Description
On the Shoulder of a Giant: An Inuit Folktale is a picture book published by Inhabit Media, an Inuit-owned publishing company based in Iqaluit, Nunavut. This traditional legend is retold by Neil Christopher and illustrated by Jim Nelson. In this story Inukpak was big, even for a giant. He loved to walk across the tundra, striding over the widest rivers and wading through the deepest lakes. He could walk across the Arctic in just a few days. But being so big, and traveling so far, Inukpak was often alone. Until one day when he came across a little hunter on the tundra. Thinking that the hunter was a little boy alone on the land, Inukpak decided to adopt him. And so, from the shoulder of one of the biggest giants to ever roam the Arctic, this hunter experiences Inukpak's world. The giant is an excellent hunter and so the man decides to remain with the giant as his son. Whales are mistaken for tiny fish, polar bears are considered mere lemmings by the giant. And so the human hunter remained with the giant as friends. Together they travelled across the Arctic regions. So today there are many versions of the traditional story about a giant who adopted a human throughout Inuit communities. The end of the book provides additional details about two types of giants that readers will enjoy. The text and colourful illustrations capture the gentle humour of the story as storyteller and illustrator collaborate in this read-aloud story about a giant who sees the world as a giant, and the tiny human son who sees his world from a man's perspective. Highly recommended.