Buffalo Song

by Joseph Bruchac, Bill Farnsworth (Illustrator)

Overview

The story of Salish Indian Walking Coyote and his efforts to save the vanishing buffalo herds from extinction in the United States during the 1870s and 1880s.

Hetcha hey Hetcha ho Hetcha hey yeh ho Walking Coyote gently lifted the frightened buffalo calf and sang softly. Lone survivor of a herd slaughtered by white hunters, the calf was one of several buffalo orphans Walking Coyote adopted and later raised on the Flathead Indian Reservaton in Montana.

For thousands of years massive herds of buffalo roamed across much of North America, but by the 1870s fewer than fifteen hundred animals remained. Hunted to the brink of extinction, the buffalo were in danger of vanishing. With reverent care, Walking Coyote and his family endeavored to bring back the buffalo herds, one magnificent creature at a time.

Here is the inspiring story of the first efforts to save the buffalo, an animal sacred to Native Americans and a powerful symbol of the American West. From the foresight and dedication of a few individuals such as Walking Coyote came the eventual survival of these majestic animals, one of the great success stories of endangered species rescue in United States history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781600609909
Publisher:	Lee & Low Books
Publication date:	03/15/2014
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	8.75(w) x 10.50(h) x 0.50(d)
Lexile:	640L (what's this?)
Age Range:	6 - 9 Years

About the Author

Joseph Bruchac, a citizen of the Nulhegan Band of the Coosuk Abenaki Nation, is the author of more than 100 books for children and teens, including multiple picture books published by Lee & Low Books, and the young adult Killer of Enemies trilogy, which received a starred review from Kirkus Reviews. A Rockefeller Fellow and an NEA Poetry Writing Fellow, Bruchac has received numerous recognitions and awards over his long-standing career. In addition to writing, Bruchac is an editor at Greenfield Review Press, a literary publishing house he co-founded with his wife. He lives in Greenfield Center, New York. To find out more about him, visit josephbruchac.com.

Bill Farnsworth is the illustrator of more than fifty children's books. His work has received numerous awards and honors, including Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People, American Bookseller Pick of the Lists, and selection for the Society of Illustrators Original Art Show. Farnsworth's warmly-lit oil paintings gracefully illuminate the Maine landscape and Sockalexis's days on the baseball diamond. Farnsworth lives with his family in Venice, Florida. Visit him online at billfarnsworth.com.

Editorial Reviews

"The gentle narrative eloquently conveys the beauty and importance of this animal; though there is a bit of adventure during the journey, the heart of the tale is the respect and commitment shown toward the buffalo by Walking Coyote and others. The orphaned calf became the herd's leader, and her courageous actions represent the spirit of the species. Richly atmospheric oil paintings capture the magnificence of the creatures, the kindness of the people, and the beauty of the surrounding landscapes." — School Library Journal

"Drenched in nature's colors, the images of the Salish, the landscape and the animals illuminate this historical account as Farnsworth's magnificent panoramic scenes capture the grassy pastures and valley that came to be home to the rescued bison. A first buy for public and school libraries." — Kirkus Reviews

"Superbly brought to life with soft full-color illustrations, Buffalo Song carries a timeless message of conservation and respect." — Midwest Book Review

Charlotte Awards Recommended - New York State Reading Association
Horace Mann Upstanders Children's Literature Award Honor - Antioch University
Reading Circle Recommended Reading List - Missouri State Teachers Association
William Allen White Children's Book Award - Emporia State University

From the Publisher

Gr 1-4- After quoting a traditional Salish story about the origins of buffalo on Earth, Bruchac describes how a Nez Perce boy and his father found an orphaned calf in 1873 in Montana and carried it to a friend who had a small herd. The story shifts, somewhat abruptly, to this man, a historical figure named Walking Coyote, who helped to save the species from extinction. With his wife and son, he led nine calves over the mountains to the Salish people. As the herd grew over the years, he finally found a landowner who agreed to keep it safe, making it possible for its descendants to thrive today. The gentle narrative eloquently conveys the beauty and importance of this animal; though there is a bit of adventure during the journey, the heart of the tale is the respect and commitment shown toward the buffalo by Walking Coyote and others. The orphaned calf became the herd's leader, and her courageous actions represent the spirit of the species. Richly atmospheric oil paintings capture the magnificence of the creatures, the kindness of the people, and the beauty of the surrounding landscapes. An afterword updates the fate of the buffalo, providing details of how this herd led to the successful growth in the later 1900s.-Steven Engelfried, Multnomah County Library, OR

School Library Journal

The fictional story of one orphaned buffalo calf, Little Thunder Hoof, becomes the vehicle for Bruchac's tale of one extraordinary family and its commitment to saving the Buffalo People. In the 1870s, the American buffalo (bison) was near extinction when Walking Coyote, his wife, Mary, and son, Blanket Hawk, established a corral for animals left behind from the white men's slaughter, where he cared for them until he could take them on the dangerous journey over the mountain to the Salish who welcomed the buffalo. Each year Walking Coyote took more bison over the mountain until the herd numbered in the hundreds and two ranchers, Michel Pablo and Charles Allard, joined the effort to return the buffalo to the prairie. Drenched in nature's colors, the images of the Salish, the landscape and the animals illuminate this historical account as Farnsworth's magnificent panoramic scenes capture the grassy pastures and valley that came to be home to the rescued bison. A first buy for public and school libraries. (afterword) (Picture book. 6-10)

Kirkus Reviews