A young Athabascan girl wonders what it would be like to be a fish. Suddenly, she finds herself on a watery odyssey as she learns about the salmon's journey from stream to ocean and back again.
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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
In this retelling of an Athabascan legend, a young girl embarks on a startling odyssey. She wonders "What it would be like to be a fish, to glide through cool waves hearing only the silence of the water? Where do fish travel? What sights do they see?" In an instant, the girl is catapulted into a long, watery journey that will answer her dreamy questions and teach her much about the ways of salmon. The Girl Who Swam with the Fish reminds us all of the sacredness of the natural world, its creatures and its cycles. Ages 7 and up.
From Publishers Weekly
According to this book's foreword, salmon have always played a part in the culture, symbolism and lore of the Pacific Northwest, and Renner's retelling of a traditional Alaskan tale celebrates the cyclical nature of life as evidenced by the salmon's yearly return to its spawning grounds. The story begins with an Athabascan girl keeping an eager lookout for the fish her family will catch and preserve for the coming winter. A mishap sends her into the river?and in a flash she's changed into a salmon. Her lengthy sojourn underwater gives her a fish's-eye view of salmon life, and her new knowledge proves helpful when she returns home. The crisp prose style of first-time author Renner is echoed in the clean lines of Cox's woodcuts, whose pale images often spill beyond their thick black borders. A worthwhile addition to the Native American folklore shelf. Ages 7-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
ALASKAN TALE RETOLD WITH CLARITY AND BEAUTY,
By Elaine Campbell "Desert Dweller" (Rancho Mirage, CA United States) - See all my reviews (VINE VOICE) (REAL NAME)
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This review is from: The Girl Who Swam with the Fish: An Athabascan Legend (Paperback)
An Athabascan legend, this story recounts the reverence of the Native people of Alaska for the salmon that provides them with sustenance. Prior to this version, the story was narrated by an elder from the Alaskan village of Nikolai.
In summertime a young girl stands by the river day after day waiting for the king salmon to return, swimming against the current, to the place of their birth. She and her family, living in a tiny fish camp, had been hungry often during the previous winter. But the girl gets so excited when she finally spies the salmon that she slips down the bank and into the river. Alas! Never fear! She soon becomes a salmon herself, though she retains her lovely neck and head, and when it is time for the salmon to leave and return to the sea, she goes with them. And she lives the salmon life for several years, learning about their ways, their likes and dislikes. She is ultimately able to impart this knowledge to her family, which serves to improve their lot on earth. What I found fascinating is a description of how Native American tribal people constructed drying racks for salmon out of long poles of spruce, and the procedures they followed with care for a successful outcome of the delicious meat. It is hard to believe this is the author's first children's book, her writing is so skillful. And the woodcut illustrations by Christine Cox are stunning, even flowing over the darkened borders. The book won the 1995 Rocky Mountain Book Publishers Association Design Contest for children's/young adult books. One can easily see why. Any child can delight in this tale. And any adult can too! .
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