by AJ Eversole

Today I get to chat with author Karina Iceberg. Her debut picture book,  A Good Hide, illustrated by Natasha Donovan (Heartdrum, 2026), is about what happens after the moose hunt, when community comes together to celebrate the sustenance the animal provides. In a starred review, Kirkus Reviews had the following to say, “Simple yet utterly joyous—a testament to Indigenous identity that exudes gratitude.”

Karina grew up in Fairbanks, Alaska and is a member of the Aleut and Alutiiq Nations.

What inspired you to write about the moose hide tanning process for a picture book? Was there a specific moment or memory that made you think, this needs to be a story?

It was a specific moment! During my MFA program in Writing for Children and Young Adults, I was trying out poetry for several months with the incredible author Cory McCarthy serving as my advisor! When I turned in A Good Hide then, as a poem, Cory’s response was, “I wish my kid had a picture book like this – they would love it!” Which was the first piece of writing I’d ever submitted that had the response, and now I get to share it with kids! What a dream!

The book emphasizes community and the work of many hands rather than focusing on a single protagonist. Can you talk about why you chose this collective approach to storytelling?

I wanted to honor some of the tribal beliefs that are instilled with the process of traditions being handed down by one generation to another to another. It doesn’t happen all in one day or to just one person. It happens layer by layer, like this story. We learn these values of respect, stewardship, interdependence, and reverence as a community.

You describe the tanning process with both technical detail and celebration. How did you balance the educational aspects with keeping the narrative engaging for young readers?

As I said, it began as a poem, and really, it remains a poem! My hope is that the heart of the book shows us that the real educational part comes from learning in our community and invites readers to do so. It’s not a guide to tanning, though of course many technical elements are there; it’s the joy of recognizing the adventure and the spirit weaving through the joy, the fun, the gratitude, and the process of how we come together with something larger than ourselves.

You worked with Heartdrum, an imprint specifically focused on Indigenous voices. What was that experience like, and how did having Cynthia Leitich Smith as author-curator influence the development of your book?

Cynthia is a joy to work with and an incredible mentor. All of those who know her, both in the children’s literature sphere and in the Indigenous writing community, know that she is a force to be reckoned with! Luckily for all of us, she uses that awe-inspiring energy to lift up everyone around her, and to lead with such joy, kindness, and respect. She is the embodiment of the Native auntie, always looking out for everyone, but also wise and all-knowing!

The moose hide tanning process involves so many specific steps—from stretching and scraping to making brain stew. How did you decide which details to include in a picture book format, and were there any parts of the process that were particularly challenging to convey to young readers?

Young readers are so brilliant. I think they are capable of enjoying so much! I tried to focus less on the idea of a how-to guide, and more on the flow of the tactile experience and the movement, both for young readers but for all of us to experience what a workout the process is!

As someone who is Aleut/Alutiiq, how did you approach representing an intertribal Native Alaskan community in this story? What conversations or considerations shaped that choice?

I grew up in Fairbanks, Alaska, with a big intertribal community of Alaska Native peoples, so I think it was showing a lot of what I’ve known growing up. I was also inspired by the larger Turtle Island population, where I’m inspired by the strength of our intertribal community.

What do you hope young Native readers take away from seeing their communities’ traditional practices celebrated in a picture book?

In my MFA program, we often referenced a now-famous paper by educator Dr. Rudine Sims Bishop called Mirrors, Windows, and Sliding Glass Doors; Bishop’s thesis is that kids need to be able to see someone like themselves (mirrors) in books, see others views (windows), and be able to step into another’s perspective (sliding glass doors). I hope that my book can be some of all three for our Native community, and beyond it.

For readers unfamiliar with subsistence lifestyles and traditional practices, what do you most want them to understand about this way of life?

Hmm, this is tricky! I most hope to instill curiosity: What’s here that’s new and different to me? And also, what is familiar to me? This is a book filled with love, family, and belonging, elements of life that we all want and hope for, no matter what our ancestry is. I hope that is a safe place for readers to explore and be curious about the things they recognize and what they can learn.

What advice would you give to other Indigenous writers working on their debut books, especially those wanting to share traditional knowledge and cultural practices authentically?

In the author’s note of A Good Hide, I talk about the myriad ways of Indigenous knowing, and how lucky we are to have such an intricate tapestry of individual threads, old and new, each with something to offer and some still being woven in.

I hope that anyone who has a story to tell, tries and tries, and tries again to tell it because we are here waiting to hold your story.

Now that your debut is out in the world, are there other traditional practices, stories, or aspects of Aleut/Alutiiq life that you’re hoping to explore in future books? What stories are you dreaming of telling next?

There are so many things I’m inspired by in our community! There are so many forms of art I feel in awe to see: beading, the language revitalization programs, drumming, singing, filmmaking, tattooing. The whole world feels like a garden of ideas. I’m working on capturing glimpses here and there, of ways we can try to frame that beauty for all to see and celebrate.

Cynsational Notes:

Karina Iceberg holds an MFA in writing for children and young adults from the Vermont College of Fine Arts. Her debut picture book, A Good Hide, was published by Heartdrum in January 2026. Her work has appeared in two anthologies: Legendary Frybread Drive-In, edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Heartdrum 2025), and Onward: Climate Fiction to Inspire Hope, edited by Nora Shalaway Carpenter (Charlesbridge, 2026). Karina is a member of the Aleut (Unangax) and Alutiiq (Sugpiaq) Nations of Alaska.

 A.J. Eversole grew up in rural Oklahoma where the wide open spaces fed her imagination and the stories waiting to be told. An enrolled member of the Cherokee Nation, she works across adult and children’s literature to explore themes of cultural reclamation, resilience, and the ways ancestral knowledge persists in modern worlds. Her stories appear in Legendary Frybread Drive-In (Heartdrum/HarperCollins), Beyond the Glittering World (Torrey House Press), and Never Whistle At Night Part II (Vintage, 2026). When not writing, she reports on Native Voices in literature for Cynsations News Website. Find her on socials @ajeversole.