THE GIRL WHO WANTED TO HUNT: A Siberian Tale

In this Siberian variation on the evil stepmother story, Anga wants to be a courageous hunter like her father. Anga's father understands. He makes his daughter ""a spear and a small bow and arrow,"" and he begins to teach Anga ""how to talk to all the wild creatures, even the great tiger."" But Anga's evil stepmother, Unin, does not approve. Telling Anga that hunting is for men only, she makes the girl do chores all day. When her father dies, Anga is at the mercy of Unin, but magical forces of nature rise up to protect Anga and turn Unin into an owl doomed to cry out her own name for all eternity. The gouache-on-watercolor-paper illustrations are embellished with decorative art echoing that of the indigenous people of southeastern Siberia. Be prepared to explain the Bering land bridge, because kids may ask why the Siberians look like Native Americans. A fun fable by the creators of Eagles (p. 392, etc.) and Reindeer (see below).