Bibliography
Erdrich, Louise. CHICKADEE. New
York: Harper, 2012. ISBN: 0060577902.
Plot
Summary
Chickadee and Makoons, eight-year-old twin brothers, have
never been apart until Chickadee is kidnapped in the middle of the night and
taken far from his family. Traveling from the North Woods of Minnesota to the
Great Plains, Chickadee’s family searches for him, while Chickadee fights to be
reunited with his Ojibwe tribe. Like the changes in the land from forest to
plains, Chickadee meets many people and has many new experiences along his
journey back to his family.
Some experiences are unpleasant or a culture shock,
like acting as servant to his kidnappers or being helped by a dour Mother
Anthony and sweet Sister Seraphica. Other experiences were enjoyable and
enlightening like riding in the oxcart train with his Uncle Quill, meeting
the Metis, or seeing the big houses of St. Paul. While Chickadee is gone, Makoons falls ill and their mother and
father, Omayakas and Animikiins, are desperate to find one son and heal the
other. When Chickadee is finally reunited with his family in the Great Plains,
he brings a healing song to Makoons that he learned from his guardian and
namesake, the chickadee.
Critical Analysis
CHICKADEE is
the fourth book in The Birchbark House series by Louise Erdrich. The story
follows an extended family from the Ojibwe tribe in 1866. The setting of time
and place are important to the story and highlights the cultural differences
between the Ojibwe characters and the white settlers. The rich descriptions of
the woods of Minnesota and then the Great Plains and the customs and traditions
of the Ojibwe (and a little about the Metis) give authenticity to the story.
CHICKADEE
gives readers some key messages that are both historical and relevant to
present times. The book is enthralling and the characters are funny and
endearing. Readers are drawn in by the author’s charming writing style and the unpretentious
portrait Erdrich paints of the lifestyle and customs of the Ojibwe people. The pencil
drawings sprinkled throughout the book fascinate the reader, despite their simplistic
nature.
At the end of
the book, an Author’s Note discusses the Ojibwe language and there is a glossary
and useful pronunciation guide for the Ojibwe terms used in CHICKADEE. Though
this is the fourth book in a series, readers can follow the story easily
without needing to read the first three books, though they will probably want
to read all three if they haven’t just to learn more about the characters and
the Ojibwe.
Review
Excerpt(s)
Winner of the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction
From School Library
Journal
“Readers will be more than happy to welcome little Chickadee
into their hearts.” Lisa Crandall
From Booklist
“In the fourth book in Erdrich’s award-winning Birchbark
House series, the focus moves to a new generation. As always, the focus is on
the way-of-life details as much as the adventure. Most affecting are the
descriptions of Makoons’ loneliness without his brother.”
Book
Connections
Read other books in
the Birchbark House Series by Louise Erdrich:
THE BIRCHBARK HOUSE, ISBN 0786814543.
THE GAME OF SILENCE, ISBN 0064410293.
THE PORCUPINE YEAR, ISBN 0064410307.
Read other books by Louise
Erdrich:
THE RANGE ETERNAL, ISBN 0786802200.
GRANDMOTHER’S PIGEON, ISBN 0786801654.
BOOKS AND ISLANDS IN OJIBWE COUNTRY: TRAVELING THROUGH THE LAND OF MY
ANCESTORS, ISBN 006230996X.
Activities for CHICKADEE:
- Conduct a study of the author, reading biographies and listening to interviews. Learn why the author wrote CHICKADEE and her experience as a Native American.
- Read the other books in the Birchbark House Series, then have students conduct research on the Ojibwe people. Students can create projects on how the Ojibwe people lived, their food, their traditions and customs, and religions. Have students present their findings to the group and display their projects in the library or classroom.
- Help students become pen pals or have Skype sessions with students at a Native American school to learn about each other’s customs and traditions.
