Minuk: Ashes in the Pathway

Girls of Many Lands

by Kirkpatrick Hill, Patrick Faricy (Illustrator)

Twelve-year-old Minuk is intrigued by the Hoffs, the American missionary family that has moved into her village. Although she has seen white men before, Minuk has never seen a white woman--or a white child. It soon becomes clear that although the Hoffs can speak the Yup'ik language, they don't understand Yup'ik ways. When Mr. Hoff begins interfering with village ceremonies, even Minuk wonders why the missionary is so sure his ways are better than Yup'ik ways.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Fiction, Childrens, Young Adult, Historical, Native American

210 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2002

About the author

Kirkpatrick Hill lives in Fairbanks, Alaska. She was an elementary school teacher for more than thirty years, most of that time in the Alaskan "bush." Hill is the mother of six children and the grandmother of eight. Her three earlier books, Toughboy and Sister, Winter Camp, and The Year of Miss Agnes, have all been immensely popular. Her fourth book with McElderry Books, Dancing at the Odinochka, was a Junior Library Guild Selection. Hill's visits to a family member in jail inspired her to write Do Not Pass Go.

Reviews

[James Crawford · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story takes place in 1890 in Alaska and is about a young Eskimo girl named Minuk.


How you feel about this book will be shaped very strongly by your own religious views. If you are of the school that holds that the Christian God is the only one acceptable and the Bible is the only way acceptable, then you will agree with what happens to the Eskimos in this novel.


If you are a person who does not hold those views, but holds somewhat of a more widespread religious orientation, then the events in this book might very well prove upsetting.

It's basically about how some missionaries come to an Eskimo village, severely criticize almost everything about the Eskimo culture, and how they and other whites bring diseases to the Eskimos which end up resulting in the death of most of the tribe.


There are some things about the Eskimo culture that are shown not to be good, of course. The killing of girl babies stands as the worst of the lot; there are also lots and lots of restrictions on women who have just begun having their periods, restrictions that seem quite primitive in nature.


>The worst things in the book are saved for the Christian missionary Mr. Hoff, however. His criticisms of the Eskimo culture are non-stop and even rise to the point of disrupting a meeting of the Eskimo men. Although he ran a school for Eskimo boys, he was not above whipping them when they did not do what he wanted them to do. He refused to help teach Minuk how to read. He spoke out against Eskimo celebrations and feasts. He spoke out against their ceremonial dances. He spoke out often and strong against their shaman.

This went on and on until the sickness brought by the white people (influenza, in this specific case) decimated the tribe and Hoff moved on to somewhere else where more people had survived.


This is anything but a happy story. It's about the strongest book I've read in any series as far as presenting Christian missionaries in a bad light, and since the book is based on actual accounts, journals and documents of that time then it's seems reasonable to suppose that events very similar to this actually did happen.


No one comes out the winner in this book. A few come out survivors, but in this clash of cultures both lose, severely.

[Pamela Bronson · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was hard to put down this book for kids, set in Alaska in 1890. The Yup'ik people are part of the larger group often called Eskimo, which also includes the related Inuit. Eskimo has become a problematic term, but I don't think there is another one which includes both these two closely related groups and excludes others.

The author shows us the amazing technology the Yup'ik had for making clothing and tools to survive and thrive in their harsh environment. We learn about their family and village life, their spiritual beliefs, their play, and how the culture was passed down to the young. As a girl, Minuk has to learn to prepare and sew a huge variety of furs and skins for different purposes and how to process many different kinds of food for people and dogs, as well as gather berries in season. She wants to be a good Yup'ik woman who provides enough food and beautifully sewn clothes for her family.

I was surprised that only once do they build a snow house - actually Ninuk herself builds it. They generally live in wood and sod houses with a skylight of transparent skin or intestine.

Cultures come into conflict when a missionary family arrives. Their technology and especially their magazines and pictures open up a much wider world to Minuk. She is determined to learn to read, even though neither the missionary Mr. Hoff nor her own father think it's appropriate for her as a Yup'ik girl.

As a Christian, I am embarrassed by the rude, insensitive behavior Mr. Hoff sometimes displays. I don't agree with what we see of his doctrine, either, nor of his determination to "civilize" the villagers by introducing things like agriculture when their material culture already helps them make optimal use of their environment.

As a time of trouble comes we wonder - will the Yup'ik culture survive? Which culture will Minuk choose?

I think this book could start some interesting family discussions.

[Little Seal]

My copy randomly had a missing page (a bit peeved that Thriftbooks sold it) but I enjoyed the story. I almost teared up due to the amount of people who died so quickly.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I have had this book traveling around from house to house with me since I received it for Christmas.... mmmmm, over two decades ago.
Glad I finally read it and can pass it on to my teen daughter with ease of conscience. I could go into a hair pulling, teeth gnashing hysteric about the neglect of labeling books (especially YAs) according to their target age appropriately; but I will spare you that and engage instead in the main reasons why I enjoyed this book.
One I enjoyed learning about the culture of a time and people I previously knew little to nothing about.
Two I found it intriguing that an American Girl book would take such a close look at the work of missionaries. An honest look. Christians are fallible. Sometimes we go about things the wrong way and discourage people, rather than encourage them. Show them self righteousness and culture supremacy, rather than the true light and love of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I think an interesting conversation could informally be engaged about the rights and wrongs of both parties. What could have been done to make this situation more successful per se.
So go ahead, hand it to your twelve years plus girl with confidence. You could probably still find the trendy matching doll on eBay if you are so inclined....and remember the bygone days of American Girl before it completely sold out to commercialism and lost its original vision of the company founder.
Yes I did throw in a second soap box there, didn’t I?

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another YA I picked up at a Free Little Library I really liked. I'll admit it: I like YA because it's easy to read and I can practice my speed skills which always need practice! I've read several surprisingly good stories in this genre. This is an enjoyable story that flowed well with good points that could be pertinent to the current times we live in.

[Sadie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Missionary family comes to Eskimo village. First time a white women was seen and their ways are strange to the eskimos. Minuk is fascinated by the white peoples world. She learns to read and write. Interesting but very sad….everyone in her family died except her younger brother.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Clearing out the physical TBR pile! Lots of details about the life of the Yup'ik people of Alaska, set against the foil of Christian missionaries trying to "civilize" them. Minuk toes the line between, eager to learn English, but hesitant about the religion. She highlights the misosgyny baked into both societies, but that's "just how things are done." Not a happy story, but interesting!

[Laura Otermat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m glad that American Girl has written books centered on native girls since Kirsten. I wonder if they’ll ever put one in a more loving light, though. Minuk’s elders and traditions sound cruel and judgemental. I was prepared to dislike the missionaries, but they just came across as clueless.

[Caroline Aurelia]

I realized at the age of 25 that I did not appreciate these books as a kid, so I read this and the others in the series this year. It's a kids' book, about a 12-year-old and aimed toward similarly-aged kids, so it was a quick read and maybe not the most in-depth, but it gave me a feel for what being a 12-year-old Yup'ik girl in 1890 would have been like.

My biggest mistake was reading this during the coronavirus pandemic. This is not a book you want to be reading in a pandemic. It's sad. Very sad. And certain parts of this book hit way too close to home for me.

As for the religious/cultural aspects:

I am Christian. I am proud of my faith. That being said, unfortunately, some people have, throughout various points in history, twisted Christianity for bad purposes. What happened to native peoples was often an example of this. Mr. Hoff was horrible but unfortunately I have run into "Christians" like him. ("Christians" in quotations because that's not a very Christ-like attitude.) This book doesn't sugarcoat history, nor should it. Those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

Minuk is a girl who loves her culture but also criticizes certain aspects of it, who is curious about the Americans and finds some aspects of their culture very interesting but finds some disturbing. To me, this book was balanced because it didn't say one group was All Good and one was All Bad. Humans are more complex than that, and cultures are made up of humans.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the saddest endings to a book I've ever read. I'm sure history is full of close-minded sanctimonious missionaries like the one portrayed here. Some readers saw this as an attack on Christianity. No, it's shining a light on people having their beliefs trampled by other people who believe their way is the only right way. Quote from the book: "I didn't understand why he thought going to heaven was so important if he really didn't know what it was like there. Maybe it wasn't nearly as nice as he thought, and when he got there he'd wish he could go somewhere else."

[Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book as a kid - I thought the historical information was fascinating and Minuk's tale left me in tears. Some others mentioned it may be too harsh for kids, but I didn't feel it was like that at all. It was a glimpse into history, and I was used to reading books that dealt with harsh subjects. I wish I'd gotten my hands on the other Girls of Many Lands books before they stopped selling them.

[Meghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hill does a good job of portraying Yup'ik culture in a way that is neither romanticized or condescending, and exploring the positives and negatives of the influences of the missionaries.

[Autumn Maisy Raquet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one looks good while I want to read it let's see if it's good

[Alli Macfadden · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s been years since I’ve read anything that so blatantly attacks Christianity – it is truly sobering (and revolting) how someone can twist the Truth of Christianity into such lies and make Christianity sound like the bane of the Earth, instead of its salvation. Christians are portrayed as raving maniacs who don’t really know or understand anything they are teaching whereas the Yup'ik’s are portrayed as tolerant, wise people who have all the answers. What a pity this author didn’t put the same amount of research into true Christianity as they did into the Yup'ik religion. While the Yup'ik’s way of life is lovingly portrayed, why isn’t the same portrayal given of Christians or (gasp) white Christians? Oh yeah, really fair diversity here.

Missionaries themselves are portrayed as evil fools and bigots – and I’m pretty sure a lot of missionaries might like to add something to the contrary to this statement?

As far as the Yup'ik’s themselves - that was making me angry too. My jaw was literally dropping at the revolting treatment of women on nearly every level of their life – it was truly horrifying.

And aside from everything I mentioned above – there was hardly any story here at all. Unlike the other Girls of Many Lands books that actually had a plot – this is really just more of a “month in the life” of a 12 year old girl – nothing really happens, it’s just a string of events, and it feels more like a text book on the local culture than a story. It definitely sticks out from the rest of the series.

CONTENT: There’s a lot of traditions practiced by the Yupik that might not be appropriate for sensitive twelve years. There is also quite a few details about the thing women go through every month, pregnancies and marriages that are not appropriate for twelve year old readers.

Ultimately – the point of this book was a “Colors of the Wind” kind of feeling – that we need to take the best of everything and combine our faiths and our skills and just be one unit – but ABOVE ALL, local religions ought to be kowtowed to and respected more then Christianity.




To summarize – this is not just a bad book, I’d go so far as to say it’s a dangerous book.

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ohhhhhhhh boy. Here we go again.

So many problems and so little space.

No wonder Native people are so dang depressed - all the well-known books and media about them reiterate the crap they've gone through. It's like waking a Native kid up in the morning and telling them, "Good morning, Sunshine! It's a brand new day! Remember that white people hate us and our lives are miserable!!! Want some waffles?"

Fiction is supposed to help kids ESCAPE reality, not hurl them into it! Oy. How can you expect people to get out of the hole when all you offer them is a snake???

Was Kirkpatrick Hill even paying attention? Or did she catch a bad case of SJW flu???

Anyway.

Now to the other end of things. Imagine you're a little Christian girl reading this in the 00's. Imagine reading a book that presents a black-and-white worldview: Native religions good, Christianity evil.

What is this? You ask yourself. These crazy missionaries are nothing like the people I know. My pastor is nice. The congregation is nice. Who are these weirdos?

Ohhhh, kiddo. One day, you will learn that people don't care how nice you or other Christians are. Bad apples spoil the whole barrel! As far as folks are concerned, you're as wicked as those missionaries are. You represent all the bad things people have done in the name of God. What? They never met you? TOO BAD. You will always be the bad guy. Just like Muslims will always be seen as terrorists, and Jewish people as greedy bankers. As far as people with power are concerned, there are no grey areas.

But don't say that out loud. People won't believe you, or accuse you of whining.

I have no doubt that Kirkpatrick Hill had good intentions - I just don't know what they are. Books like these just make people on both sides angry. It disrupts communication and healing, and like in the ending, nobody wins.

[Bulk Reviews · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to give this book a higher rating, but by the end it just bugged me.

1. If you thought Leyla's book read like a textbook, get ready for Minuk, because pretty much every other chapter is just an info dump about Yup'ik customs. The plot is very thin, and you can never really tell where the story is supposed to be going. It might as well have been called "A Day in the Life of an Alaskan Girl." The only semblance of story in the book was the presence of the Christian missionaries. Which brings me to my next point.

2. The way the missionaries were portrayed was sometimes okay, and other times just horribly offensive. I want to be clear: I'm not talking about the Hoffs being rude, condescending, arrogant, etc. This was juxtaposed with them also being kind and generous and genuinely interested in some of the Yup'ik ways, so I liked that the author tried to provide a more nuanced view. In the end, the Christians were bent on "civilizing" the Yup'ik, and that was always going to be the sticking point. My issue is that despite all the research the author put into the Yup'ik religion, her "insights" into Christianity and white culture at the time are so half-assed they're laughable. It's clear that she has no idea what's in the Bible, aside from the basics, and so her missionaries have no idea either.

Too many times in this book, Minuk would ask one of the missionaries a simple question, such as, "What does the Bible say about treating animals kindly?" and the Christians would immediately become flustered and refuse to answer, thereby exposing their true ignorance. What the hell? What kind of missionaries ARE these that they are unable to answer basic questions clearly addressed in Scripture? THE BIBLE DOES TALK ABOUT TREATING ANIMALS KINDLY. Also, isn't it their job to study the Bible and answer these questions? You'd think they'd be a bit more enthusiastic about doing so when their purpose in Alaska is to teach.

To get the characters to relate, there's an annoying comparison between the Yup'ik constant female oppression and the fact that Mrs. Hoff "has" to wear a corset. When is children's historical fiction going to understand that corsets back then were basically underwear that existed to provide chest support? Lacing corsets too tightly was a beauty standard that had the potential to be harmful, just like similar beauty standards we have now, and was frowned upon by many even back then. The author instead portrays more "sensible" older women in the book as going corset-free because it's so restrictive etc. This would be the present-day equivalent of going without a bra. Women back then might lace their corsets loosely, but they wouldn't refuse to wear them. Perhaps if one is going to write a book about the meeting of two cultures, you should actually understand both of them, not just one.

The author also seems to have her own ideas about organized religion, and gets a bit preachy whenever she can find the opportunity. She tries to find a middle ground by pointing out that both Yup'ik and Christian beliefs can be ridiculous/helpful, and she reiterates over and over again which customs are good and which make no sense (in particular, you can tell she has issues with the concept of hell). There was one passage in the book that I couldn't believe I was reading:

"It was sometimes hard to believe things you were supposed to believe, so you needed help from other people. That was why people wanted you to believe what they believed, and why they didn't want you to ask questions...And if you wanted to believe, you had to pretend a little, the way we pretended that the animal masks in our plays were real animals...That's how both Mr. Hoff and our old people had faith."

Really? This author is really preaching to little girls that faith is based on a combination of groupthink and pretending? Who does she think she is that she can insert that into a historical children's book, which exists solely to be unbiased and educational? Whether or not the author personally believes that is her business, but this passage is presented as fact, not as Minuk's opinion. (Minuk, the all-knowing twelve year-old. What is it with the line and the pretentious protagonists?)

And then the whole part about how the adults on both sides of the conflict simply don't have the answers to "hard questions." Why don't they? Because the author is too lazy to think up intelligent responses, or because she legitimately believes that none exist? If either of those are true, then she had no business writing this book in the first place.

All this I maybe could have looked over if the relations between the missionaries and the Yup'ik seemed to have some sort of...conclusion. Instead, it all pretty much boils down to nothing.

3. What even was that ending??? I know it's historically accurate that the number of native people living in Alaska was greatly decimated due to disease, but it seemed to have no connection to anything else that happened in the book. Minuk goes on and on about Christian customs and beliefs and how she doesn't know how she feels about them, and then in the end her entire family (save her younger brother) just dies in the course of two pages. Which is described very bluntly and unemotionally because, as I said, this reads like some sort of fictional memoir/textbook. And the missionaries just leave to go somewhere with more people. And Minuk is given the option to go to Maryland but decides to stay with her people and be "a good woman." And that's it. The takeaway from the book is that white people may seem interesting at first, but ultimately they bring disease and will inadvertently kill everyone. The meeting of two religions and cultures doesn't matter, even if that's what the rest of the book was about, because they're all going to die anyway. Again: I know it's historically accurate. The author still could've ended the story elsewhere, or at least provided some sort of commentary on the Hoffs outside of "and then they left and I stayed."

I know this entire review was negative, but a lot of this book was actually quite interesting. And truly, I am impressed that a children's/YA author tackled the concept of missionaries. I just thought it could've been much better, especially if the author hadn't brought her own agenda to the table. In short, Things Fall Apart is superior.


P.S. The Looking Back section of course ends by talking about Alaskan girls today, and the first thing it says about them is that now "they can buy frozen pizza at the store." I just thought that was amusing.

[Anna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A YA book featuring the Yup'ik people of Alaska (though geographically spread through Siberia and Greenland, as well) in the late 1890s. Ashes in the Pathway is a fascinating story of the impact of the arrival of a white missionary from Maryland, with his wife and son, in the pursuit of converting the Yup'ik to Christianity and building a school for boys. The story is told from the perspective of Minuk, a young girl curious about life outside of her village. The author does an excellent job of describing Yup'ik daily life, Including seasonal work, family dynamics, dress, food, games, and traditions. Importantly, she imagines how strange white customs and daily life would have come across to the Yup'ik, from log homes with windows, to laundry, and the absurdity of ironing to remove wrinkles. The book illustrates the resourcefulness of native communities in contrast to white colonialists, including the arrival of Russian traders, and how white culture is perplexing to the native community. And what intrigued them, too, like pockets. Cotton thread vs caribou sinew. "In the Yupik way, whatever you did must be good for the whole village, not just good foe yourself. In this way, we could all survive the hard times and have many more good times." "Everything about white people was loud - their voices, their saws, their cooking..."

[Steph Lovelady · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was surprisingly well written and dark for an American Girl book. (Disclosure: I've never actually read any others-- I picked it up out of curiosity because my 11 year old got it as a Christmas present from a friend-- so perhaps they are not as bad as I imagined.) Very educational, as well. The characters are a bit flat but overall an interesting vision of what happens when two flawed cultures come into contact with each other. The twelve-year-old Native Alaskan protagonist is clear-eyed about what she likes and doesn't like in each, even as her loyalties are understandably strongest with her own people.

[Betty Strohecker · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Girls of Many Lands is a wonderful series and this book continues with the story of Minuk, a Yup'ik Eskimo girl, 12 years old in 1890. Each of these books includes a fictional story of things that might occur in the time portrayed as the culture and traditions are explained and explored. This author has written with real feeling and emotion displayed in the character of Minuk. I highly recommend this book and this series for girls 10 to 14, and to any lover of history and historical fiction. Each book ends with descriptions of present day life, facts, and pictures of girls from their culture. A very helpful glossary is also included.

[LobsterQuadrille · Rating 3 out of 5]

Has a lot of interesting information, and shows both the good and bad in both cultures represented here. As a Christian, I didn't feel that this book was meant to attack Christianity, but to show how good intentions can go awry when combined with unbridled zealotry. Hill definitely didn't show the Yup'ik culture as beyond reproach either, so I thought this aspect was pretty well balanced.

Minuk's story is engaging, but quite thin on plot. And the serious downer ending where the whole village except Minuk and Maklak dies of influenza started too late to make a strong emotional impact. It's a decent read, but not a keeper for me.

[Sara E. Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually so moving. While much of the story moves without Minuk’s influence, her opinions are frequently heard and always come across as important. The last fifth of the book sees Minuk come into the frame as a new woman, both in the context of her community and in her own time in history. I didn’t expect to see such a raw portrayal of the effects of the missionaries, although it lacks a full scope of the peril the Yu’pick face and the direct connection it bears to white settlers.

[Bella Grau · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. I read this because a native woman recommended I read it before my summer job. I liked this book, and it definitely taught me about historical native culture and first contact. But I felt like the buildup to the story was slow and then the last two chapters threw all the conflict in at the end.

[Abigail Werner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting and fun peak into the ways and traditions of a native Alaskan tribe. This book is part of the Girls of Many Lands series and I would say this series is an upper middle grade level. Even though these books stand alone, they still have a lot of history packed into them that helps teach while still being a fun engaging story.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very different from the other American Girl books. Incredibly rich in cultural detail. I loved the way the author drew connections between the two cultures even though, at the surface, everything seemed so different.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the best one. Actually. The material is so real and well researched. The story is heartbreaking and deep. I want to learn more. It was also more mature than I was expecting, but as always the material was presented in an age-appropriate way. Read this.

[Courtney Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved learning about Yup’ik culture and seeing missionaries from their point of view, but the story itself didn’t have a major conflict between Yup’ik versus white people’s ways. It meandered along with each side learning about each other.

[Sam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rated—PG (my personal opinion based on content)

[DaniPhantom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book about the Yup’ik of Alaska during the “civilization” period of the immigrants.

[Jawanza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very educational yet heart-breaking novel about an Alaskan indigenous group in the late 19th century. Written for a young adult audience but any adult should appreciate it.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hey!

I am seeking out any middle-grade or YA books that show indigenous joy. It seems to be lacking. If you know any good ones, please let me know. Thanks!