Synopsis
When Little Eagle Lots of Owls receives a strange gift from his grandfather, an elderly chief, he does not know what to make of it, until the sun goes down, night falls, and his mysterious living gift begins to reveal itself.
Reviews
PreSchool-Grade 2-- Anyone who wonders why Native American parents, teachers, and librarians find some children's books offensive need only to take a look at this pseudo-Indian tale, written and illustrated in England. Little Eagle Lots of Owls does not understand his name so his grandfather gives him a mysterious, snoring gift. The boy carries it to the birds of the sky, the river waters, a woodlands moose, and a buffalo. No one can wake up the sleeping creature to figure out what it is. Little Eagle does a "rain dance" but the strange gift sleeps through the thunder and lightning. Finally, the sun goes down and the gift wakes up (it is a basket of owls), whereupon the boy's grandfather tells him " '. . . you are as wise as the owl.' " If the plot appears nonsensical, and the trivialization of a religious ceremony offensive, the illustrations are even more so. Dressed in a generic Indian costume and wearing a sacred eagle feather, Little Eagle lives alone in a white settler-style log cabin in what appears to be the desert of the Southwest. Yet at the turn of a page he is in the Northeastern forests and then the Great Plains. Nothing here reflects genuine Native American culture, traditions, or literature. Instead, the images seem to be drawn exclusively from spaghetti Westerns and outdated calendar art. The interesting silk painting technique of the illustrations cannot redeem this book. Children deserve more integrity in their literature than this. --Carolyn Polese, Gateway Community School, Arcata, CA
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
First-time author Edmiston spins a rather attenuated tale in the style of Native American lore. Since Little Eagle Lots of Owls's name is a mouthful, his grandfather shortens it to Little Eagle, at the same time presenting the youth with a mysterious creature. "It did not have the soft fur of the rabbit or the hard scales of the lizard. It was not big, but it was not small." After several unsuccessful attempts to rouse the strange beast, Little Eagle discovers that it is actually three owls, given to ensure he would not forget his full name. The narrative is so slender that the text appears almost fragmentary; both motivation for and a discernible overall point to this story seem to be lacking. Disturbing, too, is the portrayal of Little Eagle as a generic Indian with a naturalistic-sounding name who lives "high up in the mountains where the eagles fly." Ross's batik illustrations, resembling stained glass in mellow tones of red, blue and brown, are visually engaging but display a lack of facial detail that inadvertently reinforces the characters' two-dimensional quality. Ages 4-8.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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