Souls of the North Wind
Chrissy K. McVay
(Reviewer - Rebecca Brown)
2005 iUniverse
ISBN: 0595355277

Inuit youths struggle against ancient creatures & spirits in the harsh, mysterious Canadian Tundra.

Souls of the North Wind is a coming of age tale of the Ihalmiut people ruled by superstitions, traditions & a new danger, some say from the supernatural world, that's haunting the land.

A couple of Winters ago the People had listened to the white traders who'd invaded their hunting grounds & had used the ammunition & rifles the newcomers brought to kill caribou to sell to the cities. They had been unwise, seduced by this sudden new wealth, & the stream that ran into Ihalmiut Lake overflowed with rotted carcasses, & the migrating herds had been thinned down too much. The next Spring, no caribou offered themselves for sacrifice that the People might eat, & the sacks of flour the traders gave them barely made a meal, even for shrunken bellies. That Winter the People had died. With the coming of Spring again a few caribou returned, along with strange & legendary creatures, much more difficult to kill for food.

Now, Iskik & his lead dog, Kuinig are lost in a sudden early Spring snowstorm & evening is coming on fast. As the seven dogs pull hard in the leather traces of the sled, Iskik searches for the Aagyuuk, the group of stars that usually shine brightly in the northern sky. They would show his direction home. Instead, in a brief break in the blizzard, Iskik hears a thunderous breathing, his dogs flee in terror down a rocky incline & the sled crashes tossing the boy into snowdrift. When his People find him, they also discover all but the lead dog have been gored & chewed by no animal anyone ever remembers.

Who could this creature be? Are there more than one? Why are they stalking the People? What spritis have been offended that these strange animals are now attacking them?

With an Author's Note all debut writers would do well to study, Chrissy McVay acknowledges the invaluable assistance the venerable Farley Mowat offered, which gives you a clue as to how serious is Souls of the North Wind. It's a wild & beautiful tale of a wild & dangerous time & place - it's history, legends & lores, with touches of science fiction, paleontology & archaeology, with a modernday emphasis on understanding the shifting patterns of the environment. She has well captured the ancient ways of thinking, & geared her language to readers aged 10-14, especially boys.
(01/01/06)

Rebecca