scholarly journals Kiviuq and the Bee Woman by N. McDermott

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Picture Book ◽  
School Library ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
Older Children ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Human Skulls ◽  
The University ◽  
Library Collections

McDermott, Noel.  Kiviuq and the Bee Woman. Iqauit, NU, Inhabit Media, 2019. When we last heard of Kiviuq, he had just survived a harrowing encounter with scary monster mermaids or tuutalik (Deakin Review by Kirk MacLeod). In Kiviuq and the Bee Woman, the grandfather who narrated Kiviuq and the Mermaid continues the bedtime story to his grandchildren. Kiviuq begins paddling home, but comes upon a tent where an old woman invites him to rest and dry his clothing. She turns out to be a giant Bee Woman who wants to cut up Kiviuq and put him in her cooking pot. For a bedtime story, both the text and the illustrations are quite scary. Illustrator Toma Feizo Gas lets us see into the dark, dramatic and frightening world of the Bee Woman, who is a determined killer. “She shouted, ‘I am Iguttarjuaq, the Bee Woman, and I am going to kill you with my ulu’.”  The accompanying image shows a woman with pointy teeth and insect mouth pincers, who is shaking a sharp ulu (knife) at Kiviuq. As is the case with many of Inhabit Media’s publications, the reading level is higher than one would expect to find in a picture book. For younger children, this book will need some adult intervention. In addition to the scary content, human skulls talk, the woman eats her own eyelids and “Kiviuq, realized the woman was boiling human meat.” Some of the language is difficult. For example, Kiviuq “fainted” of fright, but “feinted” to get away. McDermott also intersperses many Inuktitut words, which will slow down younger readers. These are defined at the end of the book. Overall, this excellent product from Inhabit Media should be included in public library collections and school library collections, but should probably be placed in collections designed for older children.  Highly recommended: 4 out of 4 starsReviewer: 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 Gina’s Wheels by M. H. Bishop

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Role Model ◽  
Picture Book ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
Small Children ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
The Disabled ◽  
The University ◽  
Adult Reader

Bishop, Mary Harelkin. Gina’s Wheels. Regina, SK: DriverWorks Ink, 2014. Print.While this is a picture book and the protagonist is just entering kindergarten, the language is quite a high reading level and the text dense.  It is definitely a book that needs an adult reader. The artwork in this book is simple and unsophisticated, but will engage small children with the work.  Illustrator Diane Greenhorn does resort to the visual cliché of diversity in the classroom, including the obligatory red-head, blonde, African American, brown-skinned children and child with a hijab, although kindergarten-aged Muslim girls are often not covered.The messages that the book conveys are complex.  It is about a child, Gina, who encounters Métis Paralympian Colette Bourgonje, who has a wheelchair.  Gina is sufficiently moved by the meeting that she goes home and for several weeks does everything while sitting in a stroller, to understand the experience of being in a wheelchair.  When she enters kindergarten and meets a child in a wheelchair, her experience helps her befriend the child.While the book does a good job of presenting how to interact with a disabled person, the concept of the Paralympics and the integration of a disabled child into school, it does not present the things that Gina had to do to adapt to life seated in a stroller.  As is often the case when the able-bodied write about the disabled, rather than from the disabled person’s perspective, the reader does not learn much more about life as a disabled person.  However, the book does present disability in a positive light and also shows Bourgonje as a role model.  It also presents Gina as a role model of a child demonstrating understanding and empathy and Gina’s Mom as a role model as a parent who is positive about disability and supportive of her child’s exploratory learning.   Because there are few children’s books about disability, and fewer still about disabled Indigenous people, this book is recommended with reservations for public library and elementary school libraries.Recommended with reservation:  2 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 Akilak’s Adventure by D. Kigjugalik Webster

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Public Libraries ◽  
Picture Book ◽  
Extended Family ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
Upper Elementary ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Children's Book ◽  
The University ◽  
The Relationship

Kigjugalik Webster, Deborah.  Akilak’s Adventure.  Inhabit Media, 2016.This is a first children’s book from Deborah Kigjugalik Webster, who grew up in Baker Lake, Nunavut.  It is a story of a little Inuit girl navigating the tundra by herself to reach her uncle’s camp.  As the child walks, she is joined by a caribou, who mysteriously knows her grandmother’s saying, “Your destination did not run away, you will reach it soon.”  The conversation between the two is about people changing into animals, but Akilak in the end decides to remain a person.   The story is deceptively simple.  On the surface, children will understand it as a little girl’s adventure.  However, it encompasses several important aspects of Inuit culture:  the relationship between grandparent and child, the importance of extended family support, the prominence of animals and the stories of people taking the shape of animals, the distance of travel across the tundra and the related concept of taulittuq or the sense of moving but not getting closer to your destination.Charlene Chua’s artwork is charming. Each two pages are an image with text overprinted on one page, often shaped to fit around parts of the image.  The images are simple and cartoon-like, but good representations of the tundra and its creatures.  While this is mainly a picture book with an intended audience of children ages 5 to 7, the reading level is upper elementary, so younger children will definitely need an adult to read it to them.Akilak’s Adventure would be an excellent addition to public libraries 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. 

Catch That Baby! by N. Coffelt

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Picture Book ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Read Aloud ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Visual Detail ◽  
Award Winning ◽  
Book Award ◽  
The University

Coffelt, Nancy.  Catch That Baby! Toronto: Aladdin, 2011. Print. There comes a point in every toddler’s life when he or she just needs to make a break for it and run away from Mom; if naked, after a bath, so much the better.  Nancy Coffelt captures that moment in this delightful book.  Rudy tosses his towel at the dog, shouts, “No dressed” and the romp begins.  Mom chases, clothing in hand, and is joined in successive panels by other family members all of whom try, but not too hard, to “catch that naked baby”. This is primarily a picture book.  Award-winning illustrator Scott Nash has drawn cartoon style illustrations, with large blocks of bright colour, little visual detail and speech bubbles.   The simple presentation is perfect for toddlers, who will be able to completely relate to “Nudie Rudy” pelting around the house in the buff, although most pre-readers will not end up swinging from vines in the conservatory. Young children will enjoy the repetition in the little bit of text on each page and will love finding Rudy on each page, particularly on pages where those silly adults cannot see him, even though he is so obviously in plain sight that a baby could find him. Catch That Baby! is a gem that will become a favourite read aloud book in many families.  It would make an excellent gift for a toddler and belongs in every public library collection. Highly recommended:  4 out of 4 stars 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 Cub’s Journey Home by G. Graham

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Forest Fire ◽  
Red Deer ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Picture Book ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
Running Water ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
The University

Graham, Georgia.  Cub’s Journey Home. Markham, ON:  Red Deer Press, 2015.  Print.Georgia Graham is a fine artist, but as a writer, needs a good editor.  Like her earlier work Where Wild Horses Run, this is a beautifully illustrated book.  Graham’s landscapes, trees, rivers, rocks, bears and flowers are all highly realistic. She tackles a variety of environments including snow, running water, forest fire, a burnt landscape and a garbage dump. Many of the images are frame-worthy.  There are flaws in the flames of her forest fire, some of which look like they belong on racing cars; however, in the next image, she absolutely captures the complexity of the fire reflected on swamp water.  Unfortunately, the text is an amalgamation of strange images and unusual or extravagant word choices. Why, for example, is a baby bear growing inside the mother called a “speck”?  There is so much purple prose that the reader is constantly distracted.  There are “long needles of sunlight” that “stab”.  The snow covering the den is “a curtain of lacy ice”. “A breeze runs its icy fingers through his fur.”  The cub “skedaddles”.  “A dark blanket [of smoke] rises up and steals the stars from the sky.” The whole text would have been much better if Graham had just written in her natural voice, as she occasionally does, to good effect.While the unusual word choices make the reading level of the text much too advanced for a picture book, the images, with their excellent rendering of Alberta landscapes, make it valuable.  This book is recommended with reservations for elementary school libraries and public libraries. Recommended with reservations: 2 out of 4 starsReviewer:  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 Animals Illustrated Series by Inhabit Media

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Polar Bear ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Picture Book ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Related Text ◽  
The University ◽  
Natural Histories

Inhabit Media.  Animals Illustrated SeriesFlaherty, William.  Polar Bear, illustrated by Danny Christopher. Inhabit Media, 2016.Awa, Solomon.  Narwhal, illustrated by Hwei Lim. Inhabit Media, 2016.Niptanatiak, Allen.  Muskox, illustrated by Kagan McLeod. Inhabit Media, 2016. There are many picture book series that introduce the natural histories of various animals, often including Arctic animals.  However, few of these are created in the Arctic. These three authors all have first-hand knowledge of the animals.  William Flaherty is a conservation officer in Iqaluit and Solomon Awa is an Inuk from Igloolik, NU, who has lived a traditional lifestyle and Allen Niptanatiak is a hunter and trapper who lives at Kugluktuk, NU.   Polar Bear, Narwhal and Muskox the first three in Inhabit Media’s new Animals Illustrated series. Illustrations are usually spread across two pages with related text overprinted.  The illustrations, by Danny Christopher for Polar Bear and Hwei Lim for Narwhal are similar in style.  Both make extensive use of light blue, dark blue and white to represent the animals in their snow and water environments. Kagan MacLeod’s drawings for Muskox are brighter and show the more colourful tundra scenes.   There are also detailed drawings of the animals’ skeletons in each book.All of the books follow the familiar format of a natural history, with sections covering physical characteristics, range, skeleton, diet, reproduction, habitat and interesting information specific to the particular animal.  The interesting fact about the narwhal is that they have been known to dive more than 1,500 meters.  At the end of the polar bear book, there is a short description of the nanurluk, the mythological giant polar bear. The “Fun Fact” about the muskox is about how they use their horns.  There is also a “Traditional Uses” page that notes the use of the hides, meat and qiviut (muskox down).   Inhabit Media lists the audience for these books as ages 4-6, but the reading level of the text is Grade 4 and above. Younger children will enjoy the illustrations, but will need help to understand the text. These are excellent books that would be good acquisitions for school and public libraries, however, they contain little information that would not be found in similar works already held by many libraries.  Libraries with limited budgets might want to spend their money on some of Inhabit Media’s other works that contain unique content.  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 Stories of the Amautalik: Fantastic Beings from Inuit Myths and Legends by N. Christopher

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
English Translation ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Deep Ocean ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Valuable Addition ◽  
Cautionary Tales ◽  
The University

Christopher, Neil.  Stories of the Amautalik: Fantastic Beings from Inuit Myths and Legends.  Trans.  Louise Flaherty.  Illus. Larry MacDougall.  Iqaluit, Nunavut: Inhabit Media, 2009. Print. The End Notes for this book tell us that in “the isolated hills, under the ice of the sea, and in the darkness of the deep ocean, strange beings wait for lone travelers or careless children to make a mistake”. An amautalik is one such strange creature.  These are the giant, disgusting ogresses of Inuit mythology who capture and eat children. This volume contains two stories, each of a different kind of amautalik.  The first has a basket of slimy driftwood on her back, lined with maggoty, rancid seaweed.  The second has a huge amauti (a coat with a pouch for carrying children). The two stories are similar. Both are cautionary tales, teaching children of the dangers of straying too far away from supervising adults.  In both stories, one of the children does not have parents present to protect them and has been bullied in the community.  In each case, the inattentive children are captured and taken away by the amautalik. In “The Hungry Amautalik and the Restless Children”, the child who has been bullied uses the old knowledge of her shaman grandfather to gain freedom.  In “The Orphan and the Amautalik”, the orphan outwits the amautalik, by pretending that his toe, poking out of his worn out boot is a monster that will eat her. The first story is much longer than the second and there are many more images of the first amautalik.   Larry MacDougall’s somber paintings portray the ogress’s glee while tying the children to a stake and her rage when she discovers that they are gone.  The second amautalik is more cadaverous-looking and frightening. This book is an English translation of the 2007 Inuktitut volume Amautaliup miksaanut unikkaat and is also available as an English/Inuktitut tumble book.  Originally these stories were told by elders to children, so the language would have been at a child’s level.  However, this translation, although it is intended as children’s literature, has a reading level of about Grade 10.  In spite of that, the book is still a valuable addition for school and public library collections. Highly recommended: 4 out of 4 starsReviewer: 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 Painted Skies by C. Mallory

2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Picture Book ◽  
School Libraries ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
High Quality ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Aurora Borealis ◽  
Excellent Work ◽  
The University

Mallory, Carolyn.  Painted Skies.  Iqaluit, NU:  Inhabit Media, 2015.  Print.The northern lights, or aurora borealis, are ethereal and difficult to reproduce in an image, however, illustrator Amei Zhao does an admirable job.  Carolyn Mallory’s story, told through the voices of two girls, Leslie and Oolipika, is a simple one encompassing the tradition that the northern lights are spirits playing a soccer-like game and that if they come too close, you might be hit by the ball.  To let the spirits know you are there, you click your fingernails together.  The Arctic environment is present throughout.  When Leslie jumps she is “all arms and legs like a young caribou”.  When the girls make snow angels they move their arms and legs “as if they were ptarmigans trying to get off the ground”.  The reading level is appropriate for a picture book. While the story is well-written, it is the artwork on which the story is printed that is the best part of this volume.  All of the pages are night pictures, so the images are shadowed, with highlights of moonlight.  The deep blues, blacks, purples and greens contrast with the pinks and lime greens of the northern lights. Zhao has also added whispy green figures of the auroral spirits running through the sky. While this is a simple book, it is another example of Inhabit Media’s excellent work in capturing Arctic stories and creating high quality publications with them.  This book is highly recommended for elementary school libraries and public libraries.Highly recommended:  4 stars out of 4Reviewer:  Sandy CampbelSandy 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 Rescue & Jessica: A Life-Changing Friendship by J. Kensky & P. Downes

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sean Borle
Keyword(s):  
Picture Book ◽  
School Library ◽  
Healing Process ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
Strict Adherence ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Children's Book ◽  
Boston Marathon ◽  
Library Collections

Kensky, Jessica and Patrick Downes.  Rescue & Jessica: A Life-Changing Friendship. Illustrated by Scott Magoon. Candlewick Press, 2018  There are not many children’s books published about amputation, so a new book is always welcome. Jessica Kensky became a double leg amputee as a result of injuries sustained during the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Rather than writing a children’s book about amputation, she has written an autobiographical work in the form of a picture book. As a result, this is a strange mix of fiction, where readers hear the service dog’s thoughts, and strict adherence to autobiographical detail that is unnecessary in a picture book. For example, Jessica is depicted as a teenager, closer to the real age of the author, rather than as a young child, to whom young readers could more easily relate. Jessica goes through two amputations in the course of the story, reflecting the experience of the author, but this process is unusual for amputees and unnecessarily complicates the story for early readers. The text is also at a reading level that is higher than one would expect in a picture book, so younger children will need an adult to read the book with them. However, while it has flaws, the book is a comforting and positive story that will give child amputees hope as they see Jessica learn to be active again on her prosthetic legs. Scott Magoon’s simple and realistic illustrations will help children enjoy the dog, Rescue, and his role in Jessica’s healing process. Magoon does a good job depicting the dog in many states:  readiness, happiness, resting, helping, playing and swimming.   This book should be included in public and school library collections. It should also be included in hospital library collections, particularly those where children receive amputation care, such as pediatric cancer clinics and prosthetic clinics. It would be of interest to both children undergoing amputations and their families.  Recommended:  3 out of 4 stars Reviewer:  Sean Borle  Sean Borle is a University of Alberta undergraduate student who is an advocate for child health and safety.

scholarly journals Inuit Spirit by G. Arnaktauyok

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Indigenous People ◽  
Public Library ◽  
Health Sciences ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Line Drawings ◽  
The University ◽  
Library Collections

Arnaktauyok, Germaine. Inuit Spirit. Inhabit Media, 2016.Generally, we do not include colouring books in library collections because they are consumable.  Once someone has coloured the pictures, the book is used up. However, with the advent of adult colouring, the content of some colouring books has become important. Recently there have been several regrettable instances of colouring books about Canadian Indigenous people that have been created by non-Indigenous authors. In contrast, Inuit Spirit contains twenty seven line drawings by world-renowned Inuit artist, Germaine Arnaktauyok. The drawings are of Inuit life, Inuit mythology and tundra and ocean plants and animals.  Each drawing comes with an informative note. For example, the drawing of purple saxifrage flowers is accompanied by: “This is a close-up view of purple saxifrage flowers. In the spring, caribou eat so many purple saxifrage flowers that their muzzles are often stained purple.”If this book were added to a school or public library, children would want to colour the pictures. However, it does supply an artist’s rendition of the Inuit world that is accessible to children. The text also contains useful information. For example, the combination of the image and text of the legend of “earth children” or babies born from the land makes the concept of this legend easy to understand, so the purchase of this volume for children’s collections would be a judgement call by the librarian. However, it would be a good addition to any library that collects works related to Inuit art.           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 Not My Girl by C. Jordan-Fenton & M. Poliak-Fenton

2015 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sandy Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Picture Book ◽  
Reading Level ◽  
Way Of Life ◽  
Her Family ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Know How ◽  
The University ◽  
Hunting And Fishing ◽  
At Home

Jordan-Fenton, Christy and Margaret Poliak-Fenton.  Not My Girl.  Vancouver: Annick Press, 2014. Print.When Margaret Poliak-Fenton was eight years old, she was sent to a residential school at Aklavik, NWT.  Poliak-Fenton and Christy Jordan-Fenton have told her story of going to Aklavik in Fatty Legs and the picture book version, When I was Eight.  They told the story about coming home in A Stranger at Home.  Not My Girl is the picture book version of A Stranger at Home and the sequel to When I Was Eight.   The story is a poignant one of a child returning home to her Inuvialuit village after two years’ absence to find that her mother rejects her and she no longer fits in.  She knew how to "recite verses and make [her] bed", but did not know how to "set traps, skin hares or pluck geese".  The first person presentation of the story makes it easy to identify with Margaret as she struggles to re-adapt to her family and community's hunting and fishing way of life. While the text is not complex, it is probably more appropriate for the upper end of the recommended Grade 1 – 4 reading level.  The story is tightly written and includes a parallel story in which Margaret takes a puppy from its mother, who rejects it later because he "no longer carries his family's scent".  Gabrielle Grimard's brightly coloured images support the story.  They provide both suggestion and detail.  For example, backgrounds and landscapes are often broad swaths of colour, while the decorative hems and cuffs of clothing are quite detailed.This is an excellent volume that should be included in public and elementary school collections across Canada and also in academic collections that include Canadian children's literature.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. 

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