The Production and History of Daisy Turner’s Moose Factory Cree

Abstract

^{In 1974 Daisy Turner released the first edition of her book Moose Factory Cree, an ililîmowin (Moose Cree) syllabic primer illustrated by children from Moose Factory Elementary school. Almost fifty years later, Moose Factory Cree remains in print. This essay will detail the significance of Turner’s contribution to children’s literature published in Canada and consider her contributions to Cree language, Indigenous print cultures, and Moose Factory history through her work translating and recording her community’s histories. As part of this project, I will consider Moose Factory Cree’s relationship to (i) the efflorescence of Indigenous writing released by Canadian publishers in the 1970s, (ii) the emergence of new reproductive technologies that accommodated syllabic type and lettering, and (iii) the emergence of Indigenous language programs in Canadian elementary schools.}