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A review by dollhousebooks
The Girl Who Married the Moon: Tales from Native North America by Joseph Bruchac
3.0
The stories focus on girls and women in Native American tribes - their strengths, weaknesses, characteristics, and roles. Each story is connected regionally but has unique differences to them. While some are closer to fables with a clear moral at the end, others are closer to creation stories. And just as with any collection of stories, some were stronger and more compelling than others. Some of my favorites were Arrowhead Finger (Penobscot), The Abandoned Girl (Seneca), The Poor Turkey Girl (Santa Clara Pueblo), and Where the Girl Rescued Her Brother (Cheyenne).
While each story was short, between two to six pages long, the authors did a great job retelling many of the stories with descriptive language and enough detail that helps the readers to visualize the setting, characters, and events. However, the collection could benefit from an added map of North America to aid in pinpointing the location of each story because many stories emphasize the importance of the land. A map would be handy for readers unfamiliar with North American geography.
I appreciated the educational aspect of this collection as well. The stories are organized into four distinct sections: Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, and Northwest. At the beginning of each section, the authors include background information on each region. I found this to be very helpful in understanding more about the Native American tribes. Still, I would have liked a more in-depth explanation of the regions to provide more historical context.
Overall, this collection is an excellent introduction to Native American stories and culture. It is an easy-to-read book with a wide range of stories that will capture the attention of many young readers.
While each story was short, between two to six pages long, the authors did a great job retelling many of the stories with descriptive language and enough detail that helps the readers to visualize the setting, characters, and events. However, the collection could benefit from an added map of North America to aid in pinpointing the location of each story because many stories emphasize the importance of the land. A map would be handy for readers unfamiliar with North American geography.
I appreciated the educational aspect of this collection as well. The stories are organized into four distinct sections: Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, and Northwest. At the beginning of each section, the authors include background information on each region. I found this to be very helpful in understanding more about the Native American tribes. Still, I would have liked a more in-depth explanation of the regions to provide more historical context.
Overall, this collection is an excellent introduction to Native American stories and culture. It is an easy-to-read book with a wide range of stories that will capture the attention of many young readers.