"Kalapuya Chinuk wawa Ikanum," a 26-page book, teaches the names of animals and plants in English, Kalapuya and Chinook. The research and writing were done by David G. Lewis, an assistant professor of anthropology and Indigenous studies at Oregon State University, while his 25-year-old son, Saghaley Lewis, created the illustrations.

The book features scenes such as a bobcat glaring at a rattlesnake in the high desert, a duck diving underwater to come face-to-face with a sturgeon, and wolf cubs circling a nervous elk in a cedar grove. A glossary at the back lists the names of featured plants and animals in all three languages.

David Lewis said he was inspired to create the book after seeing a similar children's board book produced by the Cow Creek Tribe that shared animal names in the Takelma language. He gathered spellings from language experts and included a short history of the language programs themselves, including whether Kalapuyan is still spoken.

"I got the actual spellings from the experts, and then I also wrote a little bit of history on the language programs themselves," Lewis said.

The title reflects the languages featured: "Kalapuya" and "Chinuk wawa," while "Ikanum" is a Chinuk wawa word meaning "oral histories" or "stories."

Saghaley Lewis, who is largely self-taught, studied visual communications and multimedia arts at Chemeketa Community College and video and game design at Salem's Career Technical Education Center. His artistic style blends Western cartooning with manga and anime influences, drawing inspiration from Spanish illustrator Carles Dalmau and animated series such as "Murder Drones" and "The Amazing Digital Circus."

About two years ago, his father asked him to collaborate on the project. His immediate reply: "Sure."

The pair have been selling copies of the book at holiday markets across the region, where it has drawn attention from young readers.

"Kids walk by and they're like, 'Whoa, what's that?' Like it just pops out at them, it makes me happy when kids enjoy it," Saghaley Lewis said.

The book is available at several shops, including the Springfield History Museum and Spirit Mountain Casino, and can be ordered online as individual copies or bulk orders at wholesale prices.

Madeline McGraw, curator of the Springfield museum, said she has long respected David Lewis, who previously advised an exhibit called "Illumination" that collected oral histories from marginalized communities.

"Usually we try to find things that are related to this part of the Willamette Valley," McGraw said. "And we were chatting and he was like, 'Oh, I've got a new book' and I was like, 'Alright, whatever it is, gimme gimme!'"

McGraw noted that colonization inflicted many harms on Indigenous people, including the eradication of the Kalapuya language, leaving few resources for people to learn it, especially children.

"So to have something that includes Chinuk wawa and Kalapuya, and in a format where we can get it out to the public, that's just a slam dunk in my book," she said.

McGraw added that the father-son collaboration makes the book even more special. "Saghaley's artwork is just so striking and so amazing. It's an important book. It's a well-made book. And so we want to see them succeed. We want to see this book get out."

Saghaley Lewis is now working on another book with his mother, Donna, a special education teacher for Salem-Keizer Public Schools, focusing on special education students and featuring his illustrations. Once that is complete, he and his father plan to explore further collaborations on children's books about Indigenous languages.