cover image Girl Who Swam with the Fish: An Athabascan Legend

Girl Who Swam with the Fish: An Athabascan Legend

Michelle Renner. Alaska Northwest Books, $15.95 (32pp) ISBN 978-0-88240-442-4

According to this book's foreword, salmon have always played a part in the culture, symbolism and lore of the Pacific Northwest, and Renner's retelling of a traditional Alaskan tale celebrates the cyclical nature of life as evidenced by the salmon's yearly return to its spawning grounds. The story begins with an Athabascan girl keeping an eager lookout for the fish her family will catch and preserve for the coming winter. A mishap sends her into the river--and in a flash she's changed into a salmon. Her lengthy sojourn underwater gives her a fish's-eye view of salmon life, and her new knowledge proves helpful when she returns home. The crisp prose style of first-time author Renner is echoed in the clean lines of Cox's woodcuts, whose pale images often spill beyond their thick black borders. A worthwhile addition to the Native American folklore shelf. Ages 7-up. (June)