The Twelve Moons (Months)

Kelly L. Green is the co-editor of the Children’s Literature edition
of the Canadian Book Review Annual.

Philip Goodwin’s collection, translation, and illustration of a group
of Cree stories about the 12 moons (months of the year) will appeal to
children and adults on many levels. Goodwin introduces the 12 moons with
a legend about how there came to be 12 months in a year. According to
this story, the animals had a meeting to decide the question, but each
animal wanted the number of months to coincide with some number
significant to its own body (e.g., points on the moose’s antlers,
sections of the beaver’s tail). The discussion deteriorated into
bickering, until a very sensible suggestion was made by the frog, and
the animals finally agreed on the number of moons. Goodwin then devotes
one page, complete with a simple but eloquent black-and-white
illustration, to each moon. Children will be fascinated to learn why the
Cree called January “Exploding Moon,” March “Eagle Moon,” and
July “Moulting Moon.”

This effective book will help children from any cultural background
reinforce their understanding of the passage of time in a year. With its
emphasis on moons and seasons, the book effortlessly draws the child
into the circle of our annual nature cycle. Parents, teachers, and
others who work with children will find that this book simply but
beautifully reinforces children’s nascent, intuitive understanding of
the seasons. Complete with both English and Cree syllabic versions in
one volume, this book is recommended for anyone interested in nature,
the seasons, or Native Canadian culture and history.