Book Review: Arctic Son by Jean Craighead George Paintings by Wendell Minor

George, Jean Craighead. Arctic Son. New York: Hyperion, 1997. 

This is the story of a little boy, who the reader is to assume is not Inuit, named Luke who is born in the arctic and is given the Eskimo name, Kupaaq, by an Inuit man who is friend of Luke's parents when he is born. This man mentors Luke as he grows up and teaches him about the Inuit language, traditions, and culture. As Luke learns about the Inuit culture and the land of the arctic, the reader learns along with him. From the northern lights to dog sledding, ice fishing and whale hunting and celebrations Luke learns about the traditions of the people of his home. As Luke grows up we hardly realize that he is not Inuit himself because he is such a part of the culture. The story has a strong focus on nature and animals as well as Inuit traditions. The character of Luke is inspired by the author's grandson. The message sent to readers here is that understanding and appreciation of a culture is something that all people of all backgrounds can be a part of. 

While both the author and the illustrator are outsiders, Jean Craighead George and Wendell Minor both flew to Barrow, Alaska to research for this book. They traveled by dog sled, searched for whales, and visited a man named Aalak, an Inuit village leader who is featured in this book and is the same man who gave the Eskimo name Kupaaq to her grandson Luke. This book is definitely a quality piece of diverse literature in that it covers so many different aspects of Inuit people both historically and currently as well as the arctic itself. It discusses everything from climate to patterns of the sun to animals, language, geographic location, names, landscape, traditions, hunting, nature, celebrations, and a reference to the practices and traditions of "old Eskimos". The Inuit language is integrated very well into the text without using double talk or over explaining the meaning of the words. Instead hints are given in the text around the word to help readers understand the meaning. The author also uses analogies and expressions such as "like a lost caribou calf" or "not more than a polar bear's trot away" that incorporate elements that most students would be unfamiliar with but would be able to connect to. 

At first I found it disappointing that the main character of this story was not Eskimo. In fact the only Eskimo person we meet is Aalak who we don't learn much about. We learn about the Inuit people through the view of Luke, an outsider. However, after consideration I felt that the fact that the main character is an outsider who is learning to assimilate to another culture is positive for students to connect to. It demonstrates that it is possible to know, understand, and respect more than one culture and set of traditions. Additionally, this book incorporated ideas from both current and "old" Inuit people. For example, the people in the illustrations are wearing fur lined parkas and boots but some are wearing sunglasses. Luke lives in a house with electricity and a pickup truck in the driveway and a dogsled in the back yard. Luke celebrates Nalukataq, the celebration to honor the whale after a kill where they danced Eskimo dances and sang Inupiat songs. Luke learns that in the arctic people have two names, an Eskimo one and an English one. This combination of cultures allows more students to connect personally with the text and promotes understanding of people whose backgrounds are a combination of more than one culture, language, and set of traditions. 

Lastly, I believe that this book is a quality piece of diverse literature because there is an emphasis on themes that play an important part in the culture of Inuit people. These themes include appreciation of nature and animals as well as learning from and respecting elders. From age three Kupaaq, or Luke, is walking with Aalak learning about the sky, the northern lights, and the north star. He learns to drive a dogsled and how to ice fish. He learns about the polar bears and their habits and the dangers related to them. During the whale hunt Luke learns to respect and honor the whale. No part of the whale is wasted or sold. The whale is apologized to for being killed and thanked for giving life. Luke learns the valuable lesson that describes Inuit values: "All nature shares, and we are nature".