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Kokopelli's Flute
THE MAGIC HAD ALWAYS BEEN THERE.
Tep Jones has always felt the magic of Picture House, an Anasazi cliff dwelling near the seed farm where he lives with his parents. But he could never have imagined what would happen to him on the night of a lunar eclipse, when he finds a bone flute left behind by grave robbers. Tep falls under the spell of a powerful ancient magic that traps him at night in the body of an animal.
Only by unraveling the mysteries of Picture House can Tep save himself and his desperately ill mother. Does the enigmatic old Indian who calls himself Cricket hold the key to unlocking the secrets of the past? And can Tep find the answers in time?
Tep Jones has always felt the magic of Picture House, an Anasazi cliff dwelling near the seed farm where he lives with his parents. But he could never have imagined what would happen to him on the night of a lunar eclipse, when he finds a bone flute left behind by grave robbers. Tep falls under the spell of a powerful ancient magic that traps him at night in the body of an animal.
Only by unraveling the mysteries of Picture House can Tep save himself and his desperately ill mother. Does the enigmatic old Indian who calls himself Cricket hold the key to unlocking the secrets of the past? And can Tep find the answers in time?
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
25 people are currently reading
274 people want to read
About the author
Will Hobbs
29 books170 followersWILL HOBBS is the author of seventeen novels for upper elementary, middle school and young adult readers, as well as two picture book stories. Seven of his novels, Bearstone, Downriver, The Big Wander, Beardance, Far North, The Maze, and Jason's Gold, were named Best Books for Young Adults by the American Library Association. ALA also named Far North and Downriver to their list of the 100 Best Young Adult Books of the Twentieth Centrury. Ghost Canoe received the Edgar Allan Poe Award in 1998 for Best Young Adult Mystery.
In outdoor stories that appeal to both boys and girls, Hobbs has readers discovering wild places, sharing adventures with people from varied backgrounds, and exploring how to make important choices in their own lives. A graduate of Stanford University and former reading and language arts teacher, Will has been a full-time writer since 1990. He lives with his wife, Jean, in Durango, Colorado.
Will's books have won many other awards, including the California Young Reader Medal, the Western Writers of America Spur Award, the Mountains and Plains Booksellers Award, the Colorado Book Award, and nominations to state award lists in over thirty states.
In outdoor stories that appeal to both boys and girls, Hobbs has readers discovering wild places, sharing adventures with people from varied backgrounds, and exploring how to make important choices in their own lives. A graduate of Stanford University and former reading and language arts teacher, Will has been a full-time writer since 1990. He lives with his wife, Jean, in Durango, Colorado.
Will's books have won many other awards, including the California Young Reader Medal, the Western Writers of America Spur Award, the Mountains and Plains Booksellers Award, the Colorado Book Award, and nominations to state award lists in over thirty states.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 60 reviews
September 12, 2010
If you're into seed farming and native American lit, you'd like this quick read. I read a little extra about the Anasazi and Mesa Verde. Pretty interesting.
March 9, 2017
This was a very easy book to read with a great story. I like how Will Hobbs made a story based around real places and Native American mythology. Kokopelli's Flute is a great book.
September 16, 2017
I remember in fourth grade my teacher read this to the class, but I didn't remember much about it. I'm very glad I picked it up again. A fantastic adventure filled with interesting plot and a great main character!
September 29, 2020
Very fun.
August 7, 2018
It's really cool how Hobbs and his wife go to areas with ruins like the one in the book. And he's interested in the Pueblo. I like the stick Kokopelli figure on each chapter.
I was immediately struck by the sense of culture. I like that there were bits of Pueblo culture shared through Tepary's imagination. He thought about going to Picture House and seeing the dancers on the dance plaza coming up their underground kivas. He shared wildlife from the area and species of trees.
Bit of forewarning that he wished his dreams had warned him about Picture House. And when he did come up on it, he said he shouldn't have admired it and he should have returned it to the medicine man's bundle. I don't like foreshadowing.
What a surprising and crazy piece of info that you can die from breathing in mouse droppings. Everyone in the Four Corner area, of New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona and Utah know to hold their breath around mouse droppings, because the virus can kill you.
His mom is a paleonidologist which is a branch of paleontology that studies nests. He saw dinosaur tracks on the cliff side. I didn't know that you could find ancient tracks like that. His parents are interesting. His dad told him that home is only a shelter and to spend time outside. His mom said there's little to fear outside but yourself, and that if you use caution and good judgment you'll be okay. She doesn't worry about him going off outside, but worries about him riding in a car. Interesting viewpoint.
I liked his method of scaring the pothunters away, and I had never heard of robbers referred to as pothunters so that was a new term. He lit a tumbleweed on fire and dropped it into the cave and they ran out. It was good of him to think of doing something to get those men out of there.
It was so weird because all of a sudden in his room that night, his ringtail tried to get the flute but he caught it in time. Then he spoke from a perspective after, saying he remembered playing the flute and then bucking like crazy, feeling whiskers on his face and having the claws of a mouse. The ringtail was trying to kill him and they ran around the room, but the next morning he didn't know what happened and thought it was all a dream. That was so bizarre to turn into a packrat and have a fight with his pet. Too bizarre. I really didn't like that the flute had that power.
It was so annoying how he doubted the whole thing, so he didn't even tell his parents about the robbers. Time was of the essence and that should have been the first thing he did.
Tepary is named after the Tepary bean which is the hardiest in the world. It can grow where it almost never rains. His parents run a seed business and grow drought-resistant plants to sell seeds to people who dry farm. A mysterious man sends them packets of seeds who's never shared his name so his dad calls him Mister K, after Kokopelli who's known to travel and bring seeds. It was a little awkward because I've read that he's a symbol of fertility and goes around dispersing seeds of another kind, getting girls pregnant. It was weird that the author didn't acknowledge that but talked of him like he carried plant seeds around.
The next day he went back to the cave to confirm. He checked to make sure he could relate the whole story, and he ended up seeing the albino medicine man with pink shriveled skin. Pretty gross. He actually gave the bone flute back which I didn't expect him to do, and I wondered how things would keep happening when he returned it to its owner. And then night fell and he turned into a rat again. He went running through the tunnels, with other packrats running him away, he ate corn, his dog could tell who he was and she scared off an owl who tried to kill him. I found it really weird, uninteresting and unlikable to read about him in a rat's POV. He figured he would change into a rat from now on, with or without the flute. Also, it turned him into the nearest living creature, which had been a packrat listening to the flute. That sucked.
Tepary wondered how he was going to report it and explain why he'd waited a whole day. He came up with the idea to say it happened the next night instead, to cover him waiting. It was so stupid and I was so annoyed that he didn't just come out with it and spent so long doubting and questioning and needing proof.
He worried that he'd get the virus and spread it to his family. That was another worry on top of turning into a rat. I was so annoyed with the third night, when he was inside his house. He chewed up his parents' seeds, gathered all these little odds and ends and carried them back to his room, and crapped on the table. It was so bad to read, I didn't even want to read it. It was handy the very first night when he fought with Ringo, and his mom made a comment the next morning about Ringo getting him, because he attacks Tepary sometimes. That was convenient that he had an alibi for the noise in his pet. But now that he had made a mess in the house and his mom had seen him going up the stairs, and his dad wanted to set Ringo loose and put up traps, he claimed it was too hot in his room. His parents immediately agreed, asking if he was going to sleep under the stars. He does that when it gets hot in his attic room. How convenient that it's the time of the year when he can go outside so his parents won't see him as a rat.
His mom studies the rat homes so she can learn what happened to the Pueblo people. They all left their homes and disappeared at one time. The packrats will show in their homes what they were eating at the time, and so share what was available to the people and if anything changed with their environment.
Dusty was unique in that she could detect pots underground. I guess that's what happens to your dog if you're an archaeologist. He said at the museum about half the pots are Dusty's. That was funny. When he spotted the robbers they had a pot and Dusty whined and got excited just seeing it, which was weird at the time. I was like you expect me to believe this dog knows the significance of a pot? But the college students working at his dad's seed farm saw Dusty digging something and they found it to be a pot. They didn't believe that Dusty could sense pots and wanted to hear it from his dad. His dad had spent 2 years trying to curb her of the habit. Tepary said her name, getting onto, and she ducked her head and looked at the college students. How cute! His dad thinks she can smell the black pigment. It was funny when he said his dad wasn't happy that she'd had a relapse.
They also didn't believe Tepary when he told them about the magpie that could talk. He wasn't lying. He had told her to speak and she would say his name, "What's to eat?" and "Pass the salsa!" What a colorful and eclectic cast and world.
As soon as I found out he turns into a rat, I didn't like the story. And this happened very quickly into the story, so I had this long road ahead of me that I didn't want to be on. Obviously I knew something bad was going to happen to him because of the summary and the foreshadowing from encountering the flute. I wish the summary had mentioned that he transforms into a rat because I wouldn't have wanted to read it.
The story became about the rat's destruction. Everything that happened during the day, the rat remembered at night and set about destroying. He ate beetles and spiders--so nasty. He blocked all of the exits in the trailer but found a loose board under the sink, chewed through steel wire, ate through his sleeping bag, and worse yet, he tore through his dad's plants. I was so sick of that stupid rat always eating and scavenging for things to take. I was dreading the moment when he attacked the miracle gourds Mr. K sent which grew at an amazingly fast rate. I would have hated that.
The first night back at home, Tep had hidden the tin which held his dad's first Tepary seeds and the ancient corn seeds he'd found in the tunnel. But at some point he realized he'd have to overcome the rat and retain his mind and stop damaging things. He questioned his mom about his birth, where he weighed 2 lbs and was kept in an incubator, and she said how tough he was and strong. So he knew he had it in him. He left the tin can open and I was like no! The stupid rat started eating the seeds but then he got control over it and stopped.
Ringo attacked him and they fought; Tep ended up falling into the water barrel and couldn't get out. He kept swimming because apparently he's been tenacious since birth. Eventually Dusty found him and she kept ramming into the barrel to try to flip it over. Then when that didn't work she started barking like crazy to get help. That was so sweet! I loved this dog. His dad came out and I was worried he'd do something because the rat was getting into things and he wanted it to die, even though his wife is a champion of theirs and Tep came up with all these reasons why packrats might benefit more than harm. He said "He's trying so hard, Dusty. He's just trying so hard, you have to hand it to him." That was such a sweet moment I got a little overcome emotionally!
His dad turned the barrel over and told him "Good luck, little fellow. I hope you revive. You've got a lot of courage." It was a nice moment for his dad to come around and see rats differently after he was so upset and determined to kill it.
When Tep remembered a conversation he had with his mom about magic, if she believed in it or not, and she said there's a lot they don't know I was like come on. Are you really going to have his mom believe that people can change into rats? They noticed he was sleeping more and he heard them talking about him. He asked his mom about his birth and I thought it was all coming too close to the truth.
It was only at this point that he thought to leave out snacks for himself to eat at night. I had thought of that from the very first and it was so annoying that he didn't. He could have saved a lot of trouble and not damaged the farm at all. He vowed not to go into the fields and eat any more, because he didn't want to ruin it for his dad.
It was a little much when a hunchback came to their farm, because that's like the Kokopelli's figure. He called himself Cricket. He didn't actually ask to work, though they assumed that was why he was here. He had a seed stick which the Indians used, and he said the reason for what happened to the Maya was that they didn't have enough types of corn. Then Tepary's magpie landed on his shoulder, when he wouldn't even land on Tepary's. He was glad that Tepary and his family sent seed packets all over the world and kept alive many different types of seed so they would last. He also spoke to the coyote and the coyote seemed to listen. Dusty also warmed to him which she didn't do to strangers. Tepary and his parents had never seen Ringo in the daytime, but at dinner he dropped down on Cricket's shoulder, when no one else but his family had ever even seen him. He spoke to a raven and told him to leave the farm alone and he would play a trick on Coyote just like in the Distant Time.
One night as a rat he heard the same flute music that he's been hearing that no one else could hear. He went in search of it and found Cricket in the field, his head tilted back, his eyes rolled back in his head like he was in a trance. Cricket told him that the Milky Way is from white Tepary beans that Coyote spilled. He could understand Tepary even though Tepary was a rat. Cricket said it's because of people like him and his parents that he stays. He said they're both changelings and he turned into an insect.
With his wings he played the flute music Tepary had been hearing. He had come because he heard someone playing the flute music--Tepary the first time at Picture House--and he wanted to know who it was. He was close to leaving like one of the Kokopelli's already had, because he thought he wasn't needed anymore, until he heard that. He said it wasn't the medicine man's flute, but one of the Kokopelli's. He also knew the medicine man and had been to Picture House, which would have been over 1,000 years ago.
Cricket said the flute came from the earliest days when people changed into animals all the time. It was too vague and unexplained that just because he had played the eclipse during the blackout that that's why he transforms and changes every night. What about the eclipse makes this happen?
So Cricket is the second Kokopelli, and he's thousands of years old. He's also the one who's been sending them the seeds, which I expected shortly after he showed up. But that was so nice that it all tied together. The mysterious Mr. K who sent them amazing seeds turns out to be Kokopelli who has that task. It was pretty incredible. It's so cool that there was so much magic to be had and these abilities. He cared about this family because they were doing so much to grow and spread seeds.
His flute makes things grow, so that's why their crops were sprouting up and growing at such a fast rate. And it causes it to rain, which is why it was raining since he got there.
The medicine man wrote the notes to the flute on the wall. They were in the form of spirals which showed the people's journeys between the world and their migration.
Cricket had planted a special kind of gourd when he got there and he came up with the plan to have Tepary challenge Coyote to an eating contest. If Tepary won then the Coyote would never bother their farm again.
Coyote was pretty dumb with the way he talked and I didn't understand how he could talk on the first place, how both of them could carry on a conversation. That was a lot to accept. He was like "Ho, rat," "'What is corn?' Ha-ha-ho, hee-ha-ho-hee!" "O Rat!" And "Why, corn is plump and corn is delicious, corn is blue and corn is golden, corn is red and corn is sweet and corn is practically better than...meat!" It was all so stupid.
Tepary ate the sweet gourd that Cricket promised him, and Coyote was unable to finish the sour gourd he had, so just like that he left them alone. The ravens laughed so at least they got their prank and wouldn't be back either.
I hated when Dusty was shot by the tranq dart by the pothunters. At first I didn't understand why they would take the dog; it's not like she could testify against them. But then I thought they must have heard about her pot-hunting abilities and wanted to use her.
They tied Dusty up to the tree and I was thinking why doesn't he chew the rope? After looking around for a little he was smart enough to think of that. I love when characters do the right thing! She was still knocked out but at least he chewed it enough so it still looked like she was tied but she could get free. And he chewed their boots! Now that's smart!
On the way over I was thinking he should chew the wires on their truck so they can't use it. Right before dawn he thought to do that and I was like yes! He also stole the keys from their tent and buried them. He was doing all the right things!
Tepary had done so good, but then it just had to be ruined. In human form he went to cut Dusty's rope with his knife and one of the men saw him. He came to get Tepary but Dusty broke free and bit his hand, and they were able to run away. I couldn't wait for him to get home and tell his parents about the thieves stealing Dusty and more artifacts. But his mom was even sicker and they thought it was the virus. Tep thought he'd given it to her. So he couldn't even mention anything about it. I was so frustrated!
His mom related her research from her sickbed. During the 1,200 years that the pueblo people lived here there was a gradual decline in ponderosa pines, and 100 years before their disappearance they disappeared altogether. They must have cut down all the trees and when they did the soil dried up and it didn't rain or snow as much. The drought would have prevented their crops from growing and they would have starved, and the survivors left.
When I was past ready for the pothunters to be apprehended and go to jail, I had to read through his mom's sickness. She shared that she'd discovered mice had been in the greenhouse and she thinks she has the virus. Cricket had the idea to get the herbs out of the medicine man's bundle, the ancient herbs the people used to use for this sickness, which no longer exists. It was an emotional moment because his dad was afraid and told him to run like a deer to Picture House. I wanted the whole ordeal to be over with, but on the way Tep turned into the rat and I was soo aggravated!
Too much was happening, one bad thing after another. Good ol Dusty found the pot with the medicine man's bundle, but the pouches had been stolen by packrats. Then the two men came to retrieve the artifacts. I just wanted it all to conclude. There was a coyote staring and they shot at it but it didn't move. One said how strange it was and it was funny when Tep wanted to add to the confusion, so he ran out and bit their feet. Their gun went off and one was shot in the foot.
Tep had to go through the rat tunnels and search all the burrows for the pouches, fight off rats and everything and it was too close to the end of the book to still have this much to do. He found the flute and knew he needed to turn back into a human in order to carry everything out. I didn't know what to expect from the flute notes he was supposed to learn, but having him think the spirals looked like an owl's eyes and then just put together that he was supposed to mimic the call of the owl on the flute was disappointing and too easy. I expected something better.
The tea worked and Cricket left, without giving them the chance to thank him or say bye. I wish he would have let them, because his mom had him run after him so she could thank him and she didn't get to. Tep saw him playing his flute before he disappeared into the sun. He also made the ancient corn seeds that Tep planted sprout. It was cute how Tep had said when he planted them that if they sprouted his dad would do the fertilizing, so when he announced they had, his dad said "I'll be a manure specialist!" and Tep said he'd be the boss.
He called the BLM and the sheriff and we didn't even get to know what happened. I didn't like how that played out. By the end he missed his rat adventures, riding on Dusty and all, but he didn't want it back because it was too dangerous. He hid he flute so no one would ever find it and blow on it. They would have their best year in crops, and the sweet gourd would eventually make enough seeds to go out to people. His dad noticed how weird it was that the ravens flew over but didn't try to eat anything, and that the coyotes never ate anything either. He and Dusty waited for Cricket to return.
I like how everything tied together. Mr. K arriving as Cricket and ending up being Kokopelli. Them raising seeds, what Kokopelli is known for. The ancient herbs being used to heal his mom. Kokopelli’s powers bringing rain and growth to their farm, and keeping the ravens and coyotes away.
I wish the mom hadn't gotten sick. That further ruined it, after the whole tranforms-into-a-rat thing.
There were just too many calamities happening one right after another. It didn't play out the way I wanted it to.
I thought the lunar eclipse was going to be a bigger deal than it was, so I'm glad I didn't end up saving it for the anniversary of last year's solar eclipse like I had thought of doing. What I thought was going to be the central plot point turned out to be a side plot and not the focus of the story. It seemed like nabbing the bad guys was what the book was about and that wasn't it at all. There were some nice moments and it tied together well but the plot was disappointing.
The best character was a dog. Dusty stole the show. What a heroic and faithful companion. I loved that dog. That shouldn't happen tho.
I was immediately struck by the sense of culture. I like that there were bits of Pueblo culture shared through Tepary's imagination. He thought about going to Picture House and seeing the dancers on the dance plaza coming up their underground kivas. He shared wildlife from the area and species of trees.
Bit of forewarning that he wished his dreams had warned him about Picture House. And when he did come up on it, he said he shouldn't have admired it and he should have returned it to the medicine man's bundle. I don't like foreshadowing.
What a surprising and crazy piece of info that you can die from breathing in mouse droppings. Everyone in the Four Corner area, of New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona and Utah know to hold their breath around mouse droppings, because the virus can kill you.
His mom is a paleonidologist which is a branch of paleontology that studies nests. He saw dinosaur tracks on the cliff side. I didn't know that you could find ancient tracks like that. His parents are interesting. His dad told him that home is only a shelter and to spend time outside. His mom said there's little to fear outside but yourself, and that if you use caution and good judgment you'll be okay. She doesn't worry about him going off outside, but worries about him riding in a car. Interesting viewpoint.
I liked his method of scaring the pothunters away, and I had never heard of robbers referred to as pothunters so that was a new term. He lit a tumbleweed on fire and dropped it into the cave and they ran out. It was good of him to think of doing something to get those men out of there.
It was so weird because all of a sudden in his room that night, his ringtail tried to get the flute but he caught it in time. Then he spoke from a perspective after, saying he remembered playing the flute and then bucking like crazy, feeling whiskers on his face and having the claws of a mouse. The ringtail was trying to kill him and they ran around the room, but the next morning he didn't know what happened and thought it was all a dream. That was so bizarre to turn into a packrat and have a fight with his pet. Too bizarre. I really didn't like that the flute had that power.
It was so annoying how he doubted the whole thing, so he didn't even tell his parents about the robbers. Time was of the essence and that should have been the first thing he did.
Tepary is named after the Tepary bean which is the hardiest in the world. It can grow where it almost never rains. His parents run a seed business and grow drought-resistant plants to sell seeds to people who dry farm. A mysterious man sends them packets of seeds who's never shared his name so his dad calls him Mister K, after Kokopelli who's known to travel and bring seeds. It was a little awkward because I've read that he's a symbol of fertility and goes around dispersing seeds of another kind, getting girls pregnant. It was weird that the author didn't acknowledge that but talked of him like he carried plant seeds around.
The next day he went back to the cave to confirm. He checked to make sure he could relate the whole story, and he ended up seeing the albino medicine man with pink shriveled skin. Pretty gross. He actually gave the bone flute back which I didn't expect him to do, and I wondered how things would keep happening when he returned it to its owner. And then night fell and he turned into a rat again. He went running through the tunnels, with other packrats running him away, he ate corn, his dog could tell who he was and she scared off an owl who tried to kill him. I found it really weird, uninteresting and unlikable to read about him in a rat's POV. He figured he would change into a rat from now on, with or without the flute. Also, it turned him into the nearest living creature, which had been a packrat listening to the flute. That sucked.
Tepary wondered how he was going to report it and explain why he'd waited a whole day. He came up with the idea to say it happened the next night instead, to cover him waiting. It was so stupid and I was so annoyed that he didn't just come out with it and spent so long doubting and questioning and needing proof.
He worried that he'd get the virus and spread it to his family. That was another worry on top of turning into a rat. I was so annoyed with the third night, when he was inside his house. He chewed up his parents' seeds, gathered all these little odds and ends and carried them back to his room, and crapped on the table. It was so bad to read, I didn't even want to read it. It was handy the very first night when he fought with Ringo, and his mom made a comment the next morning about Ringo getting him, because he attacks Tepary sometimes. That was convenient that he had an alibi for the noise in his pet. But now that he had made a mess in the house and his mom had seen him going up the stairs, and his dad wanted to set Ringo loose and put up traps, he claimed it was too hot in his room. His parents immediately agreed, asking if he was going to sleep under the stars. He does that when it gets hot in his attic room. How convenient that it's the time of the year when he can go outside so his parents won't see him as a rat.
His mom studies the rat homes so she can learn what happened to the Pueblo people. They all left their homes and disappeared at one time. The packrats will show in their homes what they were eating at the time, and so share what was available to the people and if anything changed with their environment.
Dusty was unique in that she could detect pots underground. I guess that's what happens to your dog if you're an archaeologist. He said at the museum about half the pots are Dusty's. That was funny. When he spotted the robbers they had a pot and Dusty whined and got excited just seeing it, which was weird at the time. I was like you expect me to believe this dog knows the significance of a pot? But the college students working at his dad's seed farm saw Dusty digging something and they found it to be a pot. They didn't believe that Dusty could sense pots and wanted to hear it from his dad. His dad had spent 2 years trying to curb her of the habit. Tepary said her name, getting onto, and she ducked her head and looked at the college students. How cute! His dad thinks she can smell the black pigment. It was funny when he said his dad wasn't happy that she'd had a relapse.
They also didn't believe Tepary when he told them about the magpie that could talk. He wasn't lying. He had told her to speak and she would say his name, "What's to eat?" and "Pass the salsa!" What a colorful and eclectic cast and world.
As soon as I found out he turns into a rat, I didn't like the story. And this happened very quickly into the story, so I had this long road ahead of me that I didn't want to be on. Obviously I knew something bad was going to happen to him because of the summary and the foreshadowing from encountering the flute. I wish the summary had mentioned that he transforms into a rat because I wouldn't have wanted to read it.
The story became about the rat's destruction. Everything that happened during the day, the rat remembered at night and set about destroying. He ate beetles and spiders--so nasty. He blocked all of the exits in the trailer but found a loose board under the sink, chewed through steel wire, ate through his sleeping bag, and worse yet, he tore through his dad's plants. I was so sick of that stupid rat always eating and scavenging for things to take. I was dreading the moment when he attacked the miracle gourds Mr. K sent which grew at an amazingly fast rate. I would have hated that.
The first night back at home, Tep had hidden the tin which held his dad's first Tepary seeds and the ancient corn seeds he'd found in the tunnel. But at some point he realized he'd have to overcome the rat and retain his mind and stop damaging things. He questioned his mom about his birth, where he weighed 2 lbs and was kept in an incubator, and she said how tough he was and strong. So he knew he had it in him. He left the tin can open and I was like no! The stupid rat started eating the seeds but then he got control over it and stopped.
Ringo attacked him and they fought; Tep ended up falling into the water barrel and couldn't get out. He kept swimming because apparently he's been tenacious since birth. Eventually Dusty found him and she kept ramming into the barrel to try to flip it over. Then when that didn't work she started barking like crazy to get help. That was so sweet! I loved this dog. His dad came out and I was worried he'd do something because the rat was getting into things and he wanted it to die, even though his wife is a champion of theirs and Tep came up with all these reasons why packrats might benefit more than harm. He said "He's trying so hard, Dusty. He's just trying so hard, you have to hand it to him." That was such a sweet moment I got a little overcome emotionally!
His dad turned the barrel over and told him "Good luck, little fellow. I hope you revive. You've got a lot of courage." It was a nice moment for his dad to come around and see rats differently after he was so upset and determined to kill it.
When Tep remembered a conversation he had with his mom about magic, if she believed in it or not, and she said there's a lot they don't know I was like come on. Are you really going to have his mom believe that people can change into rats? They noticed he was sleeping more and he heard them talking about him. He asked his mom about his birth and I thought it was all coming too close to the truth.
It was only at this point that he thought to leave out snacks for himself to eat at night. I had thought of that from the very first and it was so annoying that he didn't. He could have saved a lot of trouble and not damaged the farm at all. He vowed not to go into the fields and eat any more, because he didn't want to ruin it for his dad.
It was a little much when a hunchback came to their farm, because that's like the Kokopelli's figure. He called himself Cricket. He didn't actually ask to work, though they assumed that was why he was here. He had a seed stick which the Indians used, and he said the reason for what happened to the Maya was that they didn't have enough types of corn. Then Tepary's magpie landed on his shoulder, when he wouldn't even land on Tepary's. He was glad that Tepary and his family sent seed packets all over the world and kept alive many different types of seed so they would last. He also spoke to the coyote and the coyote seemed to listen. Dusty also warmed to him which she didn't do to strangers. Tepary and his parents had never seen Ringo in the daytime, but at dinner he dropped down on Cricket's shoulder, when no one else but his family had ever even seen him. He spoke to a raven and told him to leave the farm alone and he would play a trick on Coyote just like in the Distant Time.
One night as a rat he heard the same flute music that he's been hearing that no one else could hear. He went in search of it and found Cricket in the field, his head tilted back, his eyes rolled back in his head like he was in a trance. Cricket told him that the Milky Way is from white Tepary beans that Coyote spilled. He could understand Tepary even though Tepary was a rat. Cricket said it's because of people like him and his parents that he stays. He said they're both changelings and he turned into an insect.
With his wings he played the flute music Tepary had been hearing. He had come because he heard someone playing the flute music--Tepary the first time at Picture House--and he wanted to know who it was. He was close to leaving like one of the Kokopelli's already had, because he thought he wasn't needed anymore, until he heard that. He said it wasn't the medicine man's flute, but one of the Kokopelli's. He also knew the medicine man and had been to Picture House, which would have been over 1,000 years ago.
Cricket said the flute came from the earliest days when people changed into animals all the time. It was too vague and unexplained that just because he had played the eclipse during the blackout that that's why he transforms and changes every night. What about the eclipse makes this happen?
So Cricket is the second Kokopelli, and he's thousands of years old. He's also the one who's been sending them the seeds, which I expected shortly after he showed up. But that was so nice that it all tied together. The mysterious Mr. K who sent them amazing seeds turns out to be Kokopelli who has that task. It was pretty incredible. It's so cool that there was so much magic to be had and these abilities. He cared about this family because they were doing so much to grow and spread seeds.
His flute makes things grow, so that's why their crops were sprouting up and growing at such a fast rate. And it causes it to rain, which is why it was raining since he got there.
The medicine man wrote the notes to the flute on the wall. They were in the form of spirals which showed the people's journeys between the world and their migration.
Cricket had planted a special kind of gourd when he got there and he came up with the plan to have Tepary challenge Coyote to an eating contest. If Tepary won then the Coyote would never bother their farm again.
Coyote was pretty dumb with the way he talked and I didn't understand how he could talk on the first place, how both of them could carry on a conversation. That was a lot to accept. He was like "Ho, rat," "'What is corn?' Ha-ha-ho, hee-ha-ho-hee!" "O Rat!" And "Why, corn is plump and corn is delicious, corn is blue and corn is golden, corn is red and corn is sweet and corn is practically better than...meat!" It was all so stupid.
Tepary ate the sweet gourd that Cricket promised him, and Coyote was unable to finish the sour gourd he had, so just like that he left them alone. The ravens laughed so at least they got their prank and wouldn't be back either.
I hated when Dusty was shot by the tranq dart by the pothunters. At first I didn't understand why they would take the dog; it's not like she could testify against them. But then I thought they must have heard about her pot-hunting abilities and wanted to use her.
They tied Dusty up to the tree and I was thinking why doesn't he chew the rope? After looking around for a little he was smart enough to think of that. I love when characters do the right thing! She was still knocked out but at least he chewed it enough so it still looked like she was tied but she could get free. And he chewed their boots! Now that's smart!
On the way over I was thinking he should chew the wires on their truck so they can't use it. Right before dawn he thought to do that and I was like yes! He also stole the keys from their tent and buried them. He was doing all the right things!
Tepary had done so good, but then it just had to be ruined. In human form he went to cut Dusty's rope with his knife and one of the men saw him. He came to get Tepary but Dusty broke free and bit his hand, and they were able to run away. I couldn't wait for him to get home and tell his parents about the thieves stealing Dusty and more artifacts. But his mom was even sicker and they thought it was the virus. Tep thought he'd given it to her. So he couldn't even mention anything about it. I was so frustrated!
His mom related her research from her sickbed. During the 1,200 years that the pueblo people lived here there was a gradual decline in ponderosa pines, and 100 years before their disappearance they disappeared altogether. They must have cut down all the trees and when they did the soil dried up and it didn't rain or snow as much. The drought would have prevented their crops from growing and they would have starved, and the survivors left.
When I was past ready for the pothunters to be apprehended and go to jail, I had to read through his mom's sickness. She shared that she'd discovered mice had been in the greenhouse and she thinks she has the virus. Cricket had the idea to get the herbs out of the medicine man's bundle, the ancient herbs the people used to use for this sickness, which no longer exists. It was an emotional moment because his dad was afraid and told him to run like a deer to Picture House. I wanted the whole ordeal to be over with, but on the way Tep turned into the rat and I was soo aggravated!
Too much was happening, one bad thing after another. Good ol Dusty found the pot with the medicine man's bundle, but the pouches had been stolen by packrats. Then the two men came to retrieve the artifacts. I just wanted it all to conclude. There was a coyote staring and they shot at it but it didn't move. One said how strange it was and it was funny when Tep wanted to add to the confusion, so he ran out and bit their feet. Their gun went off and one was shot in the foot.
Tep had to go through the rat tunnels and search all the burrows for the pouches, fight off rats and everything and it was too close to the end of the book to still have this much to do. He found the flute and knew he needed to turn back into a human in order to carry everything out. I didn't know what to expect from the flute notes he was supposed to learn, but having him think the spirals looked like an owl's eyes and then just put together that he was supposed to mimic the call of the owl on the flute was disappointing and too easy. I expected something better.
The tea worked and Cricket left, without giving them the chance to thank him or say bye. I wish he would have let them, because his mom had him run after him so she could thank him and she didn't get to. Tep saw him playing his flute before he disappeared into the sun. He also made the ancient corn seeds that Tep planted sprout. It was cute how Tep had said when he planted them that if they sprouted his dad would do the fertilizing, so when he announced they had, his dad said "I'll be a manure specialist!" and Tep said he'd be the boss.
He called the BLM and the sheriff and we didn't even get to know what happened. I didn't like how that played out. By the end he missed his rat adventures, riding on Dusty and all, but he didn't want it back because it was too dangerous. He hid he flute so no one would ever find it and blow on it. They would have their best year in crops, and the sweet gourd would eventually make enough seeds to go out to people. His dad noticed how weird it was that the ravens flew over but didn't try to eat anything, and that the coyotes never ate anything either. He and Dusty waited for Cricket to return.
I like how everything tied together. Mr. K arriving as Cricket and ending up being Kokopelli. Them raising seeds, what Kokopelli is known for. The ancient herbs being used to heal his mom. Kokopelli’s powers bringing rain and growth to their farm, and keeping the ravens and coyotes away.
I wish the mom hadn't gotten sick. That further ruined it, after the whole tranforms-into-a-rat thing.
There were just too many calamities happening one right after another. It didn't play out the way I wanted it to.
I thought the lunar eclipse was going to be a bigger deal than it was, so I'm glad I didn't end up saving it for the anniversary of last year's solar eclipse like I had thought of doing. What I thought was going to be the central plot point turned out to be a side plot and not the focus of the story. It seemed like nabbing the bad guys was what the book was about and that wasn't it at all. There were some nice moments and it tied together well but the plot was disappointing.
The best character was a dog. Dusty stole the show. What a heroic and faithful companion. I loved that dog. That shouldn't happen tho.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 20, 2016
I think of Hobbs as an adventure writer, but this particular story was not quite as suspenseful as some of his other stories. The main character, Tepary, witnesses thieves stealing artifacts from an old Native American site. He finds a flute which he blows that turns him into a bushy tailed wood rat every night around sundown. Besides dealing with his new dual nature, which he has to overcome in order to keep himself from eating away at his father's farm, he must stop the pot hunters, get ancient beans to begin to grow again and discover that Kokopelli still exists. I liked it a lot, thought it was a little on the slow side. The overall message of sustaining all species because it is dangerous to rely on only a few, is important and clear. Older readers interested in this theme could try the adult book Prodigal Summer by Barbara Kingsolver. In all, I think this is a book for the youngest of the YAs, and it would probably be good for 6th graders.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 13, 2010
It was just good not great. The main reason I did not readily enjoy this tale was that it did not fit the type of genre I like to read. If you are in for an adventure and a little bit of history this book may have u reading and rereading for hours. I definitely recommended this book to people who enjoy a good adventure. The story starts with a young boy who lives with his parents in New Mexico near the ancient picture house dwellings. With his explorations he begins to know the land. One day he blows on the mysterious flute and his life is changed forever.
January 23, 2016
We read this as a family. The story line was interesting and engaging but there was a lot of botanical information that most people just aren't interested in. There's a reason I failed Botany in college. I'm just not interested in it and apparently the rest of the family found it boring as well. We love Native American history and cultural learning so this book would have been much better without all the boring plant information.
March 16, 2015
In my opinion, this book was ok. The way the idea of magic being in a cliff might seem strange, but it helps the main character with his family's seed farm. Although he has a curse on him, he knows what is right and that he will do what ever he can to help him and his mother. The adventure with Tep brings suspense in all kinds of ways. To me this book was not my type, but was an alright book.
March 25, 2018
This book taught me about Hantavirus. Hobbs puts a lot of detail into his settings. You really feel like you are there. I saw him at a conference once, and he said that he travels to, and fully photographs, each location that he writes about in his books.
July 20, 2010
The book was ok. It was not real action packed. The last three chapters is when the book got pretty good.
May 17, 2015
I read this for a book club and I liked it more than I thought I would. This is a great story for any kid that likes animals, stories about Native Americans, and magic.
March 15, 2023
I confess that this book is a Young Adult book. As I was sorting through book donations, I saw the title “Kokopelli's Flute.” I was immediately interested. I have long been interested in mythology and in Native American myths since reading ALL of the amazing Tony Hillerman’s Navajo Nation Mysteries. It is through Hillerman’s mystery series featuring Leaphorn and Chee that I actually learned more about Navajo Mythology. Kokopelli is a Native American Deity, revered by certain Native American groups in the Southwestern region of the United States. He is a highly symbolic figure who is known as a fertility god, prankster, healer and story teller. Thus, for many, Kokopelli has been a source of wonder throughout the country for centuries.
YA book or not, I really enjoyed the plot of “Kokopelli's Flute.” The central character Tep Jones has always felt the magic of Picture House, an Anasazi cliff dwelling near the seed farm where he lives with his parents. One night during a lunar eclipse, he finds a bone flute left behind by grave robbers. When he blows on it, Tep falls under the spell of a powerful ancient magic that traps him at night in the body of an animal. This was a very easy book to read with a great story. The story line was interesting and engaging. It was NOT a great book, but it was a good book ( a solid 3) about an interesting character.
YA book or not, I really enjoyed the plot of “Kokopelli's Flute.” The central character Tep Jones has always felt the magic of Picture House, an Anasazi cliff dwelling near the seed farm where he lives with his parents. One night during a lunar eclipse, he finds a bone flute left behind by grave robbers. When he blows on it, Tep falls under the spell of a powerful ancient magic that traps him at night in the body of an animal. This was a very easy book to read with a great story. The story line was interesting and engaging. It was NOT a great book, but it was a good book ( a solid 3) about an interesting character.
April 6, 2020
This book walks you through a magical, yet frightening at times, experience through Tep, the main character's eyes. After Tep and his dog witness a robbery of an ancient burial site, Tep finds a flute that was left behind and plays it. Once this has happened, his life will never be the same. From the adventure of trying to find the robbers to experiencing the "spell" that is now on Tep (due to him playing the flute), many mysteries continue throughout the book. You have to read the book to get your questions answered. Meaningful themes revolve around the topics of family, friendship, and acceptance as well.
September 22, 2020
Kokopelli's Flute is by Will Hobbs. This book takes place near the Anasazi ruins in Arizona. Tep and his family live near Picture House on a farm. The ruins have always seemed magical to Tep as his imagination takes him back into the past as he looks at the ruins. One night during a lunar eclipse, he finds a bone flute that was left behind by grave robbers. The flute has magical powers which changes him into an animal at night. He has to find the key to the spell so his Mother can be taken to the hospital. He also has to avoid capture by the grave robbers who come back for the flute. Can he find the key in time?
November 16, 2020
It wasn't bad. The Native Americans themed and imagery were used effectively. Overall, it had a good message about protecting keystone species of animals and plants, and how important diverse ecosystems are even if those species seem like pests. But ultimately the way the book is written, it is kinda boring. Everything is spelled out. There is no mystery behind anything.
I think some elements of the story could be rearranged to make the story a little more engaging but maybe that is just the fact I'm an adult reading a kids book. If I were in 4th grade, I may have liked this better.
I think some elements of the story could be rearranged to make the story a little more engaging but maybe that is just the fact I'm an adult reading a kids book. If I were in 4th grade, I may have liked this better.
September 29, 2022
Tep Jones lives in New Mexico, not far from Picture House, an Anasazi cliff dwelling that is still mostly intact, and he believes, filled with magic. When he sees it being robbed and ransacked by thieves one night, he goes in to check the damage and finds an Anasazi flute. He makes the mistake of playing a few notes, and finds out the magic is real, and he must solve the mystery, stop the thieves, and find a way to undo the magic.
A fun story, and I think kids, especially middle grade kids, would enjoy it.
A fun story, and I think kids, especially middle grade kids, would enjoy it.
January 9, 2023
Reading this book was like watching a movie with great cinematography with the way it all played out in my mind. It was like a dream. I read this as an adult and not as a child. This is a family book, not just a child's story. There is a lot of love, and some heart warming moments. It is completely unpredictable, and original. There are no extra details, and no lose ends. The setting is described beautifully. I highly recommend this book.
February 11, 2023
Read this as part of a novel review committee for my son's school district. In the year 2023, I believe we can find better books with actual indigenous representation and a book that doesn't refer to migrant workers as "the illegals"
June 28, 2017
I think this book was really good. I thought that kokopelie was a made up character until recently. Also it really surprised me when there were two kokopelies.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 1, 2019
This was a pretty fast read. Part historical fiction, part fantasy, and part action story. It did present with me with Native American legends that I wasn’t familiar with.
October 7, 2019
Young adult fantasy set in the desert Southwest, Tepary Jones, from a dry seed farm interrupts pot robbers. Enjoyable read.
June 15, 2021
Good read about legends and tales
August 7, 2021
An easy upper elementary read that mixes mythological adventure with Southwestern indigenous history.
June 25, 2023
It was weird reading this in 2023 because I was a kid and remember the fear during the hantavirus outbreak. I really enjoyed this book. There's a lot of amazing native American folklore.
July 17, 2024
It was pretty good, but the plot wasn’t my favorite.
September 28, 2025
When Tel finds a mysterious flute and begins turning into an animal every night, he must figure out the magic of Picture House. A cute and creative adventure, but not enough plot to interest me.
Read
January 30, 2016Tepary (Tep) Jones is not your average 13-year old. For one, he's named after a bean (and refers to himself as 'The Human Bean'). His parents own a Seed Farm, where college students work for credit, and they send seeds for planting all over the world. Tep's best friend is a dog named Dusty. Oh... and he turns into a pack rat every night.
When Tep finds a flute made out of eagle bone at the ancient Picture House, he tries to play a few notes. Big mistake. Playing the flute makes him a 'changeling'... human during the day, pack rat at night. He doesn't have any control over his nighttime adventures and is constantly worried about what kind of damage he'll do next. To make matters worse, his dog Dusty is captured by pothunters, who raided the ancient Picture House, and Tep has to find a way to get them out. Tep also has to find a way to make himself human again since he's the only one who can save his mother from the dreaded hantavirus.
Will Tep ever become human again? Will he be a nasty packrat forever? And who the heck is this Cricket who visits the farm?
I only read this book because my daughter said it was the worst book she's ever read (in the big three or so years she's been reading), and I wanted to see if she was right. Yes... she was right. Darn Common Core Curriculum. This book was tough for me to read so I can only imagine what a bunch of 3rd graders must think about it. It introduces all these weird foreign concepts like seed farms and ancient ruins and nasty packrats and albino mummies. I think at the age of 9, kids should be reading Charlotte's Web or Stuart Little, not a book about some nasty packrat ruining his parent's crops. Then again, Charlotte's Web was about a spider and a pig and Stuart Little was about a mouse so maybe that's not such a good comparison.
Also, I hate books that could never be real, and this was definitely one of them. A lot of the book was steeped in fact... a young boy who loves his dog who lives on a farm with his parents... but that's where the similarities stop. Does this kid have any friends? Does he go to school? And really? Changing into a packrat based on a few notes on a flute? Come on.
I also hated that so much of the book had to do with poop. But not poop in a funny Captain Underpants way. Poop in a gross way. Like Tep was the manure specialist or the packrats put their feces in their pack or mice droppings create hantavirus. Not something I ever need my child to read. I think I really need to complain to the School Board about this one.
When Tep finds a flute made out of eagle bone at the ancient Picture House, he tries to play a few notes. Big mistake. Playing the flute makes him a 'changeling'... human during the day, pack rat at night. He doesn't have any control over his nighttime adventures and is constantly worried about what kind of damage he'll do next. To make matters worse, his dog Dusty is captured by pothunters, who raided the ancient Picture House, and Tep has to find a way to get them out. Tep also has to find a way to make himself human again since he's the only one who can save his mother from the dreaded hantavirus.
Will Tep ever become human again? Will he be a nasty packrat forever? And who the heck is this Cricket who visits the farm?
I only read this book because my daughter said it was the worst book she's ever read (in the big three or so years she's been reading), and I wanted to see if she was right. Yes... she was right. Darn Common Core Curriculum. This book was tough for me to read so I can only imagine what a bunch of 3rd graders must think about it. It introduces all these weird foreign concepts like seed farms and ancient ruins and nasty packrats and albino mummies. I think at the age of 9, kids should be reading Charlotte's Web or Stuart Little, not a book about some nasty packrat ruining his parent's crops. Then again, Charlotte's Web was about a spider and a pig and Stuart Little was about a mouse so maybe that's not such a good comparison.
Also, I hate books that could never be real, and this was definitely one of them. A lot of the book was steeped in fact... a young boy who loves his dog who lives on a farm with his parents... but that's where the similarities stop. Does this kid have any friends? Does he go to school? And really? Changing into a packrat based on a few notes on a flute? Come on.
I also hated that so much of the book had to do with poop. But not poop in a funny Captain Underpants way. Poop in a gross way. Like Tep was the manure specialist or the packrats put their feces in their pack or mice droppings create hantavirus. Not something I ever need my child to read. I think I really need to complain to the School Board about this one.
July 23, 2015
Many many moons ago, I used to be in charge of the children's section of our village library. I occasionally like to pick up a middle grade or young adult mystery to take a look at what's available for younger readers now, and I have to admit that I'm glad I chose Kokopelli's Flute. Will Hobbs has written an adventure that kept me hooked from first page to last.
First of all, there's the idyllic (to me) setting: the Seed Farm in the New Mexico section of the Four Corners, within walking distance of an ancient cliff dwelling. I immediately put myself in Tep's shoes as he and his dog Dusty (the best canine companion a child could ever have) would walk there to explore.
I also learned a lot about dry farming and the rare seed business. Another fact of life-- pot hunters who destroy ancient sites for the artifacts that they can sell-- provides some excellent suspense and action sequences at the beginning and end of the book.
There's some magic in this book that calls for a reader's willing suspension of disbelief, and although I didn't really buy into Tep's changing into an animal every night, I did enjoy those sections-- especially when Tep stopped panicking and started using his head.
Kokopelli's Flute starts out rather slowly but builds momentum to a satisfying conclusion. Tep is a good-hearted, smart boy, and at that age, I would've been his friend in a heartbeat. Part of me does wonder at how much children in the proper age range would actually enjoy this book. Something tells me the "city slickers" might find it boring, and that would be a shame.
First of all, there's the idyllic (to me) setting: the Seed Farm in the New Mexico section of the Four Corners, within walking distance of an ancient cliff dwelling. I immediately put myself in Tep's shoes as he and his dog Dusty (the best canine companion a child could ever have) would walk there to explore.
I also learned a lot about dry farming and the rare seed business. Another fact of life-- pot hunters who destroy ancient sites for the artifacts that they can sell-- provides some excellent suspense and action sequences at the beginning and end of the book.
There's some magic in this book that calls for a reader's willing suspension of disbelief, and although I didn't really buy into Tep's changing into an animal every night, I did enjoy those sections-- especially when Tep stopped panicking and started using his head.
Kokopelli's Flute starts out rather slowly but builds momentum to a satisfying conclusion. Tep is a good-hearted, smart boy, and at that age, I would've been his friend in a heartbeat. Part of me does wonder at how much children in the proper age range would actually enjoy this book. Something tells me the "city slickers" might find it boring, and that would be a shame.
July 8, 2008
This is a Battle of the Books book (or at least it was last year) and I am anxious to read all the books on the Battle of the Books list. This one was terrific!
Kokopelli is the Indian name of the magical person who brought seeds from one Hopi village to another in ancient times. The legend of Kokopelli is held sacred by Tepary Jones and his parents as they raise crops on their dryland seed farm, caring for the plants and selling the seeds in their catalog. When Tepary hikes to Picture House, an Anasazi cliff dwelling near his home, to watch the lunar eclipse he stumbles upon pothunters digging up the ancient ruins in search of valuable artifacts. After scaring off the pothunters, Tep uncovers a bone flute that was carelessly left behind. He cautiously brings it to his mouth and blows just as the moon is covered in the lunar eclipse. The powerful and ancient magic contained in the hollow flute transforms Tep into the body of a bushy-tailed pack rat. Every night after, his transformation occurs just after sundown and lasts until the sun rises again. Tep must uncover the secret of the flute in order to discover how to retain his human persona when night falls.
This is a great read for kids (approx. ages 10-14) and, if I had a class of kids all my own next year, I would definitely read it aloud to them... right around the time we studied the Anasazi cliff dwellings during Colorado History. It would be perfect!
Kokopelli is the Indian name of the magical person who brought seeds from one Hopi village to another in ancient times. The legend of Kokopelli is held sacred by Tepary Jones and his parents as they raise crops on their dryland seed farm, caring for the plants and selling the seeds in their catalog. When Tepary hikes to Picture House, an Anasazi cliff dwelling near his home, to watch the lunar eclipse he stumbles upon pothunters digging up the ancient ruins in search of valuable artifacts. After scaring off the pothunters, Tep uncovers a bone flute that was carelessly left behind. He cautiously brings it to his mouth and blows just as the moon is covered in the lunar eclipse. The powerful and ancient magic contained in the hollow flute transforms Tep into the body of a bushy-tailed pack rat. Every night after, his transformation occurs just after sundown and lasts until the sun rises again. Tep must uncover the secret of the flute in order to discover how to retain his human persona when night falls.
This is a great read for kids (approx. ages 10-14) and, if I had a class of kids all my own next year, I would definitely read it aloud to them... right around the time we studied the Anasazi cliff dwellings during Colorado History. It would be perfect!
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