Animal Dreaming: An Aboriginal Dreamtime Story - Hardcover

Paul Morin is a Fitzhenry and Whiteside author.

Grade 3-6?In the frame story, an Aboriginal elder begins to teach his young charge the ways and beliefs that will initiate him into manhood. They walk into the outback and stop to rest at a campsite surrounded by rock paintings. The next morning, the elder tells a creation story based on the paintings. In it, greedy birds decide they want the wetland to themselves, and the other animals fight them. Three creatures do not join in the battle?a kangaroo, a turtle, and an emu; instead, they go to the place where the boy and elder now stand. The three animals each has a dream connected to water; these dreams are depicted in the stylized paintings on the rock. Upon awakening, they use the power of their dreams to help restore peace. There is no attempt to impose a moral, or to explain what motivates the birds' greed. The power of the book resides in the vividly realistic depiction of the humans and the setting, and the equally vivid but highly stylized representation of the dreaming. Although the palette is dominated by the brown tones of the Australian earth, interesting textures and tonal contrasts give richness to each page. Morin sensitively and effectively draws on Aboriginal paintings in the myth-based sections of the book. His strong compositions and dramatic verve are riveting.?Patricia Lothrop-Green, St. George's School, Newport, RI
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