STORYTIME WITH STEPHANIE

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Comfort from Elders

A loving story set in Arctic waters, Grandfather Bowhead Tell me a Story by Aviaq Johnston and Tamara Campeau is a perfect story for new grandparents to share with their grandchildren.

In this story, each page starts with the request, “Grandfather Bowhead tell me a story” and ends with the grandfather explaining the depth of his love for the little whale. What a delightful story for a grandparent to gift to a new grandchild or vice versa. The lyrical text by Aviaq Johnston makes for a comforting story to send a little one off to the land of nod. Grandparents and Elders are vital members of Indigenous communities making this beautiful story a keeper. There is information about bowhead whales at the end as well as an Inuktitut pronunciation guide at the end to help non speakers navigate the Inuktitut in the story.

The illustrations by Tamara Campeau are breathtaking! The different shades of blues take readers under the Arctic ice with the bowhead whales and all of the other creatures of the Arctic Ocean ecosystem. The eyes of the bowheads are filled with admiration and love and the realistic images of all the creatures makes this a book that will have a long shelf life.