Riding the Trail: Cherokees Remember the Removal

Follow Cherokee youths on a 950-mile bike journey retracing the Trail of Tears—from Georgia to Oklahoma—on the annual Remember the Removal Ride.

This inspiring photo-rich nonfiction book follows Native youth riding to remember history, linking past and present through culture, resilience, and activism. For ages 10 and up.

Readers follow Cherokee youth as they train for the Remember the Removal Ride, dive into the Cherokee language, and find out more about the important chapter in their tribe’s history. The ride began in 1984 and became an annual event in 2009. There are nearly 300 alumni, including coauthor Will Chavez, who was also a coordinator of the program.

Here are 112 pages of photo-illustrated nonfiction penned by enrolled Cherokee Nation coauthors. This does something no other book does: presents the Trail of Tears in a contemporary context. While Cherokee people suffered that grim chapter in history, they thrive today.

Traci Sorell is an award-winning author of children picture books and middle-grade books. Will Chavez is an award-winning journalist and photographer. Both creators are citizens of the Cherokee Nation.