The Epic of Qayaq retold by Lela Kiana Oman

Read: 2006

As Qayaq's siblings grow up, all leave home to seek their fortunes and never return. Qayaq, the youngest and last of his parents' children, decides to go in search of his siblings. From there, the story cycles through episodes of Qayaq's legendary journey over land and by kayak.

Qayaq has something of the trickster in him making these stories very interesting. In particular, I found the fluidity between the animal and human worlds very interesting. Qayaq is able to turn himself into animals and they into humans. Because the book is a collection of stories from an epic cycle each functions well alone and they make for a pleasantly varied experience if read all at once.

I especially enjoyed my edition because the edges of each page contained short summaries of the stories as well as illustrations that fit the action described. It may seem like only a small detail, but being able to see the Inupiat art along with the stories added a fantastic extra dimension.