for him to compete as a dancer in one of America’s largest powwows.

Powwow drums call a modern teen to reconnect with his Native American roots. Free of crises and melodrama, a buoyant take on the theme of embracing one’s family heritage.

Kirkus Reviews April 2014