How Things Came to Be: Inuit Stories of Creation

by Rachel Qitsualik-Tinsley, Sean Qitsualik-Tinsley, Emily Fiegenschuh (Illustrator)

This completely revised and reedited edition, originally published as Qanuq Pinngurnirmata, now shares 9 classic Inuit creation stories from the Baffin region. These treasured tales have been revised to increase readability for young readers ages 6-8, while new material provides even more contextual information for these important creation myths. New illustrations accompany the new textual material.

This edition is as accessible and enjoyable as it is informative. The perfect introduction to Arctic creation myths for children of all ages.

Genres: Indigenous, Picture Books, Childrens, Middle Grade

80 pages, Hardcover

First published December 28, 2008

About the author

Of Inuit-Cree ancestry, Rachel Qitsualik-Tinsley was born in a tent on northernmost Baffin Island. She learned Inuit survival lore from her father, surviving residential school and attending university. In 2012, she was awarded a Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for numerous cultural writings.

Reviews

[Ian Carpenter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this illustrated collection of classic Inuit creation stories. Many I've read before but Qitsualik-Tinsley breathes a life into them that I've not seen before. Illustrations perfect for kids and YA as well.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another Inhabit Media collection of traditional Inuit stories! This one tells the origin stories for day and night, sun and moon, thunder and lightning, caribou, malicious wind, sea spirits, and more. The storytelling is lively, and the illustrations are beautiful.

Recommended for middle graders especially, but to everyone in general!

[Caitlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Qanuq Pinngurnirmata: Inuit stories of how things came to be by Rachel A. Qitsualik and Sean A. Tinsley.

Content warning: violence and starvation.

This is a compilation of stories, ranging from the battle between night and day to the story of sun and moon to the story of the spirit of the ocean. It is written in a way that children would understand the stories and it is illustrated.

A quote that I liked was: “All life is breath.”

I borrowed this book from the library for a reading challenge that asked for a book based in the arctic. It is very interesting to read and easy to follow along with. I liked the lessons that the stories told. I would recommend this book to children ages 8 and up.

[iana · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was more fascinating than I had expected. I thought it would only be just a bunch of kids’ stories but these ones speak to even the oldest and experienced, both with books and life.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the works of both illustrators and hope to find more by them. The tales are enchanting, and the history & culture lessons fascinating. One of my very favorite books for the 'Creation Stories' theme in the Children's Books group. I would have loved it when I was a child. If pressed, I would pick *The Storm Orphans* as my favorite story. Oh, and don't miss the authors' bios.

"Inuit put... riddles in their stories. It was how the wise communicated with each other (without being bothered by fools). And that was why Inuit told their stories, over and over, to their children. They understood that, in their own way, children are very wise."

"People began to forget that they were one family with the animals. They came to believe that the animals were separate from themselves. That humans were special....
People learned how to say things like:
'I am important. You are not.'
'I deserve goodness. You do not.'
'I should have love. You should not.'"

"The folk of Grand Sky... say that some women make Stronger shamans than men (just as children can make Stronger shamans than grownups)."

"Here is a strange fact: foolish people enjoy each other's company."

[Bre Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alaska, Arctic, Creation, Folktale, Inuit

Qitsualik-Tinsley, Rachel and Sean. How Things Came to Be: Inuit Stories of Creation. Illustrated by Emily Fiegenschuh and Patricia Ann Lewis-Macdougall. CA: Inhabit Media, 2015. 80 pp. Ages 10-14.

In the book there are ten stories with some pictures about how things came to be. From the beginnings of day and night, sun and moon, strength of the land, and caribou, this book tells the tales of Inuit stories of what was passed down as stories of creation. I think this book is a great way to introduce folklore and how different cultures tell their versions of how things came to be.

Alaska Connection: Inuit, Arctic Land and Sea Animals

Related Activity: Choose your favorite Alaskan animal and create a story of how you think that animal came to be.

[Freya Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Don't know how authentic it is, but found the stories accessible and engaging, enhanced by the illustrations. It's a great book to read when you don't have a lot of time, as it's easy to just read a story or two at a time.

[Tim McCanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely

It was a joy to read this set of stories and to imagine them being told to my mother and her brother and her sisters before her mother passed away. The cadence of the storytelling in this book reminded me of the times my mom told us about tales of when she grew up.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.

[Jbondandrews · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful collection of stories.

[Raymond Ozuna · Rating 5 out of 5]

La patrie ou la mort, nous vaincrons!

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful artwork. The stories take a new twist on creation from an Inuit perspective.

[Aubrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was actually really good. I read it to my kiddos because it was geared towards their age. The stories were mostly engaging, but I wish it would have had more pictures.

[Bean will read · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was amazing. So many stories behind the creation of things.

[Whole And · Rating 2 out of 5]

Found the stories to be quite heavy in content.
Not recommending for young children.