Kerry McCluskey

A young Inuit boy named Sukaq drifts into a waking dream state as his anaana (mother) tells him the story of how Raven created the world. Perched on the back of the giant raven who flew through the emptiness of space before the world came to be, Sukaq witnesses the creation of the earth, from a ball of ice, as well as the birth of the sun, moon, and stars. He also sees the creation of the first human - a woman - and then the first man - Raven himself, transformed...

First heard by Inuit elder show more Roy Goose from his great-grandmother, Mamie Mamayauk, and then retold to journalist Kerry McCluskey, who is also the author of Tulugaq: An Oral History of Ravens, which explores the role of this bird in Canadian Arctic society, Sukaq and the Raven is an engaging retelling of the Inuit creation story. It puts the child listener, in the form of Sukaq, front and center in the storytelling process, and emphasizes the importance of dreaming, and of the imagination, when listening to traditional tales (or any story). The artwork by Korean-born illustrator Soyeon Kim, which utilizes both sketched and painted elements, has a dream-like quality that suites the text, with a tiny Sukaq riding along on the back of the giant creator-raven. Recommended to all young folklore enthusiasts, and to any children interested in Inuit culture. For my part, I came away with a desire to read McCluskey's longer work about ravens, and their cultural significance in Arctic culture. show less