The Rainbow Bridge
Common Sense Note
Children and parents will enjoy this beautiful myth and its luminous pictures.
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Kevin McCaffrey
Audrey Wood tries her deft hand at a creation tale of people indigenous to her own Santa Barbara area. She tells a story of events that, once put in motion, get out of hand through no one's direct fault. Kids will enjoy that young people help the goddess solve the problem and lead their families to the new land. Life itself wins out through the goddess's love and the children's belief in her.
Robert Florczak's paintings at first might be mistaken for digital art, but they are actually luminescent oil paintings. They have hyperrealistic elements that are arranged in such a way as to evoke a strange otherworldly quality that works well with the myth.
You can look for more work by Audrey Wood, with husband Don, in the classics The Napping House and King Bidgood's In the Bathtub, or by herself in Silly Sally or Rude Giants.
From The Book
When the boy and girl showed their people the bowl Hutash had eaten from and the seashell from which she had quenched her thirst, the Chumash listened. That day they held a great council and decided who should go to the new land and who should remain on Limuw.
Plot Summary:
Hutash the earth goddess creates the Chumash (indigenous people of Southern California's coastal area). Nurturing the tribe to grow and prosper on their offshore island, she eventually is forced to help half get across to the mainland. In this deeply respectful telling, the beginnings of many aspects of life are explained, including humanity's connection with nature.
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ViolenceSome people crossing the Rainbow Bridge fall into the ocean. The earth goddess is not happy with overpopulation and decides to split up the tribe, but the Native Americans solve this problem amicably. |
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