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78th out of 90 books
—
1,579 voters
Waterless Mountain
Winner of the 1931 Newbery Medal, this is an authentic novel about an eight-year-old Navaho boy's training as a medicine man. This deeply moving and accurate account of one young Navaho's childhood and spiritual journey is filled with wonder and respect for the natural world--a living record of the Navaho way of life before the influence of the white man.
Hardcover, 212 pages
Published
October 12th 1993
by Knopf Books for Young Readers
(first published 1931)
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Gentle. This book embodies that word. In its themes, the characters, the language and the pace--probably everything except the setting, which sits in Navajo country where the weather can bring surprises...
I loved this book, but know that a modern-day reader will struggle with the text. The pace is slow, there is little action, and the characters may be a bit idealized. I think a middle grade child, unless they are a deep thinker and feeler, would doze often while trying to get through the chapte...more
I loved this book, but know that a modern-day reader will struggle with the text. The pace is slow, there is little action, and the characters may be a bit idealized. I think a middle grade child, unless they are a deep thinker and feeler, would doze often while trying to get through the chapte...more
1932 Newbery Award Winner
Really not great. I found it boring and the writing stilted. It seemed she was trying to write in "Indian speak" or something. I also found it covertly racist. It wasn't in your face, but that is almost worse because then people think that they are actually getting a true picture.
Here are some of the things that were a problem. You will see that white people are fantastic if you read this. Page 7, "Younger Brother thought he had never seen so kind a face and he knew rig...more
Really not great. I found it boring and the writing stilted. It seemed she was trying to write in "Indian speak" or something. I also found it covertly racist. It wasn't in your face, but that is almost worse because then people think that they are actually getting a true picture.
Here are some of the things that were a problem. You will see that white people are fantastic if you read this. Page 7, "Younger Brother thought he had never seen so kind a face and he knew rig...more
yay! Things are looking up in the Newbery world. This is the representative from 1932, and I've now read a couple in a row that I felt better than "meh" about :)
This one had a little of the "Tales from Silver Lands" feel, but had understandable mysticism, if you will, as opposed to myths and legends I couldn't even begin to wrap my brain around. It's still rather dated because of when it was written, but I wouldn't be afraid to let one of my nephews read it for fear I'd have to explain outright...more
This one had a little of the "Tales from Silver Lands" feel, but had understandable mysticism, if you will, as opposed to myths and legends I couldn't even begin to wrap my brain around. It's still rather dated because of when it was written, but I wouldn't be afraid to let one of my nephews read it for fear I'd have to explain outright...more
This Newbery winner is an episodic novel of the Navajo people. A boy called Younger Brother, party inspired by his Uncle, a shaman, leaves his family and goes west, following the Turquoise Woman who went west to marry the sun. Along the way, he rescues a white boy, routs some horse thieves, and flies in a plane with “Grandfather,” the white trader who knows and loves the Navajo.
It’s all told in a very muted style, almost entirely from the Navajo point of view, with poetic phrases like “my heart...more
It’s all told in a very muted style, almost entirely from the Navajo point of view, with poetic phrases like “my heart...more
I don't know. There's some interesting insight into Navajo life and culture. Two big problems, though:
1. The book is slow-moving. And, for me, not so much in a "pleasant journey" kind of way like Criss Cross or Walk Two Moons or even The Cat Who Went to Heaven. Just not that much happens.
2. Much bigger problem: The book, while in some ways sensitive to Navajo culture, really is fawning in its love of white culture. The two white characters (and one especially) are superior beings who grace the...more
1. The book is slow-moving. And, for me, not so much in a "pleasant journey" kind of way like Criss Cross or Walk Two Moons or even The Cat Who Went to Heaven. Just not that much happens.
2. Much bigger problem: The book, while in some ways sensitive to Navajo culture, really is fawning in its love of white culture. The two white characters (and one especially) are superior beings who grace the...more
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Aug 02, 2011
Andrea
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I have never read such a touching, real, draw-you-right-into-it tale of Native American life as Waterless Mountain. And with hubby's interest in Native American culture, believe me, I've read quite a few. Reading about the life of Younger Brother and his family was a wonderful experience that I had to savor. I read this book slowly, taking my time to visualize the people and places, looking at the wonderful illustrations, hearing the characters' voices in my head. Younger Brother's wisdom and, l...more
Well, that wasn't half bad!
The story of Younger Son was woven nicely with traditional tales of the Navajo. As a child, he learns that he has a special affinity with nature. His Uncle is a Medicine Man, and begins to train him as a future medicine man for their people.
I'm not an expert, but based on the fact that the author spent real time with the Navajo, painting their celebrations and learning their tales, I'm thinking it was a fairly accurate representation.
The writing style was simple, yet...more
The story of Younger Son was woven nicely with traditional tales of the Navajo. As a child, he learns that he has a special affinity with nature. His Uncle is a Medicine Man, and begins to train him as a future medicine man for their people.
I'm not an expert, but based on the fact that the author spent real time with the Navajo, painting their celebrations and learning their tales, I'm thinking it was a fairly accurate representation.
The writing style was simple, yet...more
I was told by a librarian that this book is out of print because it is very demeaning to the Navajo people. I did not find it demeaning at all – with the exception of one sentence when a white person called them savages. I found it beautiful and even spiritual as I shared the reverence and respect of all things that the Navajos believed. How sad that a book that simply explains the beliefs of a people, especially in such a beautiful way, is censored. I assume that it is because the legends and s...more
This book is currently out of print at the time I am writing this, which is a shame. It's not what I tend to expect from a Newbery Medal winner, but the vivacious story and solid characters make this a good volume, and an interesting portrayal of the Navajo way of life. This book might not come to mind for most people when thinking about the best Newbery books ever written, but I think that good would definitely be served if Waterless Mountain were put back into print, and read by a larger port...more
In the forward of my copy of the book, which (incidentally) I bought used online for about $1 and which used to belong to the Northside Christian School Library, but now belongs to me and has a mean, red "DISCARD" stamp on the inside flyleaf beneath the date stamps proving that 6 people checked this book out between November 24, 1986 and November 8, 1989, Oliver LeFarge says Armer's paintings (she was an artist before an author) were viewed by the Navaho has having "an unusual insight and an exp...more
May 08, 2011
Miz Lizzie
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Shelves:
adult-fiction,
animals,
arizona,
childrensbooks,
history,
folklore,
native-american,
nature,
newbery-medal,
religion,
southwest,
spirituality,
storytelling
As a recent transplant to Arizona and having studied the traditional oral histories of indigenous peoples of North America (though not the Navajo specifically), I was quite interested in reading Waterless Mountain. It is also one of the few Newbery books from these two decades that I had no memory of ever having read or had read to me.
It is the story of Younger Brother who is following the path of a medicine man of his people. Younger Brother is eight years old when the story starts and he ages...more
It is the story of Younger Brother who is following the path of a medicine man of his people. Younger Brother is eight years old when the story starts and he ages...more
I was prepared to hate this and find it dull, but I didn't really. This story of a Navajo boy learning to become a spiritual leader is fairly engaging, and I enjoyed the boy's character and his interactions with white people, which are usually pretty funny (and sometimes sad). It has the racial and cultural problems you might expect of a Navajo book written by a white person, but they aren't as bad as I anticipated. I can let some of those go as being "it was a different time"ish, but what I can...more
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This story of a Navajo boy who grows into manhood and into his role as medicine man is quietly beautiful. I found it interesting that the author placed her story during more modern times (with Indians and whites interacting) and I loved the insights she shared about Navajo traditions and rituals. The author was also a talented artist -- her visual sense is obvious in the natural settings described in the story and her illustrations are detailed and lovely. This book won the 1932 Newbery Award.
This is the coming-of-age novel of a young Navaho boy, Younger Brother, as he learns the world of his people and learns the secrets of his tribe's wiseman and learns the ways of the larger world. Younger Brother helps a friend, The Big Man, with car problems. He goes on a long quest and finds he can survive on his own. He saves his horse from thieves. All the tales are told with a background of magic and mystery, with the mountains and desert as a magnificent setting.
I think this book would be difficult for the average school child to enjoy. The language is simple enough, chapters plenty short, but the action is quite slow. Far too slow to engage today's youth who've been suckled on stories steeped in terror, horror, and/or fear. The book is a rather impressive glimpse into a culture on the verge of death or at least assimilation. Armer writes about a small Navaho community just after the turn of the last century. She has an anthropologist's interest in the...more
This is a Newbery Medal winner from the 1930s. Its a coming of age tale about a young Navajo boy who is learning to become a medicine man like his uncle. He is a sheep herder and roams all over the SW desert learning about the universe and the teachings of the creatures and elements. He also learns some important lessons on the meaning of being human. I really enjoyed and would highly recommend this book as an easy but beautiful read.
"There are doubters, but what of it, so long as there are those who believe and dream?"
"I think he was too beautiful. I think that is why he died."
"Do not ask me what makes your seeds grow. Neither ask me what makes my patterns grow. It is enough that they do."
"At last he understood the pain of beauty that he had felt on top of the western mountain. He remembered how he had wondered if there were anyone in the world who felt as he felt."
"I think he was too beautiful. I think that is why he died."
"Do not ask me what makes your seeds grow. Neither ask me what makes my patterns grow. It is enough that they do."
"At last he understood the pain of beauty that he had felt on top of the western mountain. He remembered how he had wondered if there were anyone in the world who felt as he felt."
Gentle, slow-paced, poetic tale with lovely descriptions of SW America, of a Navajo boy as he learns to walk in beauty and become a medicine man in the late 1920s (contemporary when written). Very brave topic for a white woman at the time...
However, since it's so slow moving, I'm not sure that today's readers will be willing to stick with it, unless they are very motivated to learn about Navajo culture and folklore.
However, since it's so slow moving, I'm not sure that today's readers will be willing to stick with it, unless they are very motivated to learn about Navajo culture and folklore.
It was interesting enough to get me through the entire thing, but I didn't really enjoy reading it. The driver of the book does not run but mosies along so the story seems to lack a real push towards the outcome. It is about a Navajo boy who wants to become a medicine man. The story deals a lot with nature, food, and legends.
I really enjoyed this story mainly because I'm obsessed with all things Native American. I loved learning more about the Navajo and the training that one goes through to become a Medicine Man. If you aren't interested in learning about these things, I think you'd find the book pretty boring. This was the 1931 winner for the Newbery Medal.
Read this one as part of the Newbery Challenge. I had high hopes for it - the cover, length of chapters, print size, perspective of very young Navajo boy - all pointed toward an early Newbery that might be read by a child. But while there are interesting parts here and there, it is a pretty slow-moving book.
I walked four miles for this difficult to find, out of print treasure. What a treat into the life of a Navajo boy. This books balances well the other books so angry with indigenous Americans. The Modern Westernized world could benefit from breathing slowly and reading this story.
It was really amazing to find this book right after we had visited the Hubble Trading Post in Arizona. It has a great perspective on the relationship between the Navajo and the trader. It does a wonderful job of describing their beliefs.
This is an older Newbery winner (published in 1931), but it wasn't as dated as you might expect (though the term "roadster" did leap out at me). It's very stream-of-consciousness, the coming of age story of a Navajo boy who feels drawn to the big questions in life, and is following in his uncle's footsteps, becoming a ceremonial singer ("medicine man"). I did a longish review of it over at the Newbery Project.
As I said in the review, I was surprised how much I liked it. I thought it was going to...more
As I said in the review, I was surprised how much I liked it. I thought it was going to...more
part of my "i will read all the newbery's" project. so far i'm finding it really dull but i feel sorry for it because it's the first book since the hunger games and catching fire... it never really stood a chance!
This delightful book speaks of the Navajos' days from the time of caucasians moving in on their daily lives. Excellent written, with an emotional boy, but it could have used more direction in the plot.
Definitely found myself dozing off at the library, especially through the second half of the book. It just didn't build for me, though at times the imagery and phrasing were colorful.
Very nice story and well written. I think that this would be a must-read for anyone who is interested in Native American culture. Ms. Armer does an amazing job of weaving into her story Navaho legends...especially amazing since this is not the culture that she comes from.
A boy grows up story about a young Navaho Indian boy. Poetically written. It was good but I had a hard time enjoying it. It went rather slow.
I LOVE this book. It is part of my 2012 reading goal to read ALL the Newbery award books that I haven't read, and this is the first one I picked.
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“He could tell by the way animals walked that they were keeping time to some kind of music. Maybe it was the song in their own hearts that they walked to.”
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