The Flying Canoe

Anne Hutchings, a former elementary-school teacher-librarian with the
Durham Board of Education, is an educational consultant.

The legend of the flying canoe, “la chasse-galerie,” is a familiar
one in French-Canadian folklore. In it a group of lumberjacks in a
remote logging camp make a pact with the devil to “fly” them home to
celebrate the New Year with their loved ones. Roch Carrier, in his
retelling, has chosen to make 11-year-old Baptiste the hero and la
chasse-galerie either the devil’s magic or a miracle from God.

On New Year’s Eve, the voyageurs set off for home. The magical words
they utter—“Acabree, acabra, acabram”—causes the canoe to fly
off into the cold, dark sky. Frightened as well as exhilarated, Baptiste
and the others travel over villages, following the mighty St. Lawrence
River past Montreal until at Quebec they stop at an inn for “just one
little glass.” Baptiste, too young for “Jamaica,” is left behind
to guard the canoe. After a time, bored and cold, Baptiste decides to
say the magical words himself. Sure enough, up into the night he soars
and before long the lights of his own village and house come into view.
But Baptiste has another problem to overcome. Although he knows the
words to make the canoe fly, he doesn’t know how to make it stop. His
entreaties to stop—“Stoppitee, stoppitoo, stoppitam”—or at least
to slow down are to no avail. He ends up crashing through the roof of
his home and ending up in a heap on the front porch. Fortunately, the
youngster breaks only his leg. It leaves him with a slight “twinge”
for the rest of his life, but he is also left with a wonderful tale to
hand down from one generation to another.

This retelling is somewhat lengthy and would, perhaps, be most
effective as a read-aloud. Sheldon Cohen’s vivid, richly detailed, and
humorous illustrations will add to the enjoyment tremendously.
Librarians will appreciate the dust jacket, which reverses to a poster
for display purposes. Highly recommended.