Missuk's Snow Geese.

Missuk lives in the cold Arctic north and dreams of one day being a carver of beautiful snow geese like her father. It is spring. While her father is on a hunt the young girl emulates her mother by sewing mittens out of sealskin but prefers the feeling of soapstone in her hands. Trying with her ulu knife, she cannot “find the graceful bird in the stone.” Frustrated, she leaves the igloo to watch the geese returning home. Missuk makes snow geese (essentially snow angels) along the path her father had made when he left earlier that day. Suddenly, she feels a storm coming and returns to the safety of her igloo. The following day, Missuk hears of how she was able to bring her father to safety from the imprints she left in the snow. From this, she knows that with patience one day she will be a great carver.

This father/daughter Inuit tale deals with a girl who needs to learn that it takes time, practice, and confidence in oneself to be good at something. The book is beautifully written and illustrated. Renaud’s text gives the reader insight into Missuk’s fascinating life in the cold North, and Cote’s illustrations of the Arctic spring are perfectly captured by her charcoal and watercolour images. Readers feel as if they can smell the long awaited spring in the air. Highly recommended.