OOKPIK

Snowy owls, birds of the frozen far north, appear in the lower 48 states only sporadically, in winters when the lemming population has crashed and food is in short supply. Inspired by such a visitation, Hiscock follows an owl through his first year, from egg to hatchling, first flight and migration from the Baffin Island tundra, over the taiga, past Ottawa, to spend the winter on a farm in northern New York before returning to his arctic home. A map of the bird’s imagined journey introduces the narrative, which includes an owl’s growth and development, feeding, natural predators and prey. Detailed watercolors illustrate the varied landscapes, often in sweeping double-page spreads. Although Ookpik (the Inuktitut word for “snowy owl”) is slightly personified for the sake of the story, the narrative generally sticks to the possible facts and an extensive author’s note at the end provides further information. Like his earlier Big Caribou Herd (2003), this conveys the author’s love for that remote part of the world and provides a fine introduction for middle-grade readers. (Nonfiction. 7-10)