The Girl Who Lived with the Bears

Even though it was written by a non-native person, this is a fair interpretation of a traditional legend shared by several tribes of the Northwest Coast. Two caveats: the traditional version is much funnier in that the girl pretends to poop out copper in her excrement, instead of spitting it out as this author tells. Too bad, because children would really get a kick out of the pooping part. Second, the traditional figure of Mouse Woman is a highly respectable teacher who comes to chastise the main character into doing what is right. This author makes Mouse Woman sound like a silly greedy being who only helps in order to get something for herself. Despite these two drawbacks, I enjoy reading this book to my children. I sometimes change the spitting part into pooping (the beautiful pictures allow this), and I always make Mouse Woman sound better than the words imply. I highly recommend this book .