Ghost Hawk
Susan Cooper
Language: English
Pages: 352
ISBN: 1442481420
Format: PDF / Kindle (mobi) / ePub
A friendship between a young Native American and a colonial New England settler endangers them both in this “simply unforgettable” (Booklist, starred review) adventure story from Newbery Medalist Susan Cooper.
On the winter day Little Hawk is sent into the woods alone, he can take only a bow and arrows, his handcrafted tomahawk, and the amazing metal knife his father traded for with the new white settlers. If Little Hawk survives three moons by himself, he will be a man.
John Wakely is only ten when his father dies, but he has already experienced the warmth and friendship of the nearby tribes. Yet his fellow colonists aren’t as accepting of the native people. When he is apprenticed to a barrel-maker, John sees how quickly the relationships between settlers and natives are deteriorating. His friendship with Little Hawk will put both boys in grave danger.
The intertwining stories of Little Hawk and John Wakely are a fascinating tale of friendship and an eye-opening look at the history of our nation. Newbery Medalist Susan Cooper also includes a timeline and an author’s note that discusses the historical context of this important and moving novel.
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to belong. The Great Spirit in his wisdom holds me, like the bird I was named for, to wheel over all, to observe all, and to tell this story. To tell the story of a boy and an axe, a tree and an island. And to wait until Little Hawk is freed to fly. THREE Four young men carried John’s father on a litter made of linen cloth strung between two poles. It was a bumpy journey but he did not wake. They were following one of the old paths of my people, leading to what was once the village of
and put my quiver of arrows across my shoulder and my tomahawk in my belt. I reached for my sharp stone knife in its deerskin casing, but he gripped my wrist to stop me. He said, “I have a better knife for you to take. It cost me many skins, so you must take care of it. And take care of your fingers, too. It is very sharp.” And he gave me something I’d seen only twice before in my life, in the hands of those who had traveled north to trade with the white men from across the sea. It was a knife
for the great wheels of the carts that had to carry them, nor the great beasts that pulled the carts. The skills of the cooper belonged to a different life, in which the bark of a tree was often thrown away, and all its wood chopped into these prized flat pieces called staves. John would learn someday to make staves, but he had a long way to go. It took him weeks even to learn the names of Master Medlycott’s tools, all of which had come over with him from England. To begin, John was put at the
opinion?” He was smiling, but it was a serious question. “I think everything you said was right,” said John. He added recklessly, even though Thomas could hear him, “Especially about the Indians.” The bright eyes considered him with interest for a moment. “Good boy,” said Roger Williams. “I hope we meet again.” He rode away toward Plymouth, and Thomas and John set off on the rough track to the Medlycott house. Thomas said, “What was it he said about Indians?” “Didn’t you hear him?” said
language. If it’s not in your library, you can find it at www.MakepeaceProductions.com and the language project itself at www.wlrp.org. And if you were intrigued by my mention of the last “wild” Indian in North America, you can read about him in Ishi in Two Worlds by Theodora Kroeber (University of California Press, 1961). Ms. Kroeber was married to Ishi’s anthropologist friend Professor Alfred Kroeber, and we owe them both a huge extra debt; they were the parents of Ursula Le Guin. SUSAN