Bonnie Shemie (born May 10, 1949) is an author and illustrator who has written educational books for children including a series about

Native American Native Americans or Native American usually refers to Native Americans in the United States. Related terms and peoples include: Ethnic groups * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian peoples of North, South, and Central America ...

dwellings. She was born in the U.S. and lives in Canada. Her writing focuses on different cultures' pre-modern construction techniques, as well as their belief systems.

Life and career

Shemie (née Brenner) was born on May 10, 1949, in

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...

to parents William and Louise Brenner. She studied architecture in the United States before moving to

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, Canada, in 1972. In 1974, she married Milo Shemie. From 1973 to 1976, she worked as a graphic designer and illustrator for advertising agencies in Montreal. She went on to pursue a career as a freelance illustrator, and later as an author and illustrator of children's books. Shemie's Native Dwellings series started with the book, ''Houses of Snow, Skin and Bones: Native Dwellings, the Far North'', published in 1989. The book was aimed at children and contained detailed descriptions of the homes built by

Inuit Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwe ...

tribes in Alaska. The work was praised and Noel McDermott in Canadian Children's Literature called it "a well-written and beautifully illustrated book, in which carefully researched information is presented, clearly and accurately and without any tendency to eulogize or romanticize." Shemie's book ''Houses of China'' was described as "excellent". Her book ''Houses of Hide and Earth'' was described as accessible and appealing while Shemie's research for her books was lauded.

Selected works

''Native Dwellings'' series

* ''Houses of Snow, Skin and Bones'' (1989) - *''Houses of Bark: Tipi, Wigwam and Longhouse'' (1990) - * ''Houses of Wood'' (1992) - *''Houses of Hide and Earth'' *''Mounds of Earth and Shell''

Others

*''Houses of China'' (1996) - * ''Building Canada'' (2001) - *''Building America'' by Janice Weaver (2002) - (Illustrator)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shemie, Bonnie 1949 births Living people American architectural historians American non-fiction children's writers American women illustrators American children's book illustrators 20th-century Canadian women writers American emigrants to Canada 20th-century Canadian women artists Canadian women children's writers Canadian women illustrators Canadian children's book illustrators American women children's book illustrators Canadian women children's book illustrators