Selected for CCBC Annual Best-of-the-Year Book List 2014!
In the time before animals were as they are today, Raven and Loon were both white. Their feathers had no colour at all. Raven spent his days swooping through the sky trying to fight off his incessant boredom, while loon spent her days in her iglu working away on her sewing. One day, too bored to even fly, Raven visited Loon and suggested a sewing game that would give their feathers some much-needed colour. The results--not at all what the two birds expected--led to Raven and Loon acquiring their now-familiar coats.
Folklore invitingly told and presented for a young audience. - Kirkus Reviews
With its significant potential for generating discussion, this is a perfect book for school and library settings. - Quill & Quire
In the past, Arctic animals did not look as they do today, but they could communicate just as well as humans can!
In The Walrus Who Escaped, young readers learn that walruses once had spiraled, curly tusks, not the long, straight tusks we recognize. When Raven came across Walrus expertly diving for clams, he quickly became jealous of Walrus's great clam-hunting skills. So, as Walrus was about to surface with a tasty mouthful of clams, Raven cast a spell on the ocean, freezing Walrus in place! Walrus's curly, twisting tusks became frozen in the enchanted ice. But Raven soon discovered that his magic was no match for Walrus's great physical strength. Walrus managed to escape, but his tusks would never be the same!Journey to the depths of the Arctic and beyond in this unique collection of stories from the award-winning volumes of Moonshot: The Indigenous Comics Collection.
Burning Cold is a captivating volume of Indigenous graphic stories written by acclaimed authors Rachel and Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley and Richard Van Camp. Time travel on the back of a wolverine, swim with shapeshifters beneath the ice, and travel through the skies with aliens. From traditional stories to reimagined futures, this collection showcases some of the finest comic book and graphic novel work from the North.This beautiful compendium of tales shares eight classic Inuit creation stories from the Baffin region. From the origins of day and night, thunder and lightning, and the sun and the moon to the creation of the first caribou and source of all the Arctic's fearful storms, this book recounts traditional Inuit legends in the poetic and engaging style of authors Rachel and Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley.
Tanna's Puppy is the third installment of authors Rachel and Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley's acclaimed series of children's books that explore Rachel's childhood experiences with Arctic animals.
Training dogs has been a strong Inuit tradition for generations. Sled dogs in Inuit communities are valued working animals with a clear and important purpose. Tanna has always known that dogs are not pets. They are not meant to live in houses. Then one day, Tanna is given a puppy to raise. Tanna is sure her father will not let her keep Dandy as a pet. She eventually convinces her father to let Dandy into the house, just as a test. Will Dandy's love for her owners win Father over to having a dog as a pet?
A heartwarming tale of the unique realities of Northern life and the changing definitions of what it means to be a family.
Praise for the Tanna's Animals series!
Based on Burt Award-winning, Inuit-Cree author Rachel Qitsualik-Tinsley's childhood memories of growing up on Baffin Island, this outstanding picture book shares essential teachings on the importance of responsibility, patience, and respect.--★ Quill & Quire, Starred Review
Tanna's Owl by Rachel and Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley, illustrated by Yong Ling Kang (Inhabit Media, 5-7) perfectly captures the sense of connection between the Inuit and the Arctic environment they live in.-- The Globe and Mail
When Tanna's father brings home an abandoned owl, she is not eager to take care of the needy, ugly little bird. Tanna must wake at 4:00 a.m. to catch food for the owl. She must feed it, clean up after it, all while avoiding its sharp, chomping beak and big, stomping talons. After weeks of following her father's instructions on how to care for the owl, Tanna must leave home for school. Her owl has grown. It has lost its grey baby feathers and is beginning to sprout a beautiful adult snowy owl coat. As she says good-bye to the owl, she is relieved not to have to care for it anymore, but also a bit sad.
This heartwarming story based on the author's own life experience teaches young readers the value of hard work, helping, and caring--even when the thing you are caring for does not love you back.
Huuq is a young Inuit boy who has never fit in to camp life. One day, fleeing yet another attack from the camp bullies, Huuq finds himself alone and far away from camp, with only his dog Qipik as company. On a lonesome hill, they find an egg. But this is no ordinary bird's egg. It's big. And almost looks like a stone. When Huuq breaks this mysterious egg, it unleashes a series of events that turn Huuq himself into a monstrous half-human creature. As Huuq tries to figure out why he has been turned into a monster, what the egg and its contents mean, and how he can return to his natural self, he is thrust into a world of fearsome creatures, mystical powers, and an evil the likes of which Huuq has never encountered.
Je vais vous parler un peu de mon hibou. En vérité, ce n'était pas mon hibou. Je ne crois pas qu'une personne puisse posséder un animal. Ou une partie de la terre. Ou quoi que ce soit, en fait. On ne peut que créer des liens entre ces choses.
Ou apprendre à aider, à se sentir concerné.
Je me demande si c'est ce que mon père voulait que j'apprenne...
The Shadows that Rush Past introduces young readers to some of the creepiest, scariest stories from Inuit mythology. These tales, told by critically acclaimed writer Rachel Qitsualik, bring to life four creatures from Inuit mythology: the amautalik, akhla, nanurluk, and mahaha.
These tales are filled with child-stealing ogresses; monsters that are half-man, half-grizzly bear; ice-covered polar bears ten times the size of normal bears; and a smiling creature that surprises unsuspecting campers and tickles them to death!Written in a playful, conversational, sometimes funny style, The Shadows that Rush Past will keep young readers anxious for the thrilling frights that might lurk on the next page.
Stories have hearts, just like people. And the heart of this story is true, even if the things said or done have been switched around a bit.
In this follow-up to the critically acclaimed Tanna's Owl, Tanna finds a small, grey lemming, far too cute to turn over to the scientist who has sent the children out to gather lemmings for his research. Instead, Tanna deems Fluffi to be a family member and attempts to raise the lemming in her home. But when the lemming strays from its cozy bed behind the stove and into Tanna's mother's things, Tanna is forced to consider whether she has really done what is best for Fluffi. Is it possible to treat something poorly by trying to treat it well?
Tuniit: Mysterious Folk of the Arctic is the first full-length book dedicated to providing kids with a full understanding of Tuniit, the ancient race that populated the Canadian Arctic even before Inuit. From Inuit mythological portrayals to the amazing speed and strength that make these beings so unique, this book explores the fascinating, little-known world of the Tuniit from both a mythological and an anthropological perspective.
Perfect for quizzical kids ages 9-12 who are fascinated by the unknown!In the time before animals were as they are today, Wolf spends his days admiring all the other animals. Not content to simply be a wolf, happy and hunting with his pack, he watches the owls, wolverines, and caribou with envy, wishing that he could be like them.
Wishing he could be anything other than a wolf.
When the magic of the land finally grants his wish, Wolf finds out that what he admires may not be what he really wants in the end.
In this adventurous novel - set in the ancient Arctic, but narrated for modern readers by an inquisitive and entertaining contemporary narrator - a young, wandering Inuit hunter named Kannujaq happens upon a camp in grave peril. The inhabitants of the camp are Tunit, a race of ancient Inuit ancestors known for their shyness and meekness. The tranquility of this Tunit camp has been shaken by a group of murderous, pale, bearded strangers who have arrived on a huge boat shaped like a loon.
Unbeknownst to Kannujaq, he has stumbled upon a battle between the Tunit and a group of Viking warriors!
As the camp prepares to defend itself against the approaching newcomers, Kannujaq and a Tunit shaman boy named Siku discover that the Vikings may have motivations other than murder and warfare at the heart of their quest.
This lush historical fiction is steeped in Inuit traditional knowledge and concepts of ancient Inuit magic. The unique time and place brought to life in this exciting novel will delight young fans of historical and fantastical fiction alike.
Winter can be cruel in the Arctic, and food quickly grows scarce for those who cannot hunt. In these difficult times, the grandmother of an orphaned boy wishes aloud for the qallupaluit - strange, monstrous creatures that live under the sea ice - to take her grandson away forever.
The old woman soon regrets her hasty words when the little boy is snatched and carried away to the creatures' underwater lair. After enlisting the help of her fellow villagers, the old woman learns that her grandson may be happier with the qallupaluit than he ever was with her. Written for contemporary audiences by acclaimed Inuit author Rachel Qitsualik-Tinsley and illustrated in a quick comic book style, this tale is sure to thrill middle grade readers.