The Eye of the Needle based on a Yupik Tale

Sent out to hunt by his grandmother, hungry little Amik cannot resist tasting what he catches and the more he eats, the more he grows

PreSchool-Grade 3-- In this Yupik tale, little Amik is sent by his grandmother to hunt for food. He is so hungry that he swallows everything he finds, from tiny fish to a huge whale. Replete and ashamed, he returns home only to find he has grown too large to enter the hut, but magic from grandmother's needle releases all the fish and provides food for everyone. This is similar in motif to Jameson's Clay Pot Boy (Coward, 1973; o.p.), but Amik's eating because he is hungry gives a more human motive to the story, while grandmother's magic provides a satisfying, happy ending. Sloat's illustrations, done in a limited range of hues with just a hint of warmth, successfully portray the barren Alaskan landscape without giving it a bleak look. The drawings of Amik are sometimes awkward, but the two-page spread showing only his head and wide open mouth as he swallows the whale is full of ravenous drama. The story is told with a slight formality appropriate to a folktale and is enlivened with the increasing "Glump, Gulump, Gullummp!" of Amik's eating spree and the "swish, whoosh, rumble" of the sea creatures when they are released. This tall tale, simply told in an oral style, should have wide appeal. --Karen James, Louisville Free Pub . Lib . , KY
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