Eagle Song [Hardcover]

Joseph Bruchac (Author), Dan Andreasen (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1999 | Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up

FOR USE IN SCHOOLS AND LIBRARIES ONLY. After moving from a Mohawk reservation to Brooklyn, New York, eight-year-old Danny Bigtree encounters stereotypes about his Native American heritage.

--This text refers to the School & Library Binding edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

It's a shock for fourth-grader Danny Bigtree to move to Brooklyn from his Mohawk Nation reservation: suddenly he has no friends, and his classmates taunt him, asking him where his war pony is and telling him to go home to his teepee. After his charismatic father makes a class visit to talk about Iroquois culture, his peers begin to warm up to him. Bruchac, author of numerous books with Native American themes, weaves into the story the legend of the great peacemaker Aionwahta, who united five warring Indian nations into the Iroquois Confederacy and turned an enemy into an ally. Can Danny be, like Aionwahta, an agent of peace, and find a way to transform the school bully into a friend? This appealing portrayal of a strong family offers an unromanticized view of Native American culture, and a history lesson about the Iroquois Confederacy; it also gives a subtle lesson in the meaning of daily courage. Illustrations not seen by PW. Ages 7-9.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-4?Danny Bigtree, lonely for the Mohawk reservation he left two months ago and alienated from his fourth-grade classmates in his Brooklyn school, yearns for acceptance. When his father returns to their city apartment from his construction job, Danny opens up about his persecution at school. By sharing the Iroquois legend of Aionwahta (Hiawatha), Richard Bigtree guides his son toward traditional sources of strength and peacemaking. The man visits the classroom where he shares the same tale, eliciting positive responses. Then Danny's schoolyard nemesis throws a basketball right at his face, bloodying his nose and lips, and Danny wonders if this act was intentional. Then his father is injured in a high-steel accident. Peaceful resolution comes on the schoolyard, and reassuring signs from his recuperating dad round out the narrative. Stock characters carry the didactic story. The father "elder" figure becomes one-dimensional: all noble, wise, and patient. This story lacks dialogue and character development and has far too much exposition. There is a heaviness to the teachings. Murky, dark, black-and-white prints have no child appeal. Craig Kee Strete's The World in Grandfather's Hands (Clarion, 1995) deals with an angry, modern Indian boy in urban America through far more complex characters.?Jacqueline Elsner, Athens Regional Library, GA
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Hardcover
• Publisher: Perfection Learning (March 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0756966515
• ISBN-13: 978-0756966515
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,031,323 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Joseph Bruchac is a highly acclaimed Abenaki children's book author, poet, novelist and storyteller, as well as a scholar of Native American culture. Coauthor with Michael Caduto of the bestselling Keepers of the Earth series, Bruchac's poems, articles and stories have appeared in over 500 publications, from Akwesasne Notes and American Poetry Review to National Geographic and Parabola. He has authored more than 50 books for adults and children. For more information about Joseph, please visit his website www.josephbruchac.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars JUST WISH IT WAS MORE OF A PAGE TURNER, August 31, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Eagle Song (Puffin Chapters) (Mass Market Paperback)

Because of the lack of short chapter books with urban contemporary Native American protagonists, all public/school libraries should pick this up - especially for NA kids who have just moved from rural/reservation to the big city. It may work best for a parent and child to read together and discuss.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Eagle on the Peace Tree, March 17, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Eagle Song (Puffin Chapters) (Mass Market Paperback)

Danny, an American Indian, has moved to the city. The kids at his school all ignore him or, the ones who do give him any attention, tease and bully him. One day he asked his father for advice about his schoolmates. His father tells him a story about Aionwahta, the hero/peacemaker between all the tribes. He made everything peaceful and turned an enemy into a brother. He grew a pine tree and put an eagle on top of the pine to make sure the peace will never be destroyed again. Danny wants to be just like Aionwahta. Can he turn his enemy into a brother, or at least a friend? This is a story of courage and overcoming obstacles, with the help of his family. Danny uses his courage to try to fix himself and his surroundings.

I really enjoyed this book because it was written so "smoothly." You felt like you were watching this story go by through a hidden window.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The book, March 17, 2004

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Eagle Song (Puffin Chapters) (Mass Market Paperback)

I read the Eagle song and it was o.k. I didn't like it a lot,but it wasn't horrible either. I like the way his dad told him not to worry about what other peoplen think. Becase i get picked on a lot.