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48 pp.
| Alaska
| April, 2019
|
PaperISBN 978-1-5132-6197-3$13.99
(2)
4-6
Photographs by
Roy Corral.
Twenty years after Children of the Midnight Sun, Brown and Corral present ten additional portraits of contemporary Alaska Native children. Each Indigenous child receives two spreads telling about his or her daily life and culture. The book is strongest when centering the voices of the featured young people and their family members. Clear photographs of people, places, flora, and fauna enliven the workmanlike text. Glos.
194 pp.
| Dial
| May, 2014
|
TradeISBN 978-0-8037-3745-7$17.99
(4)
4-6
Illustrated by
John Hendrix.
In 1858, Yup'ik Eskimo Toozak unwittingly tells American whalers where they can spear bowhead whales, bringing down a curse on his family and forcing Toozak and his progeny to protect one whale throughout its approximately two-hundred-year lifespan. George blends the whale's sea life with Toozak's descendants' lives on land. Coincidences mar the account, but the resurrection of the whale population is nicely told.
279 pp.
| Holt
| June, 2013
|
TradeISBN 978-0-8050-9351-3$15.99
(1)
4-6
Illustrated by
LeUyen Pham.
The disarmingly forthright tone is set right at the start of this book when we meet Bo, a little girl who lives with her papas (yes, that's plural) in a small gold-rush town in 1920s Alaska. Like Little House in the Big Woods but with a considerably larger cast (miners, Eskimos, old-timers, good-time girls), small events and crises keep the story involving.
Reviewer: Roger Sutton
| Horn Book Magazine Issue:
May, 2013
224 pp.
| Harcourt
| January, 2005
|
TradeISBN 0-15-205081-7$16.00
(4)
4-6
During an ill-fated seal hunting trip, Alika, an Inuit boy, and his younger brother become stranded on an ice floe in the Arctic Ocean. In this novel set in 1868, the boys survive six months of polar bear attacks, near starvation, and extreme weather before arriving home. Taylor includes many details of Inuit culture throughout an otherwise routine survival story.
32 pp.
| Alaska
| April, 2004
|
TradeISBN 0-88240-575-6$$15.95
|
PaperISBN 0-88240-576-4$$8.95
(3)
K-3
Illustrated by
Teri Sloat.
After hearing the old women complain about crowberries--the dry, tasteless berries growing on the tundra--young Anana constructs four dolls in different colors. On the moonlit tundra, she enchants the dolls, making them come alive and tumble down the hill, leaving delicious blueberries, cranberries, salmonberries, and raspberries in their wake. Jubilant illustrations accompany this well-paced pourquoi tale.
142 pp.
| Cavendish
| April, 2003
|
TradeISBN 0-7614-5134-X$$15.95
(4)
YA
In this coming-of-age story, an Inuit girl's culture is on the verge of change when a priest of the Dog Children (white men) settles in her community. Minik's first-person narration doesn't always work (she transmits complex English-language exchanges that she claims not to understand), but Dewey vividly gives a detailed account of Inuit history and beliefs.
32 pp.
| Talewinds
| July, 2003
|
TradeISBN 1-57091-393-5$$15.95
(4)
K-3
Illustrated by
Annie Patterson
&
Annie Patterson.
Along the Arctic coast of Alaska, an Inupiaq boy celebrates a successful whale hunt with his family and friends. Every time adults refer to "the spirit-of-the-whale," the boy seeks to understand what they mean, creating a trite unifying motif that runs throughout the story. Watercolor illustrations in shades of blue and purple paint a cozy, yet wintry, atmosphere. Glos.
(3)
YA
Late 1960s Alaska is the evocative setting of this story narrated by four teenagers from varied cultural backgrounds. Each has some connection with Dove Lexie, a mixed-raced youth who mysteriously disappears after being imprisoned. Leisurely paced, this multilayered, sophisticated novel would be a good choice for young readers transitioning to more mature books.
(4)
K-3
Illustrated by
Jozef Wilkon.
Atuk, a young Inuit boy, vows revenge when his beloved husky is killed by a wolf, but his father tells him he is too young to hunt. After years of anger, he is finally big enough, but when the wolf lies dead beside him, Atuk realizes his victory is empty, for "nothing had changed." He later finds solace in befriending and protecting a delicate tundra flower. Moody illustrations accompany the pointed story.
48 pp.
| Lerner
| December, 2001
|
LibraryISBN 0-8225-4850-X$$23.93
(4)
4-6
First Peoples series.
In two books in this series, the authors each give an overview of a Native American tribe covering both traditional lifestyles and adaptations to modern living, while color photos of tribe members in both ceremonial and modern dress make the presentation current. The information isn't well organized and sometimes skips around, but the inclusive scope of the project will be helpful to those looking for up-to-date sources. Bib., glos., ind.
(3)
K-3
Illustrated by
Ted Rand.
In this picture book, adapted from a sequel to Julie of the Wolves, Julie's brother Amaroq raises a wolf pup, Nutik, and his heart is broken when Nutik must return to the pack. Rand's realistic illustrations depict native Alaskan life and Amaroq's growing relationship with the wolf pup; they show as well Amaroq's joy when Nutik chooses to stay with his human family instead.
(3)
K-3
Illustrated by
Ted Rand.
When Amaroq, a young Eskimo boy, follows Nutik, his pet wolf pup, out onto the tundra in search of his football taken by the village pranksters, he gets lost. But Nutik's good nose finds not only the ball but the way home again. The intense colors in the pastel and painted illustrations depict the northern Alaskan summer in this story featuring characters from the Julie of the Wolves books.
88 pp.
| Alaska
| May, 2001
|
TradeISBN 0-88240-545-4$$18.95
|
PaperISBN 0-88240-546-2$$11.95
(4)
4-6
Illustrated by
Howard "Weyahok" Rock.
Written and illustrated over sixty years ago, these stories of a nineteenth-century Inupiat Eskimo boy are published now for the first time. In a series of vignettes, Neeluk trades his cap for a puppy, spears his first fish, and awaits the arrival of a trading ship. Though the dated writing style strains to include too much factual information, the stories capture an intriguing time and place in history. Bib., glos.
40 pp.
| Farrar/Foster
| April, 2001
|
TradeISBN 0-374-37075-3$$17.00
|
PaperISBN 0-374-46725-0$$6.95 1993, Knopf
(2)
1-3
SÃs relates a brief story about Jan Welzl, a folk hero in the author-illustrator's native Czechoslovakia. This Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor book is a welcome reissue.
(3)
PS
Illustrated by
Glo Coalson.
In this board book edition, a little Inuit boy discovers that there is room on his mother's lap for himself, his favorite toys, and his baby sister. Coalson's soft illustrations do not suffer much from the size reduction, and certainly the older end of the board book set will enjoy the sentiments expressed in this simple, warm, and loving book.
(4)
K-3
Illustrated by
Wendell Minor.
While exploring a shoreline iceberg, Bessie encounters a polar bear cub. As she and Snow Bear play, her older brother and the mother bear watch from distant overlooks, each wary of their kin's playmate. Finally, humans and bears peaceably go their separate ways. Though meant to be quietly evocative, the text often slips into a simplistic, plodding rhythm. The rich paintings, however, are uniformly striking.
32 pp.
| Whispering
| September, 1999
|
TradeISBN 1-58089-021-0$$15.95
(4)
PS
Illustrated by
Marty Husted.
In this soothing, rhythmic free-verse poem, an Eskimo mother coaxes her child to sleep by calling forth images of the sights, sounds, and inhabitants of the Arctic tundra. The child imagines himself in every scene, kayaking among seabirds and frolicking with bears, before finally falling asleep. The watercolor illustrations aptly capture the landscape but are stiff, especially when depicting human characters.
(3)
4-6
Illustrated by
Anne Wertheim.
Rich with up-to-date information, this book explores not only the physical characteristics and life cycle of the polar bear, but also the extreme conditions of its Arctic home and its relationship to Native peoples past and present. The detailed acrylic paintings have both artistic and instructional value, capturing the harsh beauty of the landscape and the dignity of both bear and people. Ind.
32 pp.
| October, 1998
|
TradeISBN 0-15-201498-5$$17.00
(3)
K-3
Illustrated by
Stefano Vitale.
This collection of narrative poems is based on Inuit myths about creation, a time when "words were like magic." Fields has attempted to capture the ancient Inuit voices as he describes the evolution of sun and moon, heaven and hell, thunder and lightning, and the animals that roam the far north. Vitale's oil paintings done on bark, wood, and stone faithfully recall Native art.
32 pp.
| Alaska
| October, 1998
|
TradeISBN 0-88240-504-7$$15.95
(3)
1-3
Illustrated by
David Rubin.
Five-year-old Kitaq, a contemporary Yup'ik boy, has never been ice fishing. Although it's a long day of walking in the cold, his grandfather agrees that Kitaq is old enough to go. The oil paintings capture the brilliant colors of the region, Kitaq's excitement, and how proud his parents and grandfather are of him. The narrative is complemented by a lengthy note about the Yup'ik village of Kwethluk. Glos.