Kisimi Taimaippaktut Angirrarijarani / Only in My Hometown - by Angnakuluk Friesen (Hardcover)

About the Book

A celebration of a tight-knit community in the Arctic

Book Synopsis

The northern lights shine, women gather to eat raw caribou meat and everyone could be family in this ode to small-town life in Nunavut, written in English and Inuktitut.

Sisters Angnakuluk Friesen and Ippiksaut Friesen collaborate on this story about what it's like to grow up in an Inuit community in Nunavut. Every line about the hometown in this book will have readers thinking about what makes their own hometowns unique. With strong social studies curriculum connections, Kisimi Taimaippaktut Angirrarijarani / Only in My Hometown introduces young readers to life in the Canadian North, as well as the Inuit language and culture.

Angnakuluk's simple text, translated into Inuktitut and written out in syllabics and transliterated roman characters, is complemented by Ippiksaut's warm paintings of their shared hometown.

Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.K.4
Ask and answer questions about unknown words in a text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.1.1
Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1
Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.4
Describe how words and phrases (e.g., regular beats, alliteration, rhymes, repeated lines) supply rhythm and meaning in a story, poem, or song.

Review Quotes

"... the book pushes at the boundaries of literary conventions in both form and content, providing a much-needed mirror for readers within the culture, and an astonishing window for those outside. A lovely testament to community and cultural diversity." -- Booklist

"Bright acrylic-and-watercolor illustrations complement the richness of the lyrical text." -- International Literacy Association

"It is a book to share with children who need to see themselves in the book or learn about others. In other words, it's a book for all." -- CanLit for Little Canadians Blog

"The exquisite paintings are full of colour and detail, and they beautifully depict the environment, time of day, and season of each setting. ... Ippiksaut Friesen captures the essence and beauty of growing up in a small town in the North." -- CM: Canadian Review of Materials

"The sister collaborators work in harmony. ... Heartwarming and illuminating." -- Kirkus, STARRED REVIEW