Ann Nolan ClarkRezensionen

Story of a young man living in the Andes with his mentor, and how he learns the ways of the Incas. Mildly interesting, with lots of spiritual and mystic elements. Some portions of the story were rather vague, unclear, and so not satisfying to me.

Lovely illustrations, particularly of the horses!

The rhythm of the free verse is peaceful, not at all the sing-songy pace of so many children's books which attempt to be poetry. This is a book any adult would be happy to read aloud. In fact, this is a book any adult could read for their own enjoyment.
The mare is the main character, and we can feel with her a love of freedom. The young, unnamed boy has a minor role, but his sadness, his wise patience, and his final courage and happiness give us more range for connection. It is set in an unnamed canyon in desert country; the young boy tends a garden of corn, squash, and beans. His skin matches the earth (yes, could be just an artifact of the sparse color palette, but also affirming for the reader whose own skin is not a blank white).
The only word I have trouble with is 'master', to describe the relationship of the boy to horse. I think Clark didn't accurately name the true relatedness. It is easy to substitute "friend" or make up a name for the boy when reading.
I think this short book should be better known. The illustrations are as special as you would expect from a renowned artist.

As with many Newbery books, I found this fascinating as an adult. I'm not sure my younger self would have liked it. It does seem that Ann Nolan Clark did her research. She traveled extensively and wrote a number of books to capture cultures not usually covered in children's books of the time.

This book is a collection of Pueblo Indian poems. This shows the village and village life. The books talks about the customs, the houses, the community and the work that's to be done. It would be a good story to use when referencing how an adobe house is built.This book is from the 1940's, and the colors are faded with black lines.

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I really wanted to like this book. I had such high hopes! It won the Newberry Award! What a disappointment! I read it aloud to my class of fifth graders. It was a labor of love..
It had so much potential. The subject matter and the setting alone could have made it interesting. Reading it aloud emphasized the stiff and unnatural writing. The story plodded along. I am glad its over!

Newbery Medal 1953. Cusi, an Incan boy, lives with the aged Chuto high in the Andes in a Hidden valley. They care for the Inca's llamas. He learns his place in the mysterious world of the Inca.

Ten or twenty pages into this book, I thought, "This is not grabbing me. I don't think I'm going to like it." But, since it was a Newbery winner, I kept plugging along. It never got better. This is one of the losers in the Newbery list. 1952 must have been a horrible year for children's literature if this was considered the best.
Cusi is an Incan boy who lives an isolated life on a mountaintop meadow with a herd of llamas and an old man who is his mentor. It is clear to the reader, though not to Cusi, that he is heir to some sort of Incan honor, and almost the entire book is spent with his incessant wondering why things happen to him. Why this? Why that? On and on and on. Towards the end, he makes a trip to the holy city of Cuzco, where not much happens, except that like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, he decides there's no place like home and he will return to the mountain top meadow home and his mentor. In the last couple of pages we also learn rather absurdly, that they are also up there keeping a vast treasure of gold hidden away from everyone in the world.
There. I've saved you the trouble of reading this book. You're welcome. For such a short little book (120 pages) it seemed to go on forever.

I read this in a single day, over long plane rides. This is a quiet story, not super exciting but with small events of coming of age. I enjoyed the writing and the story.
I read it on the way to Peru. The novel helped get me in the mood and gave me some background of an Andean culture. The depiction of the places, especially the Salt Terraces of Maras gave what I learned on my travels a little imagination of what could have been. The novel takes place in "Modern Peru" but still more than 50 years ago, though I suppose it could take place today.

I drank a lot of coca leaf tea, partially for altitude while in Peru, especially before going to the highlands.

~~~Some spoilers ~~~

I was disappointed that Cusi, the lead character, was essentially turned away from what he wanted most, a family. The end to me was bittersweet of him creating happiness for himself but it came because he was turned away by those who he would have wanted to be with. However, while in Peru, I learned that it was customary for families with many children to have late children brought up away from the family, essentially given to the community for military or spiritual purposes and that gave me better understanding of what perhaps may have gone on in this novel.

The poetry deserves 5 stars, the illustrations were 3 stars, in my opinion.

I really love that this story is told through a Native American point of view and voice (I'd like to know the name(s) of the child(ren) that wrote the poems, since that seemed to be what was happening according to the author's note). The descriptions and poetry for each aspect of what goes on in their community was very sweet and provided an excellent view into the world as they see it at times.

As for the illustrations:
In some pictures, simple line art is used to give life to the orderly pueblos and puffy clouds; in others, color and shape give life to the people, plants, and horses spoken about in the poems. While I like these things, I believe the illustrator could've used more color in certain areas for emphasis, even just simple splashes here and there for a highlighting effect or to give the page a more interesting, lively look- especially when the poetry names colors! When the poem mentions the water or field specifically, color that part in and leave the rest of the line are black and white; when the poem focuses in on plants and their uses, color in the flowers or the parts of the plant the poem specifically mentions. As it is right now, the illustrations don't seem to have any rhyme or reason, or symbolism, as to what is colored and given attention and what isn't, which kind of bothers me.

According to my copy, the poems were written by the children themselves, making Clark more like an editor than an author. Apparently the illustrator is native, too. So, I guess this has value for historical accuracy.

Unfortunately, I found it dull. I hope we have better books by & for native children by now.

Secret of the Andes is the story of an Incan boy, Cusi, and his caregiver and mentor, Chuto, who live in the mountains of Peru and herd llamas. They live a very isolated life, and as Cusi grows older he begins to realize there is more to the world than his limited experience. Chuto also hints, quite enigmatically, that Cusi is destined for greater things. They are visited by strange travelers who teach Cusi many things, and eventually Cusi sets out on a solo journey to "seek his heart's desire."

The author of this book taught on a Native American reservation in New Mexico from 1920-1955, and also travelled extensively through Latin America. She wrote many children's books about Native Americans, both North and South. I think the author was trying to do something valuable with this book, expose children to a culture that was on this continent before Europeans arrived, and that still tries to persist. In my present day adult world view, the book seemed to gloss over the surface of the evils of colonization and also romanticize Incan culture. However, I guess in 1952, just admitting that Incan culture existed and was in many ways good is what needed to happen. Who knows. Many of the early Newbery winners take place in foreign countries, which I find fascinating.

Also, the kid chews a lot of coca leaves in this book.

The book itself was quite boring, and I found the language too flowery. At times Chuto was frustratingly aloof with Cusi, refusing to explain things to him or answer his questions because it wasn't time. It reminded me a little bit of how Dumbledore ignores Harry in book 5, except that Chuto is no Dumbledore, and in the end it remains frustrating that Chuto won't explain anything to Cusi.

Apparently this book is most famous for beating out Charlotte's Web and winning the 1953 Newbery.

Not the book for every child, but perhaps best appreciated by a thoughtful, gifted reader who appreciates a quiet story. This story about leaving home to find home incorporates Inca culture and magical realism.

This book could be classified as either realistic fiction or poetry. The story is told by a young child, who describes each aspect of his life in a Pueblo village. He describes the bricks that his house is made out of, the seeds that grow in the ground, and the horses that he loves to ride. This would be a great book to introduce students to the Latino culture that is still alive today in the south. This could also be used in reader's theatre since it is separated by sections, and written in verse.

I liked this "Cinderella" adaptation for the Asian Culture, giving a different story for an internationally renowned fairy-tale. In the Land of Small Dragons tells the story of a father, stepmother, older sister and younger sister. The father wishes to have the girls compete for the number one spot in his heart. The older one is more beautiful than the younger sister and already has a higher place in her fathers hear than her younger sister. The younger sister knows this and cheats in order to beat out her sister. A typical Cinderella story ensues and the older sister ultimately wins the heart of the prince and lives happily ever after. I enjoyed how this book brought the Asian culture to life and helps young readers take a fun look into a different culture.

First published in 1941, and chosen as a Caldecott Honor Book in 1942 - other titles chosen that year include An American ABC, Paddle-to-the-Sea and Nothing At All - this collection of poems presents a group of Tewa children's view of life in the Tesuque Pueblo, outside of Santa Fe, and was created because its author, for many years a teacher of Native American children, had noticed the dearth of children's books told from the indigenous perspective. Beginning with the home, the poems (or poem, if you will, as they are all interconnected) address such issues as the plaza, or public space of the community, the field and irrigation ditches, and the hills and mountains around the pueblo. The book concludes back in the home, as the young narrator(s) describes all of these elements of Pueblo life as making a chain: "A strong chain, / To hold me close / To home, / Where I live / In my Mother's house."

Apparently collected from the Tewa students she taught, these simple poems reflect the teller(s)' direct relationship with the world around them, their affection for their families and community, and their strong ties to home. The book was originally hand-bound, decorated with artwork from the children themselves, and used as a geography in Clark's classroom at the Tesuque Pueblo. It was later published in book form, with illustrations by artist Velino Herrera (credited here as "Herrara," he was also known a Ma-Pe-Wi), who was from the Zia Pueblo. Although not destined to become a particular favorite of mine, I did enjoy In My Mother's House, and think that it could be a interesting title, when used in study-units on the native peoples of the Southwest. The artwork, which alternates between black and white and full color, is gorgeous!

This Newberry award winner gives the reader a glimpse into the surviving Inca culture with some thrilling scenes and a secret at the end. I loved the relationship of Cusi with his llama, Mitsi. Ms. Clark described llama behavior much like I think of them - though I have absolutely no real life experience with them!

Secret of the Andes is the story of Cusi, a young Incan boy who lives in a remote valley in the Andes. He has been raised and taught by Chuto in the traditional Inca manner to herd llamas. Set four hundred years after the Spanish conquest, Cusi is one of the few remaining of royal Inca blood. As Cusi grows, he discovers an Indian family living in the valley over. By watching them, he realizes his desire for a family of his own. Eventually, he leaves Chuto to find a family, only to discover that he already had what he wanted all along. The plotline moved a bit slowly and tended to be repetitious. Consequently, I believe it would be hard for a child to maintain interest throughout the entire book.½

I'm a bit of an Inca-phile...having consumed many books on Incan history, their lives, and their ultimate demise following the Spanish Conquest in the early 16th Century.

And so I bought Secret of the Andes for my daughter...thinking that the Newberry Award winner would be a terrific way for me to share my interests with my avid reader. The book sat on her shelf for about a year. I moved it to my shelf for about another 6 months. And finally picked it up a couple of days ago.

If you have any interest in the Incas, the Conquest Era, or Indigenous peoples, then you'll respect this book's tale of a young Inca boy named Cusi. Cusi's story is one of awareness, discovery and maturation.
Cusi lives in a Hidden Valley in the Peruvian Andes. While tending to his small herd of Llama's (with his most favorite, Misti), he discovers a family living on the other side of a mountain. This sparks Cusi's internal and external adventure to discover his own history, his own past, and his real family.

Along the way, Cusi learns, in broad strokes, Incan origin and religious myths, and the impact on their cultural heritage of Spanish conquest.

The book is deep and spiritual. There's not a lot of action...no fighting Conquistadors, no bloody battles on the pampas or in the mountains, and only a small bit of lost incan gold. Ann Nolan's writing is crisp, the dialogue is short, and should be very readable for ages 12+.

Secret of the Andes is a quiet story of an Inca boy growing up in the mountains of Peru, raising llamas. This boy, Cusi, knows little of his past, and has no home other than the mountains, no family outside his elderly mentor and his llamas. Time passes and Cusi knows he must leave the mountain, leave his llamas, leave his mentor, and go to the city to seek out his heart’s desire. Will he find this heart’s desire? And, if he does, will it be what he thought it would be? A wonderful little story of the seeking and finding of simple happiness in a big world.

This Newbery winner was a drier read than some of my earlier choices, a story more focused on its theme and setting than on thrills. Which means that I wasn't very excited to get back to it, but could still recognize the quality of the story telling. Cusi is a young Incan, living in the upper reaches of the Andes and working on a llama farm. His unassuming present hides a complex past, one that he is on the threshold of discovering. We witness his growth and evolution as he learns the mysteries of his people's past, and see from the inside what it is like to live as the conquered in a conquered land, but never conquered in spirit. It is a quiet story that I appreciated, as much for its revelation of a people and place that are unfamiliar to me, as for the gradual maturation of Cusi and his sweet relationships with those in his life. A well written and informative story, a slice of life in a place that I don't usually visit. I recommend it, keeping in mind that it is a quiet and slow story about growing up.½

This book is what gives Newbery Winners a bad name. It is well written, with beautiful descriptions, has a historical setting not well represented in literature, and is a natural choice for teachers looking to fill the void. The trouble is, it's not a great book. Yes, there's the conflict of a boy wanting to belong, to find a family. But conflict alone doesn't make a compelling story, and if I found it dry, as an adult reader, I suspect most children will find it dry as well. Moreover, the book actually has little educational content, not enough to justify leading an unwilling child to drink herein. My recommendation is to skip this one. If you must use it... read it aloud, bring out many pictures of the geography, learn the history first, and hope for the best.

This is wonderful book to use for children's study of Native American life and poetry. I really enjoyed reading it.

This is a Caldecott (for illustration) Honor Book.The reviewer for Kirkus said of this work, ". . .[T]hrough the eyes and minds of Indian children one shares the experiences of daily life, the things that are of importance in the Tesque pueblo, near Santa Fe, the home ,the food, the activities, the game, the crops. Though the actual form is developed by Miss Clark, the 'feel' is wholly Indian. . .Velino Herrera has illustrated the text in line and soft colors, 'borrowing' from the tribal art forms. . ."