| Summary: | Bruchac, Joseph. Pushing Up the Sky. Dial, 1999. ISBN 0-8037-2168-4. $17.99. 94 pp. A K-3 Reviewed by Robbie Stephens Pushing Up the Sky is a compilation of seven Native American tales and legends rewritten into plays for young people to perform. The plays are easy to stage, and children will enjoy reading and performing them. The set-up of the plays, including the costuming, characters, and props, are similar to that of narrative mime; the plays thus lend themselves to classroom use and process-oriented performances. Included in this compilation are Gluskabe “ Old Man Winter, Star Sisters, Possum's Tail, Wihio 's Duck Dance, Pushing up the Sky, The Cannibal Monster, and The Strongest One. Each play is prefaced with information about the tribe from which the story originates. Sources and a bibliography are also included.” Reviews of the plays in this work: The Cannibal Monster. 10 pp. A K-3 On the far Northern coast of Alaska live the Tlingit people, who, among other things, carve totem poles. On one totem pole found at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks, the story of the Cannibal Monster is carved. The Raven is the narrator of the story. The Cannibal Monster follows the people around from village to village and eats them for his meals because he is always hungry. Raven knows the people are scared of the monster and don't like being eaten, so he decides to do something about it. Raven tells Brown Bear to shoot the monster in the left heel. Brown Bear tells the people to do the same, but the people are too frightened, and Brown Bear must face the monster alone. When the Cannibal Monster comes at him, Bear shoves the spear into his heel. The monster dies, and the people are very happy and thankful. They decide to burn the monster's body to get rid of it. Raven, knowing this to be a bad idea, tells Brown Bear to tell the people, but none of them listen to Raven or Bear. As the body burns, small things fly out of the fire and smoke and begin biting the people. These little things are what we call mosquitoes. This play has speaking roles, nonspeaking roles, and a drummer. Costuming is simple, with few props and masks.” Gluskabe & Old Man Winter. 12 pp. A K-3 Gluskabe and Old Man Winter is a tale of the Abenaki people who lived in New England in wigwams. Gluskabe is one of their folk heros. Old Man Winter has decided to stay on so long that human beings are getting sick and starving. The people ask for Gluskabe's help, so he decides to travel to Old Man Winter's wigwam. He doesn't think Old Man can stop or harm him, but he is wrong. On his second try, Gluskabe tricks Winter by bringing the Summersticks back. To obtain the Summersticks, however, he first has to trick the Summer people and steal their Summersticks. He maneuvers his way into the group, dances with them awhile, and then swipes a Summerstick. Gluskabe takes the stick to Old Man Winter, and Summer arrives in the human beings' land. Because of Gluskabe, we have Summer each year. The cast for this play is quite large-thirteen or more characters-and includes speaking, nonspeaking, and dancing roles. The set is simple to create using chairs, blankets, and paper, and the costuming, similar to that of narrative mime, is created using sheets, blankets, and paper.” Possum's Tail. 9 pp. A K-3 The Cherokee people have passed this story down through generations. It is about their favorite trickster, Wily the wise Rabbit. The Cherokee were the only “civilized” tribe when settlers first came to America. They followed the Trail of Tears and now live in Oklahoma and North Carolina. Possum's Tail is the story of how Rabbit tricked Possum. Possum is a great braggart who loves his tail and always wants to tell the other animals about how wonderful his tail is. The other animals are holding a meeting, and Possum wants to be the first speaker. Rabbit comes up with an idea to get back at Possum. Rabbit takes Possum to Cricket, who applies a “special” medicine to Possum's tail, promising that it will appear even more magnificent. Cricket wraps the tail in snake skin and tells Possum to leave it on until the meeting the next day. When Possum stands up and begins speaking, he also starts unwrapping the snake skin. When his tail is completely unwrapped, Possum discovers that all his beautiful hair has fallen off and his tail now looks like a rat's tail. Possum is so embarrassed that he rolls onto his back, his feet up. That is why, to this day, he plays dead when any other animal comes near him. This play has a cast of eight characters. If more are needed, other animals can be incorporated into the meeting scene.” Pushing Up the Sky. 8 pp. A K-3 Long ago the sky was so low that people could climb into it and tall people bumped their heads on it! The people didn't like this at all. Many tribes decide to get together and try to change the level of the sky. Seven of the wisest decide they should try to push the sky up. They gather all their people and settle on using the word Yah-Hoo so each person will understand when to push. Everyone pushes, some with their hands and some with long poles. Gradually they push the sky up very high. Today, the sky remains where they pushed it long ago; the stars we see are holes left from the people's poles. This is a story from the Snohomish people who live in the Northwest (mainly Washington). The Snohomish catch fish in the ocean and streams and carve intricate totem poles. The story of pushing the sky up comes from a totem pole made for the city of Everett, Washington by Chief William Shelton. There are twelve speaking roles in this play and as many nonspeaking parts as needed.” Star Sisters. 11 pp. A K-3 Star Sisters comes from the Ojibway people, also known as the Chippewa, who were centered in the Great Lakes region and lived in a manner similar to the Abenakis. Two sisters, named Red Star Sister and White Star Sister, choose which star they would like to marry before falling asleep one night. During the night, the Red Star and White Star come down from the Sky Land and take the sisters back with them to be their brides. When the sisters awake, they are in Sky Land. There is nothing to do in Sky Land but peak down through the stars, and over time, the sisters want to return home. They miss their family. Red Star and White Star agree that the sisters should return, so they lower them down from Sky Land in a basket. The basket becomes stuck in an eagle's nest. Red Star Sister and White Star Sister ask several animals for help before the Wolverine agrees to help. He gets them down safely, but then expects them to clean and cook for him, and live at his home. The sisters trick him and escape back to their village. This play has a cast of more than thirteen characters, the majority being the Star people who look through the holes in the sky. The scenery is simple, and the costuming consists of shirts with fringe, paper, masks, etc. The Strongest One. 8 pp. A K-3 Reviewed by Harold Oaks The Zuni pass this story to their children. Ant wants to know who is the strongest of all. He is warned about how small and weak he is, and the other ants tell him to be careful. He is curious, though, and ventures into the world. He meets snow, sun, wind, house, mouse, cat, stick, fire, water, deer, arrow, and big rock. Each says he/she is not the strongest because the next one either covers it, drives it away, puts it out, or is eroded by the next. In the end, even Big Rock admits the ants must be stronger, because he is being eaten away by them all the time. This is a simple, fun story told with the kind of repetition that attracts young children. They will be delighted by it, and especially by the fact that size is not the only determining factor in strength. This could be staged with adult players, but could also be done using child actors. There are suggested costume pieces for the inanimate characters, and scenery should not be a problem. There are seventeen speaking parts, and more can be either added or doubled, depending on need.” Wihio's Duck Dance. 9 pp. A K-3 The Cheyenne originally lived in the Great Lakes region but later moved to the Great Plains. Wihio is . 94 p. : ill. (some col.) 26 cm. Children's Book and Play Review, September / October 2000
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