The Owl and the Lemming

by Roselynn Akulukjuk, Amanda Sandland (Illustrator)

As Owl swoops down and blocks the entrance to a lemming den, he is sure that he has a tasty meal in the little animal he has cornered. But this lemming is not about to be eaten! This smart little rodent will need to appeal to the boastful owl's sense of pride to get away.

This fun and cheeky tale is accompanied by full-colour still photographs of custom-built characters on a hand-built set.

Genres: Picture Books, Indigenous, Childrens, Canada

32 pages, Hardcover

First published October 17, 2016

Reviews

[Storytime With Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Owl and the Lemming by Roselyn Akulukjuk and illustrated by Amanda Sandland and published by Inhabit Media Inc. is a wonderful retelling of a Inuit folktale.
Oral storytelling is a powerful and magical thing. So many lessons can be learned through the telling of stories between elder and child, teller and listener. In this traditional tale, a young owl catches a delicious little lemming to eat...but does he? The clever lemming, not wanting to be a meal, uses his cunning to evade the owl. The lessons of the value of being clever and cunning and the avoidance of arrogance and pride are at the forefront of this tale.
Roselynn Akulukjuk wrote this book based on the short live action and puppetry short film she wrote and directed. I sincerely hope that we will all have an opportunity to see the film after reading the story. Amanda Sandland's illustrations are a unique blend of illustrated characters and photography.
The Owl and the Lemming is one of this year's nominated titles of the OLA's Forest of Reading Blue Spruce Award. It is incredible to know that so many children throughout Ontario will have access to and enjoy this traditional tale.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Owl and The Lemming is another charming traditional Inuit story from Inhabit Media. I have never read anything else from Roselyn Akulukjuk (as far as I am aware, this is her only book written so far), but she tells the story incredibly well. The moral is somewhere between cleverness can get you out of anything and don't play with your food, which leaves it feeling both cute and funny. I really enjoyed the illustrations, which were a stunning mixture of photo realistic settings and cutesy cartoony animals, and I thought it worked really well.

I definitely recommend this one for all ages, and would happily read more from either the author or the illustrator.

[Barbra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another beautifully illustrated inuit tale. A great addition to the study of Inuit culture, and their folklore. To survive his encounter with the Owl, Lemming must try to trick him and does so by playing right into owls pride.

[Edward Sullivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lemming tricks an owl into not eating him. Based on a traditional Inuit tale.

[Heydi Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

The moral of this story is don't play with your food. It's a great story. The illustrations are pretty but also somehow odd.

[Rhianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to admit I loved the illustrations more than the storyline itself but it is a very cute kid's tale.

[Kelly]

Not a big fan of the illustrations, but I do like a good trickster tale. Based on an Inuit traditional tale.

[Donna Mork · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute book. A lemming comes out to eat in spring, and an owl decides to make him a meal. The lemming tricks the owl into a jumping contest. While the owl is up in the air, showing off how high he could jump, the lemming runs into his house to safety. Mother owl warns the little owl not to play with his food or let his pride get in the way of eating again.

[Theediscerning · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gorgeously presented, this is an Inuit story done so well and so universally it will have a global audience – and this first being out in 2016 yet reprinted October 2023 suggests it has the staying power to attain that. This is a world where lemmings have tiny turf houses, some even with little picket fence approaches, but they also have threats like bragging young owls standing between them and home. Who will have the savviness to win in this seemingly one-sided stand-off? Visually it's at a balance that some might not take to, the backgrounds looking like really well-made miniature animation movie sets, yet the characters more CG cartoonish. But they look great, and if you can cope with the mix of practical and added-in then this will definitely be a successful purchase. With the welcome simplicity and obviousness of Aesop's most well-loved, this was very enjoyable indeed – four and a bit stars at least.

[Alice · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars
I read a digital copy courtesy of the publisher and Edelweiss
This cautionary tale tells of a young lemming, eager to be above ground and a young owl eager to prove himself. Both are clever, but lemming wins out by playing to owl's vanity. A lovely arctic tale which resonates no matter where you live.

[Rebecca Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Owl spots a tasty meal, he swoops in, but the Lemming is not about to be someone's meal.

This cute little story was a lot of fun. It will keep kids interested, and engaged in the book. The illustrations were well done.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spoiler alert:


My students really enjoyed hearing how the little lemming was able to trick the owl and save her own life.

[Haaley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked the illustrations. The moral of the story was to not let your pride lose your meal.
The story was good and did not end like I expected it to.

[VM · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Lemming is eating happily. Unfortunately, an owl tries to hunt it. Will the poor lemming survive. Read the book to find out.

[Samantha Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrations are creative and beautiful. The story is sweet with an amusing end.

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

An okay trickster-type tale, a retelling of an Inuit story. I was not a huge fan of the illustrations, which I think detracted from my enjoyment.

[Steph]

Turn/Level: 1/3

Greed, Trickery, Caution, Native American Heritage

A lemming gets caught outside by an owl and tricks him in order to not get eaten. Rather forward in its moral. Author is Native American.

[Elizabeth]

I saw a post on Tumblr about Inhabit Media -- an Inuit-owned publishing company -- and proceeded to ILL like every picture book I could get my hands on.

This is a standard "prey tricks its way out of getting eaten" tale, but it was engaging -- and the illustrations are great -- the drawn animals are superimposed onto a photo-realistic background (the book is based on a live action and puppetry short film).