Brave Wolf and the Thunderbird: (A Tale from the Crow)

by Joe Medicine Crow, Linda R. Martin (Illustrator)

Overview

Every spring a great big monster climbs out of the lake and up the cliff to steal the mother Thunderbird's young chicks. This year she is determined to save them, but she needs human help. So she snatches up Brave Wolf while he is out hunting and carries him to her nest, where he comes up with a plan . . .

Brave Wolf and the Thunderbird is based on a story recounted by Joe Medicine Crow in All Roads Are Good: Native Voices on Life and Culture (Smithsonian Institution Press and NMAI). Grandson of a scout who rode with Custer, Mr. Medicine Crow (1913-2016) was a highly respected elder, storyteller, and historian of the Crow people. The first member of his tribe to graduate from college, he earned an M.A. in anthropology. In addition to his calling as a teacher and "keeper of memories," he was a decorated World War II combat veteran and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2009.  

 

About the Tales of the People series  

Created with the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian (NMAI), Tales of the People is a series of children's books celebrating Native American culture with illustrations and stories by Indian artists and writers. In addition to the tales themselves, each book also offers four pages filled with information and photographs exploring various aspects of Native culture, including a glossary of words in different Indian languages.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780789201607
Publisher:	Abbeville Publishing Group
Publication date:	08/01/1998
Series:	Tales of the People , #2
Pages:	30
Product dimensions:	9.80(w) x 9.60(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	AD770L (what's this?)
Age Range:	7 - 8 Years

About the Author

Brave Wolf and the Thunderbird is based on a story recounted by Joe Medicine Crow in All Roads Are Good: Native Voices on Life and Culture (Smithsonian Institution Press and NMAI). Grandson of a scout who rode with Custer, Mr. Medicine Crow was a highly respected elder, storyteller, and historian of the Crow people. The first member of his tribe to graduate from college, he earned an M.A. in anthropology. Mr. Medicine Crow was a World War II combat veteran, teacher, writer, and lecturer, who lived most of his life in his native Montana.

Linda R. Martin (Diné ), who lives in Tempe, Arizona, is a communications manager at Atlatl Inc., a national service organization for Native American arts. She holds a BFA in graphic design from Arizona State University, where she was active in organizations dedicated to the recruitment, retention, and academic success of Native Americans.

Read an Excerpt

One day, a man named Brave Wolf went hunting in the hills. He did not return for several weeks, and when he came back to camp, he told his family and friends what had happened to him while he was gone.


While he was hunting, a huge Thunderbird flew over and snatched him up in her giant claws. She took him to a high cliff, overlooking a lake up in the mountains.

Editorial Reviews

"Innovative...this contemporary version of a classic American Indian tale will delight readers both young and old." -- Dallas Morning News

From the Publisher

Each depiction is edged with a traditional Crow beadwork pattern, lending visual and cultural unity to Brave Wolf's exciting and instructive adventure.
—Native Peoples

Alan Tack