Julie of the Wolves
Common Sense Note
Poetic text, simple illustrations, and cultural themes enrich the saga of Julie's adoption by the wolves and her trek across the Arctic.
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Amy Finley
Against the backdrop of a young girl's harrowing trek across the Arctic tundra, the author explores the situation native peoples face when their culture is threatened by Westernization.
At a young age Miyax is taken from her father and the Eskimo seal camp where they live and raised in American style by her aunt, who calls her Julie. Julie engages in activities that are strange to the Eskimo part of her, but exciting as well, and she comes to consider the Eskimo ways strange and old-fashioned.
Eventually, however, she depends on them when she sheds the identity of Julie and leaves her village to escape her husband. As Miyax recalls her Eskimo upbringing and learns to survive on the tundra, readers are also presented with the science of the Eskimo culture and its interdependence with native plants and animals. Miyax uses native and natural wisdom to gain acceptance by the wolf pack that saves her life.
As Miyax, and the reader, becomes more steeped in Eskimo ways, she reconsiders her decision to leave Alaska. The book's uncertain ending invites readers to decide whether traditional Eskimo culture can survive in the face of Americanization, and whether individuals can make a difference within their society.
From The Book
By using the plants, animals, and temperature, they had changed the harsh Arctic into a home, a feat as incredible as sending rockets to the moon. She smiled. The people at seal camp had not been as outdated and old-fashioned as she had been led to believe. No, on the contrary, they had been wise. They had adjusted to nature instead of to man-made gadgets.
Plot Summary:
Lost and alone on the Arctic tundra, Julie survives by joining a wolf pack. Lyrical text portrays the interdependence between people and animals in the harsh but beautiful Alaskan environment. As Julie learns to communicate with the wolves, her physical hardships mirror the plight of Eskimo culture as it faces Westernization and modern technology.
Related Books:
Miyax's story is continued in Julie and Julie's Wolf Pack. Another survival story with native and environmental themes is Brothers of the Heart. Incident at Hawk's Hill also tells of a child who survives with the help of an animal.
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