The Song of Hiawatha

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Overview

"At the door on summer evenings
Sat the little Hiawatha;
Heard the whispering of the pine-trees,
Sounds of music, words of wonder . . ."
The infectious rhythm of The Song of Hiawatha has captured the ears of millions. Once drawn in, they've stayed to hear about the young brave with the magic moccasins, who talks with animals and uses his supernatural gifts to bring peace and enlightenment to his people.
America's most popular nineteenth-century poet, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow devoted himself to providing his country with a national mythology, poetic tradition, and epic forms. Known and loved by generations of schoolchildren for its evocative storytelling, his 1855 classic is regarded as a masterpiece of American literature, combining romance and idealism in an idyllic natural setting.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780486447957
Publisher:	Dover Publications
Publication date:	03/24/2006
Series:	Dover Thrift Editions: Poetry
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	510,172
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), a professor of French and Spanish at Harvard University, was one of the first American academics to have a truly global interest in literature. He became convinced that America was in need of its own mythology, poeti

Margaret Early was born in New South Wales, Australia. She studied in Australia and London, and is considered both a fine artist and an illustrator of note. Her work is displayed in one-woman shows in galleries across three continents. Among her previously

Table of Contents

Introduction
I. The Peace-Pipe
II. The Four Winds
III. Hiawatha's Childhood
IV. Hiawatha and Mudjekeewis
V. Hiawatha's Fasting
VI. Hiawath's Friends
VII. Hiawatha's Sailing
VIII. Hiawatha's Fishing
IX. Hiawatha and the Pearl-Feather
X. Hiawatha's Wooing
XI. Hiawatha's Wedding-Feast
XII. The Son of the Evening-Star
XIII. Blessing the Corn-Fields
XIV. Picture-Writing
XV. Hiawatha's Lamentation
XVI. Pau-Puk-Keewis
XVII. The Hunting of Pau-Puk-Keewis
XVIII. The Death of Kwasind
XIX. The Ghosts
XX. The Famine
XXI. The White Man's Foot
XXII. Hiawatha's Departure

Editorial Reviews

This is an abridged version with "linking text" to carry the story. The elegance of the book will not redeem the problems with the poem itself, or with the authenticity of the images". (Poetry. 6-12)

Kirkus Reviews

The creator of this pop-up version of the classic epic poem should be commended for a well-intentioned effort, but the result is only somewhat palatableneither the paper engineering nor the realistic watercolor pictures can stand up to Longfellow's shimmering language. While a picture book version could have made the poem more accessible, this has only six spreads because of the production limitations. The pop-ups do not illuminate the poem for young readers, and older children may shy away from the format. All ages. (April)

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Gr 5 Up Six excerpts from Longfellow's Song of Hiawatha are illustrated with double-page pop-up illustrations. The pale watercolors do little more than create a static three-dimensional scene, pleasant enough but offering little additional illumination to the text. The pallid illustrations do not reflect the mood of the texta misty birch forest and a blue heron, for example, accompany ``Dark behind it rose the forest/ Rose the black and gloomy pine-trees.'' Longfellow's epic deserves more serious attention than this toy book. Kathleen Whalin, Public Library of Columbus and Franklin County, Reynoldsburg, Ohio

School Library Journal