In his informative preface to this extraordinary book of Inuit songs, folklorist Philip (The Arabian Nights) stresses the importance of sung poetry in the Inuit culture, explaining that "the Inuit word anerca signifies both 'breath' and 'poetry.'" He quotes the shaman poet Orpingalik: "Songs are thoughts, sung out with the breath when people are moved by great forces and ordinary speech no longer suffices." Compelling and spare, the poems offer not only an introduction to the Inuit way of life, but testimony to a people who can find joy in the magic of laughter, language and everyday life, in spite of harsh conditions. In "Bear Hunting" poet Aua tells of playing "catch-me-who-can" with a snarling polar bear on an ice floe. In "The Mother's Song" an anonymous poet describes her son peacefully "sleeping on the ledge" as the snowstorm wails outside, then asks, "Is it strange if I start to cry with joy?" First-time illustrator Foa offers boldly colored, almost primitive, oil paintings-Modigliani faces that look scratched into the surface of the canvas, like the white lines in soapstone carving. In their elemental simplicity, these Inuit songs and Foa's commanding paintings possess a haunting power. Ages 6-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 2-5?"The poems in this book were not written to be read, but composed to be sung," states Philip in his introduction to this offering of 10 free-verse selections born in the solitude of the Inuit lands. As spartan and spare as the tundra itself, this is poetry best read aloud. In simple phrases, the varied voices speak of the joys, prayers, ways, and wisdom of the Eskimo people. Foa's inviting oversized illustrations, done in oil, cover every other page. Some details are painted in and others are etched out, providing a variety of techniques to engage the eye. Primitive brushstrokes, sparsely applied, let the crosshatched pattern of the artboard itself add a dimension to the design. All of these poems have been previously published, but they appear in volumes that are no longer in print. A book that is definitely worth adding to any collection to update what is truly an otherwise neglected area of folk literature.?Dot Minzer, North Barrington School, Barrington, IL
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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