ᑭᓯᒥ ᑕᐃᒪᐃᑉᐸᒃᑐᑦ ᐊᖏᕐᕋᕆᔭᕋᓂ / Kisimi Taimaippaktut Angirrarijarani / Only in My Hometown

by Angnakuluk Friesen, Ippiksaut Friesen (Illustrator), Jean Kusugak (Translator)

The northern lights shine, women gather to eat raw caribou meat and everyone could be family in this ode to small-town life in Nunavut, written in English and Inuktitut.

Sisters Angnakuluk Friesen and Ippiksaut Friesen collaborate on this story about what it’s like to grow up in an Inuit community in Nunavut. Every line about the hometown in this book will have readers thinking about what makes their own hometowns unique. With strong social studies curriculum connections, Only in My Hometown introduces young readers to life in the Canadian North, as well as the Inuit language and culture.

Angnakuluk’s simple text, translated into Inuktitut and written out in syllabics and transliterated roman characters, is complemented by Ippiksaut’s warm paintings of their shared hometown.

Genres: Picture Books, Cultural, Canada, Childrens, Indigenous, Language, Fiction

24 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2017

Reviews

[Jon Nakapalau · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sisters Angnakuluk Friesen and Ippiksaut Friesen give us a glimpse into growing up in an Inuit community in Nunavut. I truly believe that one way we can work towards a more peaceful world is to learn more about other cultures - this book helps young children connect with people they may never meet - but who have the same love of family they have.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sisters Angnakuluk and Ippiksaut Friesen team up in this bilingual picture-book exploration of the warmth of family and friends and the beauty of the natural world in their far-northern Inuit community. Each two-page spread contains some description of an aspect of life in their hometown on the left-hand page, accompanied by a full-page illustration on the right. The text is in both Inuktitut and English, with the former being represented in both Inuktitut syllabics** and in Romanized transliteration. The result is that although only two languages are represented, there are actually three versions of the text on the page.

I enjoyed Only in My Hometown, both for the glimpse it offered of a culture and geography so radically different from my own, and for the beautiful artwork it contained. I think my favorite scene, visually speaking, was the one in which the two sisters are depicted looking up at the Northern Lights - it was just beautiful! It was fascinating to see the Inuktitut text in both its own writing system, and Romanized, and I appreciated the fact that the story, although originally written in English, was translated into its creators' native language as well. ᑭᓯᒥ ᑕᐃᒪᐃᑉᐸᒃᑐᑦ ᐊᖏᕐᕋᕆᔭᕋᓂ is only the second book I have seen, containing Inuktitut syllabics (the first being Ningeokuluk Teevee's Alego , also published by Groundwood Books), but I certainly hope it becomes more common. Although I wouldn't describe this as an educational book, in the sense of containing information, I do think it will open a window into another culture for young non-Inuit children, as well as reflecting their own culture to Inuit ones. Recommended to anyone looking for English-Inuktitut texts, and for picture-books with an Inuit cultural setting.

**It's interesting to note that although it is commonly described as a syllabic system, written Inuktitut is actually an abugida, just like Amharic (which I have studied).

[The Book Girl · Rating 5 out of 5]

The sisters Arnakuluk Vuriisan and Ippiksaut Friesen give young readers a glimpse of what it is like living and growing up in an Inuit community in Nunavut. I really loved how diverse and beautiful book is. I enjoyed reading about their Arctic hometown.

The description of long dark days and nights in the arctic winter seemed almost warm and beautiful in this picture book. I loved reading about the girls family and how they gathered together. I enjoyed seeing the northern lights across the pages. The pictures were so beautifully illustrated. The women are great storytellers.

The book is fantastic because it is bilingual. It is written in English as well as in Inuktitut syllabics. The Inuktitut is also romanized beneath so a nonreader can also get a feel for the rhythm of the language. Which I thought was really nice.

This is an excellent picture book introduction to the life of an Inuit community. It is so diverse and perfect for children. I am glad to share an own voices story.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sisters Arnakuluk Vuriisan and Angnakuluk Friesen make *home* the operative word for an Arctic hometown.

The long dark days and nights of an Arctic winter seem ever so warm with family and friends gathered together. The northern lights provide not just illumination but also stunning entertainment.

This book is bilingual, written in Inuktutit syllabics and English. The Inuktitut is also romanized beneath so a non-Inuktuit reader can also get a feel for the rhythm of the language.

This is an excellent picture book introduction to the life of an Inuit community.

[Sasha Boersma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a complicated book. Ideal for early readers. Lovely images that can be used to prompt discussions about what’s different in the reader’s hometown to a town in Nunavut.

[Donna Mork · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting tale of living up north where the northern lights dance and snow is prevalent.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Written in English and Inuktitut, this picture book provides readers a glimpse into what life is like in the Canadian North. Each page celebrates something that is unique to life in the character's hometown. Cultural practices such as eating raw meat or keeping in mind lessons found in oral traditions passed down from generation to generation, the Northern lights, and the generosity of friends and neighbors all attest to this loving community in which "Everyone could be family / only in my hometown" (unpaged). Impressive watercolor and acrylic illustrations make readers feel as though they are right inside the book's pages, having an adventure or two of their own. After all, isn't it those small moments shared together with loved ones that matter most? It's hard to resist comparing this book with its tribute to the author's and illustrator's home of origin to George Ella Lyon's "Where I'm From" poem that has provided so much inspiration for sifting through one's memory banks to capture those precious times. I also was reminded of Nikki Giovanni's "Knoxville, Tennessee." Filled with joy, this book could serve as a similar pattern or inspiration for budding writers who might want to think about what matters most in their lives or find the words to capture the essence of home for them.

[Kris Dersch · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a wonderful book! Not a lot to it, just a wonderful day in the life of a culture many people have never seen. I love the way the language is presented, in the Inuit language, then spelled phonetically, then in English. Really well done.

[Madison · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book Kisimi Taimaippaktut Angirrarijarani / Only in My Hometown is written in English and Inuktitut. The Inuktitut is on the pages twice. Once in the syllabic form and once in the alphabetic translation of the syllabic form. On each page the three languages are presented in the same font, size, and color. The syllabic form is first, then the alphabetic translation, and on the bottom is the English translation. This centers the book around the Inuktitut language rather than English. Especially because the book has both the syllabic and alphabetic Inuktitut translation. This means that the book contains more Inuktitut than it does English and shows that the author values the Inuktitut language. The book contains the ideas of a young girl and the things that are unique to her hometown and the Inuktitut culture. The book does work toward meeting the anti-bias criteria but I am hesitant to say it meets the criteria completely because the author chose to showcase stereotypes about Indigenous people such as they live in untidy spaces. However, the book is written and illustrated by Inuktitut people so it is an own voices book which highlights the experience of Inuktitut people. The illustrations are very colorful and appear to be an oil pastel. They highlight what the author is writing about and showcase the Inuktitut lifestyle. The book does not contain any backmatter which is a bit upsetting because additional resources or information about the Inuktitut lifestyle would have been insightful. The book does not contain any information about who translated the book and if they are credible. However, because it is an own voices book I believe it to be credibly translated.

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the multilingual poem concept most of the time but this didn’t quite work for me. Short poems with little context didn’t capture that ebb and flow of similarities and differences I was hoping for and a few of the illustrations had an uncanny valley vibe. Hopefully somewhere in the future is a similar book with a little more depth.

[Mrs. Ruigrok · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in english and Inuktitut this book is a great example of life in an Inuit hometown. A story about the aunties, the traditions and a great way to see what a village would be like, whether out dealing with heavy snow or eating raw meat.

[DeNae · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book had great potential to introduce young readers to another culture and way of life, but this book was short on details.

[Ilse O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

Childhood vignettes from two sisters who grew up in Nunavut. One of the best features of the book is the three languages: the Inuktitut alphabet, it's phonetic translation, and English.

[Lillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Different - great illustrations

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a lovely homage to Alaska Native village life.