The Lamp, the Ice, and the Boat Called Fish
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Book Overview
In 1913, a boat named Karluk, Aleutian for "fish," part of the Canadian Arctic Expedition, became stuck in the Arctic ice. On board were a captain and crew, scientists and explorers, a cat, forty sled dogs, Inupiaq hunters, and an Inupiaq family with two small girls. Even with the Inupiaq and their skills of hunting and sewing, even with the family's care and wisdom, even with the compassion and courage of their captain, odds for survival in the cold, dark Arctic seem against the passengers of the Karluk. Here is a riveting, unforgettable story, poetically told and exquisitely illustrated with rounded scratchboard art that captures the strength and grace of Inupiaq culture. Details of centuries-old crafts and skills -- of sewing boots from caribou legs and ugruk skin, of quickly cutting snow houses, of wearing wooden goggles to ward off snowblindness -- will enrich modern imaginations. And by the story's end, listeners will know something of the way of life in the high north, something of the song of the place, the wide sky, the sound of the wind, the ptarmigan.
Format:Hardcover
Language:English
ISBN:061800341X
ISBN13:9780618003419
Release Date:February 2001
Publisher:Clarion Books
Length:48 Pages
Weight:1.15 lbs.
Dimensions:0.4" x 9.0" x 11.0"
Age Range:4 to 7 years
Grade Range:Preschool to Grade 2
Customer Reviews
1 rating
wonderful, wonderful book
Published by Thriftbooks.com User , 16 years ago
I read this aloud to my grandchildren, ages 10, 7, and 5. They were riveted. First there are unusual, wonderful, illustrations that add to the atmosphere and mood of the story. There is detail such as seal oil lamps and chewing on sealskin to soften it for sewing boots. There is drama, lost on an ice floe is one of several. There is a different way of living (we had to go find and try pemmican when we finished the book). We found a new world of ice with strange new words, spelled phonetically for us. Personalities played a role in the drama, including children with their favorite toys. We finished the adventure, turned the page and ......THERE WERE PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE ACTUAL PEOPLE WE JUST READ ABOUT, THE ONES WHO SURVIVED...IT WAS ALL TRUE. The book was a fantastic adventure for all of us.
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