Friday, January 2, 2015

#Review: Dancing Drum: A Cherokee Legend written and adapted by Terri Cohlene/ Illustrated by Charles Reasoner #Multicultural #NativeAmerican #Kidsbooks


Summary:
This enchanting Cherokee legend comes alive through the author's vivid adaptation and striking illustrations. Children will be spellbound as they read about the distinctive lifestyle and beliefs of the Cherokee people.

My review:
I am part Cherokee so I was excited when I found this book.  Taken from an old Cherokee legend, this book tells the tale of how one young man seeks to keep Grandmother Sun from burning the land. 

I loved reading this legend as I never had heard it before. The words are lovingly weaved together to tell the legend as it might have been handed down word of mouth. I loved how the young man made up for each deed or misdeed he did and eventually used his drum in thanksgiving. A beautiful testament to the people and the sky.

The pictures in the book are bold and beautiful. However, this book is certainly to be read by an older child as there are complex sentences. The pictures only enhance the words.

In addition to the legend, the author included in the back of the book about the Cherokee people including tragic circumstances and overcoming. Those pages even talk about the Cherokee of today, what they do and how they live. I think this is also a beautiful testament.

I would be amiss if I gave this book anything but a 5 star. Well, done!

Disclosure: I purchased a copy of this book for my own collections. The views expressed here are 100% my own and may differ with yours. ~Naila Moon


Where to find the author: 


Amazon
Goodreads

3 comments:

XmasDolly said...

I totally agree and I haven't even read it. I love any books who portrait the American Indian honestly and informatively. Thanks for sharing.

Katie TheLogonauts said...

This book sounds wonderful! I have a growing collection of NA books for our fourth graders, so I will certainly have to add this to the list. Thanks for sharing!

Resh said...

I havent heard of this one before either! Would love to read it. Thanks for suggesting this on KidLitBlogHop this week!