A mysterious Indian woman takes William and Mabel on a strange boat ride and answers their questions about the wind, the rain, and the changing nature of the sky - (Baker & Taylor)

Publishers Weekly Reviews

Will is trying to fish, but his younger sister Mabel keeps scaring away the fish with her noisy questions, like, ``What makes it rain?'' and, ``Where does the wind come from?'' Out from the bushes comes Lillian Two Blossom, an old Indian woman who offers to take them for a boat ride to find the answers. Off they go, with Will rowing, until the boat is lifted out of the water and into the heavens, where Lillian is transformed into a young version of herself. She points out the caribou that carries the sun across the sky from east to west, the wolves whose howls make the voice of the wind and the fish whose thrashing in the heavens make the rain. Based in part on an incident in Polacco's family history, this lovely mix of myth and realism gives a lazy summer day a shot of fantasy. The pages are awash in colorful, vibrant images; this encounter with Lillian is well worth repeat readings. Ages 4-7. (Apr.) Copyright 1989 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal Reviews

PreS-Gr 2-- A quiet fishing trip turns into an adventure for William and Mabel when Lillian Two Blossom, ``an old Indian lady who lived in the woods,'' suggests that the siblings row her out to the center of Kalaska Pond. Before they realize what is happening, the boat lifts up out of the water, and Lillian, suddenly young again, is guiding them through the heavens, answering questions that Mabel had idly posed earlier about the rain, the winds, the sun, the moon, and the night. Bright paintings surrounded with white space depict a quiet day in the country, with blue lake, green fields, and children dressed in the straw hats, suspenders, and pinafore of an earlier time. Once the boat takes off for the sky, the paintings begin to fill the pages completely, showing how a school of bright fish brings the rain, scampering raccoons bring the night, and the polar bear spirit carries the moon across the heavens. Then the boat ride is over, and Lillian and the children return to the pond. Nothing is changed, and yet everything feels different. Polacco uses line, color, and space as in her earlier picture books. The story has the folkloric feeling of Rechenka's Eggs (Philomel, 1988) in an American Indian setting, although there is no documentation of authenticity of the legends used given in the book (nor in the Standard Dictionary of Folklore). Even as fiction modeled on folklore, the brief story has a magical feeling, with a sudden surprise that will capture listeners, and pictures large and colorful enough to share with a group. --Susan L. Rogers, Chestnut Hill Academy, Pa. Copyright 1989 Cahners Business Information.