Description
Owls See Clearly at Night (Lii Yiiboo Nayaapiwak lii Swer): A Michif Alphabet (L’alfabet di Michif) by Julie Flett, Métis. From Atayookee! to Lii Zyeu: this simply, elegantly illustrated picture book introduces young and old alike to the unique Michif language of the Metis people. Two-page paintings accompanying each letter are simple, crisp and elegant and seem to tease out what is essential in, or intrinsic to, for instance, owl, leaf, snow, barley or rain. Owls See Clearly At Night introduces readers to the fact that the letters “Q” and “X” don’t exist in the Michif language, and that “whole sentences can often be expressed by a single word.” Fittingly, the book opens with A is for Atayookee!, which means Tell a Story!: showing the oral history of the language and to the central place that oral storytelling has always had in the Michif culture. Flett’s art is digitally manipulated hand-made drawings. A pronunciation guide for vowels and consonants and a list of useful websites and books on the history of the language are included. Author’s notes at the back acknowledge the help of, among others, Métis language activist, Elder Grace (Ledoux) Zoldy.