A spirit dog on the run leaps into the sky, scattering stolen cornmeal that becomes the Milky Way. Stroud illustrates this gracefully told tale with her trademark acrylic paintings full of the rich blues of the night and the vivid greens of the fields. Bruchac, Ross, and Stroud have contributed notes on the story's origin and on the choice of the historical setting. From HORN BOOK 1995, (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

PreS-Gr 3‘Bruchac and Ross retell a Cherokee tale with simplicity and respect. Back when there were few stars in the sky, people depended on corn for their food. An elderly couple finds that someone‘or something‘is stealing their cornmeal, and their grandson discovers that the thief is a large spirit dog. The villagers catch the dog in the act, and he runs away. As he leaps into the sky, the cornmeal in his mouth spills out, each grain becoming a star in the Milky Way. The story is told in a clear, straightforward style, with careful attention to the cadence of the language. It is accessible on many levels; it will hold the attention of young listeners, yet remain interesting to older readers. Both Bruchac and Ross provide source notes. The acrylic illustrations depict stylized figures and resemble fabric art. Stroud sets the story in the early 1800s, a time when clothing was made of cloth rather than buckskin, and the colors and textures heighten the applique effect, especially the sprigged calicoes worn by the women. The text and illustrations work well together, and the layout makes the book an especially good choice for story time.‘Donna L. Scanlon, Lancaster County Library, PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Ages 4-8. An elderly couple's grandson discovers that a giant spirit dog is stealing their cornmeal. He seeks the advice of Beloved Woman, who devises a plan to get rid of the thief. With the cooperation of the entire community, the spirit dog is frightened away, and as it leaps into the sky, the grains of cornmeal in its mouth fall, each one becoming a star that helps form the Milky Way. Beautifully illustrated in Cherokee-Creek artist Stroud's signature style, this charming retelling of a traditional Cherokee legend will appeal to listeners young and old. Source notes and a brief history of the forced removal of the Cherokees, known as the Trail of Tears, are included. (Reviewed Sept. 1, 1995)0803717377Karen Hutt

With lyric simplicity this retelling of a Cherokee folktale posits an explanation for the origin of the Milky Way, at the same time stressing the merits of communal labor. When a great spirit dog begins to rob cornmeal belonging to an old couple, the wise Beloved Woman devises a plan for the whole village to frighten the dog away for good. Running away across the sky, the dog leaves a trail of dropped cornmeal, each grain of which becomes a star. Only in the final passage does the reader learn that the Cherokee name for the Milky Way means ``the place where the dog ran.'' Stroud's (Doesn't Fall Off His Horse) distinctive, stylized acrylics harmoniously oppose starkly delineated characters with intricately patterned backgrounds; while she renders finely detailed, flower-strewn fabrics amidst flower-strewn fields, she defines faces only by a mauve circle suggestive of a cheekbone. Framing the folktale as a story recounted by a father to his children, Bruchac (The First Strawberry) and Ross (How Turtle's Back Was Cracked) subtly underscore the role of tradition in shaping narrative. Ages 4-8. (Sept.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

A charming look at the time when the world was new. An old couple in the village notices that someone has been stealing their cornmeal during the night. Their grandson discovers that the thief is a giant spirit dog, which the villagers frighten away with drums and rattles; the dog jets across the sky, spilling cornmeal from its mouth that becomes the Milky Way. A simple, well-phrased text introduces ideas of respect for elders, cooperation, and reverance for the spirit world, without ever veering from the storyline. The acrylic illustrations show the villagers dressed up in clothes that were fashionable among the Cherokee in the early 1800s, and the scenes themselves have delicate patterns, especially apparent in the pictures of the women seen through the stalks of corn. The mouthless faces are deliberately uniform, but it means that young readers have only hair colorblack, gray, or whiteto find the characters featured in the story. Bruchac (Gluskabe and the Four Wishes, p. 222), Ross (with Bruchac, The Girl Who Married the Moon, 1994), and Stroud each provide notes. (Picture book. 4-8)