Kumak's Fish: A Tale of the Far North

by Michael Bania

On a beautiful Arctic morning, Kumak looks out the window of his house at the sun rising over the frozen river. "Ahhh, spring," says Kumak to his family. "The days are long, the nights are short, and the ice is still hard. Good day for fish." Eager to give Uncle Aglu's amazing hooking stick a try, Kumak packs up his family and heads out to go ice fishing. "Good day for fish!" they all agree. Hapless Kumac is the only one in his family without fish until the tug at the other end of his line incites a mighty battle. A clever ending reveals that the whale-sized fish that Kumak imagined was actually a line of small fish in tug o' war position. Kumak reigns, and there's plenty for everybody. Authentic details throughout the playful art and text, as well as endnotes on Inupiat fishing, provide young readers with a fascinating window into another culture in this follow up to KUMAK'S HOUSE a 2003 Children's Book Council Notable Trade Book in Social Studies.  

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Cultural, Animals, Indigenous, Geography, Native American

32 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2004

Reviews

[Sylvester (Taking a break in 2023) · Rating 5 out of 5]

3* art
5* story

A version of the old "a farmer grows a turnip" folk tale, but in a fresh setting and culture.Squirt and I thought it was a lot of fun.

[Kris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a a fun tall tale, with the perfect balance of realistic and far-fetched. Kumak’s lucky “hooking stick” is not serving him very well on his fishing trip with his family, until it is. The surprise ending got big laughs.

[Shawn Deal · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute wonderful story about a good day to go fish. Kumak with his father's hooking stick, and his family go off ice fishing.

[Sondra Santos · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. I was searching for a book about ice fishing and this one is beautifully illustrated and makes for a wonderful read aloud.

Taking place in Alaska, Kumak and his family head to the frozen lake to go fishing. They bundle up in their mukluks, huddle onto the dog sled and gather their fish. Each family member (besides the baby) take turns catching fish but Kumak doesn't have much luck.

He sits, patiently and with the help of his Uncle Aglu's amazing hooking stick (and the rest of the villagers) he is able to capture the biggest fish from the water.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to introduce their child to another culture or a humorous book that can be shared with a captive audience.

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kumak, an Inupiat man living with his family in a small village in the "far north" of Alaska, returns in this follow-up to his initial picture book adventure, chronicled in Kumak's House . As the first days of spring arrive, Kumak realizes that it is a perfect time for fishing, and he and his family set out for the nearby lake, where they make holes in the ice, and patiently wait for the fish to bite. Our hero, using his Uncle Aglu's famed hooking stick, waits longest of all, until finally there is a powerful pull on the stick. Unable to hold on by himself, Kumak is aided by his family, and eventually the entire village, all pulling together to get the fish out of the water. But what is the fish doing...?

The second of three picture books featuring Kumak and his village—the first being the aforementioned Kumak's House , the third being Kumak's River —from author/illustrator Michael Bania, who lived for two decades in the Arctic, Kumak's Fish: A Tale of the Far North is a title I found (along with its companions) in the folklore section of my local public library. That being said, although the first book is folklore adjacent (it seems to be an Arctic retelling of the Yiddish folktale, It Could Always Be Worse ), this book is more of an original tall tale, one in which humans and fish play a game of tug-of-war. The story is amusing, and the accompanying artwork expressive, ably capturing the humor of the scenes being depicted. Recommended to picture book readers who enjoy folktale-style stories, as well as to anyone seeking tales with an Alaskan, arctic, and/or Inupiat cultural background.

[Diana · Rating 3 out of 5]

A "giant turnip" tale, this one was unique enough to stand alone. I'll admit that I found myself wanting to skim at parts, though. It was a little too long and I just wanted to get to the resolution! Still, the ending was brilliant (if a little peculiar and almost creepy...fish that smart and we're eating them???) and really drove home the concept of everyone working together and sharing what they find.

[Library Lady Terri · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tale told use the Inupiat tribe. This is an original tale made up by the author based on the Inupiat values of cooperation, sharing, and humor not based on a tale from the tribe. I enjoyed the introduction into the traditions of the Inupiat tribe of multiple generations of the family living together and the tools used to go ice fishing. This book would pair nice with other books about fishing, cooperating, and stories that build on each other from spread to spread.

[Jace · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a good book for reading when you are talking about folk tales with little kids. The illustrations in this book are really well done and make the book a lot more interesting. I have never read this book until now and it was an okay book.

[Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a random library find that ended up being so great! The illustrations are so fun, and it tells a great story about teamwork as Kumak tries to reel in what he thinks is a huge fish and needs the help of all of his family and neighbors.

[Opetoritse · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Iñupiat remix of "The Gigantic Turnip" brings a refreshing new setting and twist ending to the classic progressive story. Bania's culturally informer retelling and beautiful illustrations give readers a whimsical glimpse of life in the Far North.

[Charrisa T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 3rd graders enjoyed it!

[Hany · Rating 5 out of 5]

hany

[Willow · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and funny! Made me laugh at the end. 🐟

[Miranda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book! I do think that there may be too much text for younger readers but would be a fun book to read aloud to students. I love the story line and I love the message that it holds.

[Natalie Taggart]

Hapless Kumak wants to give Uncle Aglu their first caught fish, so the family heads out to go ice fishing and faces battles along the way.

[MCMalone · Rating 4 out of 5]

very cute

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful tall tale fish story that will be a fun read out loud book to young readers.

[Kelly Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the author's note, Bania writes about how this story was inspired by two Iñupiat men who harpooned a whale and needed the help from their entire community to bring the giant fish out of the water. I couldn't help but also think about the Russian folktale, "The Giant Turnip" that also talks about the importance of teamwork and community.

What I love about this version is that it will resonate with my students, and they will understand the language and vocabulary used. Also....I can't imagine catching hundreds of fish while ice fishing. Ice fishing is so hard!

[Adrianna LaGuardia · Rating 3 out of 5]

In this story Kumak is the main character. On a beautiful arctic morning Kumak takes his family ice fishing. He is excited for this particular day because he gets to use Uncle Aglu’s amazing hooking stick. Each of the family members begin to catch fish and Kumak sits patiently. He finally gets a bite and it must be a monster size fish because he cannot bring it in on his own. It takes the help of his family and the whole village to bring in the catch. When they finally collect the fish from the sea the village has enough fish to feed the village.

There are several literary elements present in the story of Kumak’s fish. The characters are simple, direct, and easy to relate to.For example, Uncle Aglu only appears on one page put the reader connects with him and the magic of the hooking stick. The setting is that of spring in a far north arctic village. The illustrations help show the setting with simple pictures of snow capped mountains and frozen lakes. They show the family riding sleds and scooping out holes on the frozen lake to fish. The plot of the story flows easy as we follow the family on their fishing trip. The author provides a straightforward sequence of each family member catching a fish. This pattern is very simple and easy to memorize. The theme is very universal in the fact that it shows the simple lesson of supporting each other. The tone of this tall tale is a reflections of how humans interact to help one another to get to a common goal.

[David Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kumak’s Fish

In this story Kumak is the main character. On a beautiful arctic morning Kumak takes his family ice fishing. He is excited for this particular day because he gets to use Uncle Aglu’s amazing hooking stick. Each of the family members begin to catch fish and Kumak sits patiently. He finally gets a bit and it must be a monster size fish because he cannot bring it in on his own. It take the help of his family and the whole village to bring in the catch. When they finally collect the fish from the sea the village has enough fish to feed the village.

There are several literary elements present in the story of Kumak’s fish. The characters are simple, direct, and easy to relate to.For example, Uncle Aglu only appears on one page put the reader connects with him and the magic of the hooking stick.  The setting is that of spring in a far north arctic village. The illustrations help show the setting with simple pictures of snow capped mountains and frozen lakes. They show the family riding sleds and scooping out holes on the frozen lake to fish. The plot of the story flows easy as we follow the family on their fishing trip. The author provides a straightforward sequence of each family member catching a fish. This pattern is very simple and easy to memorize. The theme is very universal in the fact that it shows the simple lesson of supporting each other.

[Christie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Summary:
In this story Kumak. on a cold arctic morning takes his family ice fishing. He is excited because on this day he gets to use Uncle Aglu’s hooking stick. Each of the family members begin to catch fish and Kumak sits waiting his turn. When he finally gets a bite he thinks it must be a monster size fish because he cannot bring it in on his own. It takes the help of his family and the whole village to bring in the catch. When they finally collect the fish from the sea the village has enough fish to feed the village. 

The specific characteristics to this book would be used for multi-cultural as it is a story as it is a story about Native Alaskan Inuit people.

Education teaching concepts: Social Studies Inuit people, also be good to use for friendship, cooperation, characters and values, Ice Fishing. Language Arts.

Specific writing traits this book could be used for word choice because the words paint a picture of what is happening. Ideas because there is a message and it reflects a purpose.
The book reading level from Book Wizards Scholastic books is: Interest Level Grades K - 2 Grade Level Equivalent 2.2

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a “Tall Tale from the Far North.” It is the story of Kumak and his magic fishing rod. One day, the weather was perfect for this Inuit family to go fishing. They all went together. By the end of the day, everyone had caught a fish except for Kumak, but he did not give up. Suddenly, his magic stick began to twitch him one way and the other, but he wasn’t strong enough to bring the fish up to the surface. His whole family pulled on him, but they still weren’t strong enough. Soon enough, the entire town was pulling on Kumak, and finally the fish came to the surface. All of the fish were clinging to each other just as the people were, and there were enough fish for everyone in the village to eat for supper.
It is a slightly longer story and would be good to read even without the pictures.

[Janelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great fish story! Set in an Alaskan village, this story tells the tale of a village coming together on an ice fishing outing.

The author draws from Alaskan traditions and says it was inspired by a similar true incident. The story features some Alaskan words and fishing terms that may be new to children and a great learning opportunity.

The author has written a sequel called Kumak's House.

[Danielle Monroe · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great multi-cultural tall-tale. It's all about team work and how working together can bring a great reward, such as enough fish for an entire village to have a feast! There's only one thing I don't like about this book. I don't like how Kumak doesn't use his wife's name; he calls her wife. That seems a bit disrespectful to me, and just one step away from "Woman, get in the kitchen and make me a sandwich!"

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This tall tale is comical and far-fetched (as tall tales should be!). Kumak uses a special fish hook and gets a bite from a fish so large the entire village has to hold on to the line to keep Kumak from falling in. What a surprise to find that the big fish is actually a long line of fish, each holding on to the other to keep the first one from getting caught!

[Lauren Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a good cultural book to discover how the small town of Eskimos come together to help one another in the cold Artic and how family and traditions are important to maintain. The author's note at the end shares a tale and how to pronounce certain words used in the text. Very good book that is still interesting to young children without being overly cultural and pushing facts.

[Erin Leffler · Rating 4 out of 5]

This great story will engage students from the start with its whimsical illustrations and cultural roots. As Kumak tries to pull in his big catch, students will want to get behind him and help him pull along with all of the other villagers. With a poignant theme of teamwork, this book is one that students will want to read again! A great traditional tale!

[Kira · Rating 4 out of 5]

We are studying polar habitats and I picked this up on a whim, not knowing what it was really about. What a cute and funny tall tale about an Eskimo family and their fishing adventure. Our whole family enjoyed finding out the surprise at the end. Very fun illustrations and a great read aloud for story time.

[Kristine Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

An uplifting multicultural tale about a people group not often depicted in picture books. There's just enough whimsy to make it even more fun but still somewhat believable. Kumak is a boy living in the Arctic who goes fishing with his family, and one by one they all succeed except for him.

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

An uplifting multicultural tale about a people group not often depicted in picture books. There's just enough whimsy to make it even more fun but still somewhat believable. Kumak is a boy living in the Arctic who goes fishing with his family, and one by one they all succeed except for him.