scholarly journals Tales from the Tundra: A Collection of Inuit Stories by I. Kaslik

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Publishing House ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Publishing Company ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Traditional Technique ◽  
Internal Dialogue ◽  
The University

Kaslik, Ibi. Tales from the Tundra: A Collection of Inuit Stories. Illus. Anthony Brennan. Iqaluit: Inhabit Media, 2010. Print. Inhabit Media is an Inuit-owned, independent publishing company that “aims to promote and preserve the stories, knowledge, and talent of northern Canada.”  This collection of five traditional Inuit stories from different regions in Nunavut is one of their most recent offerings.  Three of the stories tell of how specific animals came into being.  One tells how the raven and loon came to look the way they do and the fifth, The Owl and the Siksik, is a typical story of outwitting the enemy. Anthony Brennan’s illustrations have a two-dimensional fantasy quality to them that is more reminiscent of cartoons or Japanese anime than of traditional Inuit art.  Many of the creatures are outlined in black and then filled with solid colour.  While the backgrounds are usually ice-blue, and there are pastel colours in the images, many of the main parts of the drawings are black, giving the book an overall ominous look. While these stories are described in the forward as “contemporary retellings”, Kaslik’s voice is similar to that of an elder telling stories and her style is traditional.  The language is simple and direct, occasionally incorporating Inuit words.  Animals are anthropomorphized.  They do the same sorts of things that humans do and have human emotions and foibles.  For example, in “The Raven and The Loon”, the two birds sew clothes for each other.   When Raven thinks that Loon is sewing too slowly, she reacts impatiently: “Please, sew faster!” impatient Raven pleaded.” Kaslik also uses internal dialogue, another traditional technique, to allow the reader to listen to the characters reasoning out their actions. For example, “Siksiks often go in and out of their dens,” thought the owl, believing himself to be very clever.  “Today I will find a siksik den and wait there until I see one.” There are few children’s books of Inuit mythology available, and fewer that have the authenticity of being published by an Inuit publishing house.  Overall, this volume is a small, but welcome addition to the field, through which many children will be able to learn about the mythology of the Inuit.  For public and school libraries everywhere. Highly recommended:  4 out of 4 stars Reviewer: Sandy Campbell Sandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines.  Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give. 

scholarly journals The Great Sheep Shenanigans by P. Bently

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Harry Potter ◽  
Two Dimensional ◽  
Intended Audience ◽  
Small Children ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Peter The Great ◽  
The University

Bently, Peter.  The Great Sheep Shenanigans.  Illus. M. Matsuoka. London:  Andersen Press, 2011. Print. In this tale, it is really the wolf, Lou Pine (hear the French loup and Lupin, the werewolf from Harry Potter), who gets up to shenanigans, rather than the sheep.  The text is a clever and funny rhyme that tells the story of the wolf trying to catch a lamb to eat.  Along the way, we hear sheep-related cultural and literary references from, “the wolf in sheep’s clothing,” to Red Riding Hood. “I’m just in the mood for a Gran-flavoured snack,” the wolf tells us. The wolf makes many attempts to catch a lamb, but is always thwarted, if not by his own silliness, then by the water-gun toting Ma Watson, by bees, by Red Riding Hood’s Granny, and finally, by Rambo the Ram, who butts him into “a big pile of poo!”  While the intended audience is pre-school, the author sprinkles in some big words, such as “derrière”, “kersplat”, “skedaddling” and “vindaloo”, that children will enjoy and repeat, but adults will need to explain and pronounce on the first reading. The text is often printed over the illustrations, sometimes in extra-large font to emphasize a point.  Sometimes it is part of the illustration.  When “Lou found a thicket of blossoming trees,” the words from the phrase “Down came the blossom” float down the page with the blossoms.  The illustrations are as much fun as the text. The sheep are most often depicted as balls of white with heads, ears and four small pegs for legs.  Lou Pine is a two-dimensional creature, while Rambo the Ram blows steam out his nose and wears boxing gloves. The sheep occasionally have glasses, bow-ties or hair-bows. Because the rhyme is jaunty and the illustrations are fun and inventive, this will be a book that small children will want to have read to them over and over.  Highly recommended for public and elementary school libraries. Recommendation:  4 stars out of 4Reviewer:  Sandy CampbellSandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines.  Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give.

scholarly journals Lesson for the Wolf by R. & S. Qitsualik-Tinsley

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Face Length ◽  
Good Starting Point ◽  
The University

Qitsualik-Tinsley, Rachel and Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley.  Lesson for the Wolf.  Illus. Alan Cook. Iqaluit, NU:  Inhabit Media, 2015. Print.The writing duo of Rachel and Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley are back with a story about being comfortable in your own skin, literally.  The wolf in this story is not happy to be a wolf, so with the help of “the magic of the land”, he acquires owl’s feathers, the wolverine’s tail and the caribou’s antlers.  But he cannot fly like the owl or eat lichen like the caribou and he is too different from the wolves, so he becomes sad, lonely and starves.  Eventually he learns the beauty of being himself and the magic of the land restores him.  The story is a lovely Arctic fable on the lesson of being true to one’s self. Alan Cook’s paintings capture the wildness of the Arctic, with sweeping brush-strokes and suggestions of distant landscapes.  The animals are all cartoon-like creatures, sometimes verging on caricature.  Both the wolves and the caribou are drawn with over-accentuated face length and extreme thinness of the abdomen. Children who are struggling to be satisfied with and confident in their identities may be able to identify with the wolf.  This book would be a good starting point for discussion.  Highly recommended for elementary school libraries and public libraries.Highly recommended:  4 stars out of 4Reviewer:  Sandy CampbellSandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines.  Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give. 

scholarly journals Cloudwalker by R.H. Vickers and R. Budd

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Cultural Knowledge ◽  
Upper Elementary ◽  
Elementary Level ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Great Rivers ◽  
The University ◽  
Traditional Stories

Vickers, Roy Henry and Robert Budd.  Cloudwalker.  Madeira Park, BC: Harbour Publishing, 2014. Print.This is a stunning new book from painter, print maker, carver, author and member of the Orders of Canada and British Columbia, Roy Henry Vickers.  It contains 18 new prints from this innovative Indigenous artist, which accompany the retelling of a traditional story.  The story explains the origin of the three great rivers: The Nass, The Stikine and the Skeena (or Ksien, which means "juice from the clouds”).  It is the story of a young man who is carried up to the clouds by swans and wanders around on the clouds.  He carries a box of water, which spills when he falls.  The spills form the lakes and rivers on the land.  While the text tells the story, it also incorporates cultural knowledge including the cycle of the salmon and the importance of marmot hides as symbols of wealth.  The text is simple and readable at the upper elementary level. While the story is important, it is the sophisticated artwork that makes this book stand out.  Vickers has used flat designs, incorporating the familiar formlines and ovoids found in traditional North coastal Indigenous art.  Ovoids are the rounded shapes used to portray joints  and sometimes eyes.   Some of the paintings show the familiar red and black figures on simple backgrounds of strong colours.  However  other figures are printed in shiny overlay most visible as you move the book to catch the light, creating hidden treasures for children to find.  For example the image on page 28 shows a figure by the river;  shiny streaks cross the page to represent rain and shiny fish are printed on the surface of the river. This book, which reminds us that picture books and traditional stories are not just for children, would be an excellent addition to public and school libraries everywhere, as well as to collections that specialize in Canadian Indigenous traditional stories. Highly recommended:  4 stars out of 4 Reviewer:  Sandy CampbellSandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines.  Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give. 

scholarly journals Northern Dancer: King of the Racetrack by G. Joyce

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Junior High School ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
The World ◽  
The University ◽  
Thoroughbred Racing

Joyce, Gare.  Northern Dancer: King of the Racetrack.  Markham, ON:  Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2012. Print.It is not often that you find a biography of an animal, but in this case, the animal was a national icon.  According to Gare Joyce, Northern Dancer, the great racehorse “made more money as an accomplished racehorse and sire than any Canadian athlete in history – even more than Wayne Gretzky ”.  The book begins with a genealogical chart that shows that of the 19 horses starting in the 2011 Kentucky Derby, 18 were descended from Northern Dancer.This book chronicles Northern Dancer from his birth through to his wins and standing at stud until his death at age 29.  Through his story, the reader also learns about the world of North American thoroughbred racing.  We meet the great jockeys:  Ron Turcotte, Willie Shoemaker and Bill Hardtack who all rode Northern Dancer to victories. We learn about the development of racehorses and the major races:  The Preakness, The Belmont, The Kentucky Derby and the Queen’s Plate.   Joyce writes informally and conversationally, as though he is telling one long story.  For example, he tells us that Northern Dancer “became unruly around his stall…At least once he ripped the shirt off his trainer.” Later we are told that a trainer inadvertently let Northern Dancer run hard the day before a race and people thought that no thoroughbred could “run the equivalent of two races on two consecutive days.   As it turned out, the only ones hurting after the Florida Derby were those who hadn’t bet on the heavily favoured Northern Dancer.”  The text is accompanied by many photos of Northern Dancer, including archival images of horse and jockey in races, at the wire and in the winners’ circle.           Overall, this is an enjoyable story of a remarkable horse.  Northern Dancer: King of the Racetrack is highly recommended for junior high school libraries and public libraries everywhere.  Highly recommended:  4 stars out of 4Reviewer:  Sandy CampbellSandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines.  Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give. 

scholarly journals Mamaqtuq! by The Jerry Cans

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Throat Singing ◽  
The University ◽  
Early Reader ◽  
Good Presentation

The Jerry Cans. Mamaqtuq! Illustrated by Eric Kim. Inhabit Media, 2018.Mamaqtuq! means “delicious”.  This delightful Inuit board book tells a simple story of hunting all day for seal, running out of provisions and finally finding and catching a seal. It is written in Inuktitut and English, appropriately, at an early reader level. Erik Kim’s cartoon-like illustrations are bright, fun, and representative of the hunters, their clothing, and the environment. The book contains images of people using hunting rifles, but there are no images of seals being killed. As a stand-alone book it is a very good presentation of traditional hunting. However, the book is just one half of the story. The authors, The Jerry Cans, are a band from Iqualuit, whose music is a “unique mix of Inuktitut alt-country, throat singing and reggae.” The words in the Mamaqtuq! are the lyrics to a song. You can see the YouTube video at  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DueVqYKWQxE. The piece looks like a skit, with a cardboard boat and people waving cloth to make waves. The seal is played by a young man, so the shooting part is a little more disturbing than in the book. There is also a realistic scene of lead vocalist, Andrew Morrison, eating raw, bloody meat. However, the production is exuberant, even festive, fun, and true to the culture. The book is highly recommended for elementary school libraries and public libraries.Recommendation: 4 stars out of 4Reviewer: Sandy CampbellSandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines. Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give.  

scholarly journals Monkey’s Friends by R. Brown

2012 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
Young Children ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
The University

Brown, Ruth. Monkey’s Friends.  [London, England], Andersen Press Ltd, 2012. Print. Prolific English children’s author/illustrator Ruth Brown has created a delightful book in Monkey’s Friends. It is a simple rhymed text telling the story of monkey going through the forest, meeting different animals and greeting them. Each two page spread shows monkey greeting an animal whom we can see peeking out of the bushes. Every facing page is covered by a half-page flap. When the half-page is turned, the hidden animal is revealed and the animal’s name is printed on the flap. Brown’s acrylic paintings are fun. Monkey is doing something different in each image.  Sometimes he hangs by his tail. Other times he is sitting on a branch or a rock or peering through grass. Each time his expression is alive. Brown also does an excellent job of communicating motion in her paintings. When you lift the flap to see crocodile, he seems to explode out of the water and you see water flying in all directions. While Brown’s animals are realistic, her vegetation is quite unusual. The leaves are highly-textured and look like they might have been done with block prints. The vegetation seems to be simultaneously dense and see-through. The result is a bright and colourful environment for Monkey and his friends. Young children will enjoy looking for the hidden animals and finding them when the flap is turned. Highly recommended for public and elementary school libraries. Recommendation:  4 stars out of 4 Reviewer:  Sandy Campbell Sandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines.  Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give.

scholarly journals The Dog by H. Mixter

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Golden Retriever ◽  
Small Children ◽  
Therapy Dog ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Sick Children ◽  
The University

Mixter, Helen. The Dog. Illustrated by Margarita Sada. Greystone Books, 2017.  In The Dog, Helen Mixter has kept her text brief and simple, and allowed the images to convey the story.  It is a story about a boy who is ill and how much his quality of life is improved by the introduction of a therapy dog.  Margarita Sada’s artwork easily shows the fatigue, sadness and illness of the boy and the unconditional affection of the dog. The dog, who looks like a young golden retriever, is never given a name, perhaps to keep her more generic. She is depicted as having boundless health and energy. She even has rosy cheeks, indicating health. The colours that Sada uses are bright and natural and the pictures will attract and hold the attention of small children. Inspired by a visit to a Vancouver children’s hospice the book gently presents how effective a therapy dog can be for very sick children.  The Dog would be a good addition to public and school libraries. It would also be an excellent addition to libraries in children’s hospitals. Highly recommended:  4 stars out of 4 Reviewer:  Sandy Campbell Sandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines. Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give.   

scholarly journals The Spirit Trackers by J. Waboose

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Northern Ontario ◽  
Her Family ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Cautionary Tales ◽  
The University

Waboose, Jan Bourdeau. The Spirit Trackers. Fifth House Publishers, 2017.In this volume, Jan Bourdeau Waboose introduces the Anishanaabe version of the Windigo legend and also celebrates the skill of tracking.  Waboose is Anishanaabe from Northern Ontario. In this story, Uncle tells Tom and Will the scary story of the Windigo, the Wandering Night Spirit of Winter that “has a heart of ice, and … teeth … like steel. It will eat anything in its way!” Windigo stories are cautionary tales designed to keep children from wandering off in the forest and becoming lost. In this story the Windigo and winter are almost synonymous. Uncle tells the boys, too, that “winter can be dangerous to all things. Respect it and always honour the animals who face the Windigo.” But these boys want to grow up to be trackers, so when they hear what they think is the Windigo out in the darkness, they decide to track it. The tracks lead to a young moose, stuck in the snow. The boys free it, honouring the animal. Waboose has written several other books that reflect “the Native life she sees in her family, friends and community”. In keeping with that, this is not so much a retelling of the Windigo story as a narrative that shows the importance of the Windigo in traditional Anishanaabe life today. The artwork emphasizes the darkness of winter and the scariness of the Windigo. The blues, blacks and browns complement the wintery themes. Illustrator Francois Thisdale has also hidden animal tracks into most of the pictures. Young, would-be trackers will be kept entertained trying to find them. This book is highly recommended for public and elementary school libraries. Highly recommended: 4 stars out of 4Reviewer: Sandy CampbellSandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines. Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give.

scholarly journals My Heart Fills with Happiness by M. Gray Smith

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
Indigenous People ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
First Person ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
The University ◽  
Book Publishers

Gray Smith, Monique.  My Heart Fills with Happiness.  Victoria, B.C.:  Orca Book Publishers, 2016.  Print.Indigenous author Monique Gray Smith has created a positive and up-beat board book showing how to find happiness in simple pleasures.  While the book has an Indigenous flavour, the contents are universal.  The book is written in the first person: “My heart fills with happiness when…..” and then each page lists something that makes the speaker happy.  The facing page is filled with one of Julie Flett’s simple but evocative illustrations.  The illustrations are of Indigenous people doing ordinary things:   baking bannock, walking on the grass, listening to stories and drumming.  The images have blocks of bold primary colours and simple uncluttered backgrounds. Recommended for elementary school libraries and public libraries everywhere.   Highly recommended: 4 stars out of 4Reviewer:  Sandy CampbellSandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines.  Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give.

scholarly journals Larf by A. Spires

2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
School Libraries ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Small Children ◽  
Teddy Bear ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
The University

Spires, Ashley.  Larf.  Toronto:  Kids Can Press, 2012. Print. This book is a twist on the “lonely hearts” theme, with lots of humour.  Larf is a sasquatch who feels “like nobody knows [he] even exist[s].  Author Ashley Spires has given him a lifestyle that somewhat mirrors her own – jogging, gardening, and walking his pet bunny, Eric. Larf is excited to hear that another sasquatch is going to make an appearance in a town nearby, so he decides to go meet him.  When he gets there, he is disappointed to find out that it is a guy in a sasquatch suit who tells him that “Sasquatches aren’t real”.  But he does meet another sasquatch, who has also been enticed into town by the sasquatch performance, a girl sasquatch named Shurl.  She carries a handbag and wears a pink dress.  And so a friendship begins. This story is of the same genera as E.T., Shrek and Monsters, Inc. that make scary, imaginary creatures less scary by making them look cuddly or childlike and showing them leading day-to-day lives similar to our own.  Larf is both cuddly, looking a bit like a furry teddy bear and child-like in that his head is large for his body, like a baby’s.   Larf does ordinary things.  He eats at a table, rides a bus, does laundry on Wednesday and would like to have a friend to play teeter-totter with him.  It is hard to be afraid of a furry creature who is lonely and wants to have friends. The drawings are all cartoon-like and presented in a variety of attractive ways.  Some fill more than a page while others are overlapped like photographs.  Sometimes there are four small panels on a page, each with its own caption.  There are a few jokes in the book.  For example, we are told  that Larf “is a master of camouflage”, but  even small children will see that his beret, scarf and grey pants are not enough to disguise a giant-sized sasquatch. This book is fun to read and would be an excellent for public and school libraries, particularly those in “sasquatch country”, where children might have been spooked by scary stories about sasquatches. Highly Recommended:  4 stars out of 4 Reviewer:  Sandy Campbell Sandy is a Health Sciences Librarian at the University of Alberta, who has written hundreds of book reviews across many disciplines.  Sandy thinks that sharing books with children is one of the greatest gifts anyone can give.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document