Hawk by Jennifer Dance

2018 Red Maple Award - Shortlisted [*] 2017 Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award - Winner, Young Adult Category
[*] CCBC's Best Books for Kids & Teens (Fall 2016)
When a First Nations teen rescues a fish-hawk from a tailings pond in Alberta's oil sands, he has no idea that soon they will both be fighting for their lives.
As a cross-country runner, Adam aims to win gold in the upcoming provincial championship. But when he is diagnosed with leukemia, he finds himself in a different race, one that he can't afford to lose. He reclaims the name Hawk, given to him by his grandfather, and begins to fight, for his life and for the land of his ancestors and the creatures that inhabit it. With a little help from his grandfather and his friends, he might just succeed.