John Smelcer: 7 books

This is a collection of stories from the Ahtna Indians of Alaska, collected and retold by tribe member John Smelcer.  Numerous illustrations by Larry Vienneau accompany the stories and numerous pictures of the Ahtna Indians and the storytellers are also included.  The book's Foreword is by Gary...

"A beautiful and moving story of courage and love."-Ray Bradbury Praise for The Great Death: "An amazing story."-Frank McCourt "Gripping and poignant. . . . An unforgettable survival tale."-Horn Book "A beautiful, poignant story."-Elie...

This is a collection of Alaska Native folklore and mythology. All the various regions and tribal groups are represented in this collection. The collector is John Smelcer who is a writer, poet, and folklorist and who is himself a member of an Alaska Native tribe. Several of the stories are accompanied...

A gripping wilderness adventure and survival story It was getting colder. Johnny pulled the fur-lined hood of his parka over his head and walked towards his own cabin with the sound of snow crunching beneath his boots. "He should be back tomorrow," he thought, as a star raced...

The Great Death arrived with the man from downriver, the one who came with the light-colored strangers and had little red spots covering his body. Thirteen-year-old Millie and her younger sister, Maura, are fascinated by the guests, but soon sickness takes over their village. As they watch the people...

Kiska’s home in the Aleutian Islands is a peaceful paradise until Japan invades in 1942. Soon after, a U.S. naval ship arrives to evacuate everyone in her village to an internment camp almost 2,000 miles away-where they are forgotten. Informed by true events, this is the story of a teenage girl who steps up when her people need a hero.

A literary landmark, this bilingual collection of poems represents the only literature of the Ahtna culture in existence. Ahtna is one of twenty indigenous languages of Alaska and had no written form until the last thirty years. Here John Smelcer renders these poems in his native tongue with English translations.