"We rush to the window.
The salmon are here.
Mama and I keep an eye
on the moon. The moon
shapes the tides, The tides
say when we fish.
The tides say that we'll
fish at 4:00 AM."
Our narrator's family doesn't take the same type of summer vacation that most other families do. Instead, they make preparations for a trip that will take them two days, four flights and four thousand miles away from their home. They are off on their annual trip to Alaska. Are you wondering why?
Alden will tell you exactly what makes her parents and their four children so happy. This year, for the first time, she is going to join the fishing crew. She will no longer sit back and watch as they head out. And, that is a pretty exciting prospect. Her brothers are too young yet.
"While my brothers
chase lemmings on
the tundra.
And leap from rusted
truck beds on the bluff.
And search for agates
at the waterline.
I will help twist six-foot
anchor poles into the sand.
I will drag endless ropes through
knee-deep mud."
She will do so much more than that! The family knows the fish are coming soon. While they wait, she is a part of the crew, sharing chocolate bars and waiting for reports that the salmon are coming. There's lots to be done while they wait. When the salmon arrive, the crew prepares for an early morning boat launch and a day filled with hard work.
"Some people never get to join the fishing crew.
Those people are not me."
The first-person text is personal and informative, accompanied by pen and ink and gouache artwork that immerses readers in the Alaskan landscape and the joys of salmon fishing. Backmatter introduces the author and illustrator as the parents of our narrator. In the following four pages, they introduce Coffee Point, their summer destination, and offer information about the land, and the indigenous people in the area and their traditional lifestyle.
No comments:
Post a Comment