The Song That Called Them Home by David A. Robertson (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: The Song That Called Them Home by David A. Robertson Kate Quealy-Gainer, Editor Robertson, David A. The Song That Called Them Home; illus. by Maya McKibbin. Tundra, 2023 [52p] Trade ed. ISBN 9780735266704 $18.99 E-book ed. ISBN 9780735266711 $10.99 Reviewed from digital galleys R 5-8 yrs While James and Lauren's Moshom (grandfather) snoozes under a tree by the lake where they had been fishing, the siblings sneakily take a canoe out on to the waters, hoping to catch more fish. Everything is going well until sudden rocky waves upend their tiny vessel, and before they can swim to safety, James is dragged away by the Memekwesewak. Lauren then follows to rescue, swimming through a long dark tunnel to a different world, and when she surfaces, she sees an island where figures, including James, dance around a blazing fire. Lauren tries to grab James but finds herself entranced by the dance as well. Fortunately, a drumming sound—much like a heartbeat—breaks them from their stupor, and they make their way back to find Moshom beating a drum to call them home. A member of the Norway House Cree Nation, Robertson gives further details about Indigenous stories of the mischievous Memekwesewak, "little people" or a humanoid race that lives among nature, in backmatter. The text cogently conveys the Memekwesewak's initial threat without necessarily villainizing them, and there's a familiar comfort in the story's trajectory as two lost kids are called home by family love and tradition. The straightforward prose is unadorned, leaving the digital art to flesh out the otherworldly realm of the little people, and it does so with great success, as the eerie, ghostlike creatures pull Lauren and James into a world of swirling, amorphous shapes and dramatic swoops of waves and flame. Readers familiar with the Anglo versions of fairies and tricksters will find similarities here, making this an appealing counterpart. Copyright © 2023 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois