Kiviuq and the Mermaids

Kiviuq is a strong and handsome hunter, the best hunter in the tribe. He is also a great traveler. One day, while he is out hunting with some other men, they see a seal. The seal starts singing, and Kiviuq realizes it is the son of the village shaman. Then a storm appears, and all the men are drowned, but Kiviuq is saved because he was the only one who didn’t make fun of the seal. He was stranded on an island, so the next day he set off to find his home. A mermaid appeared and told him to follow her, but he knew mermaids were just trouble. Then the mermaid got angry, and when Kiviuq hurt her with his harpoon, she brought all her friends and family to try to destroy his kayak. Finally Kiviuq is able to get onto land and find his way home.

This book is exciting and has good illustrations. Normally we think of mermaids as good instead of bad, so it is interesting to get a different perspective and learn about different beliefs. This story is from the Inuit, and it is fun to read this story about one of the Inuit heroes.